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Italian City Cycling Assessment
Dutch Cycling Embassy
Description according to the Cycling Community research projects format
(October 26, 2016; update January 1, 2025)
Matrix characteristics
Domains: (E1) Effective mobility, (E2) Efficient city – (E3 Economy – Circles: (C2) Civil society – Research types: (R4) Applied policy
DOMAINS – (E1) Effective mobility (E2) Efficient city (E3) Economy (E4) Environment (E5) Equity . CIRCLES – (C1) Superstructure (C2) Civil society (C3) Grassroots . TYPES OF RESEARCH – (R1) Scientific (R2) Applied scientific (R3) Applied technical (R4) Applied policy (R5) Free (and other)
Project name
Italian City Cycling Assessment
Project owner, or client
Dutch Cycling Embassy
Project setting
Giro 2016 Gelderland, Regione Puglia, Fiab Onlus, CIVITAS, Dutch Embassy Rome
Project researcher or actor
RVDB Urban Planning & GoDutchCycling, in co-operation with Dutch Cycling Embassy, Fabric, RingRing, Loendersloot Groep, Dutch Bicycle Centre, La Stazione delle Biciclette, 21am Milan
Trigger
The assessment entails questions regarding basic information of the state of the art cycling in Italy, and particularly in some featured cities, like Milan, Rome and some smaller cities, including Bari and its region of Puglia. Other issues covered by the query are the use of cycling and the availability of dedicated infrastructure. Also cultural and planning issues have been addressed.
Domains
(E1) Effective mobility
(E2) Efficient city
(E3) Economy
Circles
(C2) Civil society
Types of research
(R4) Applied policy
Summary
The Italian Cycling Assessment aims to celebrate the Giro 2016 Event and to enhance relationship between Gelderland’s entrepreneurs and Italian business. The assessment stages comprehensively state of the art cycling in Italy and focuses on the exemplary city Bari and its region Puglia to reveal the near and promising future of all types of cycling.
The results of the project confirm the positive trends in Italian cycling. In many parts of the country cycling is boosted. Commuting and recreating by bicycle increases. Cargo bikes and e-bikes are more used than ever before. Cycle culture develops.
The growth of cycling in Italy and particularly the increasing importance of bikenomics represent a serious opportunity for cycle industry, consultants and designers to expand their business.
Bari and Puglia deserve some special attention. The experts recognise promising changes in cycling that reflect the rise of a new era in both city and region. Levels of cycling increase and accordingly the awareness of cycling culture grows, for instance, schools make cycling subject of their educational programmes.
Tags
Cycling assessment, state of the art cycling
DESCRIPTION
Aim and plan
The Italian Cycling Assessment aims to celebrate the Giro 2016 Event and to enhance relationship between Gelderland’s entrepreneurs and Italian business.
Organization and funding
Project assigned by Giro Gelderland (Big Start 2016) to Dutch Cycling Embassy.
Period and availability:
January-April 2016; Final edited version July 31, 2016
Work packages
The query contains six chapters (hence work packages), in summary as follows.
1. Basics
. Number of bicycles per citizen
. Number of dedicated bicycle shops
. Legal traffic status of bicycles
2. Use
. Modal split / percentage of cycling
. Average length of bicycle trips
. Kind of bicycle use
. Road safety
3. Infrastructure
. Length of dedicated cycle infrastructure
. Number of parking facilities
. Bike sharing system
4. Culture
. Helmet use.
. Use of cycling clothing versus regular wear
. Life style
5. Planning
. Cycling policies
. Cycling plans
. Cycling budgets
. Other cycling initiatives
6. Other features and issues
. Various
Applications
Assessment state of the art cycling in cities worldwide.
Other
None.
Backgrounds & Additions
Bari and Puglia work on the extension of cycle infrastructure. Particularly the experts appreciate the IPA-project for a new bicycle parking structure in Bari near the main train station. According the experts this project justifies special attention for Bari/Puglia as front runner. However safety and bicycle theft stay important subjects to be addressed.
The experts want to underline the importance of the growing cycling consciousness in both the city of Bari and the region of Puglia. The future looks bright as cycling advocacies are no longer ‘alone’, while the number of advocacies increases. Again, special attention is justified by the fact that during the last year the Mobility Department of Puglia Region organized many meetings and workshops with municipalities, provinces and railway companies on bike to work and bike to school campaigns.
Finally the experts recognised the importance of regional cycle tourism. With the BOURBON cycle route from Bari to Naples Puglia proofs a positive trend in this regard.
Publications and references
Final report (July 31, 2016)
Involved social stakeholders
Region Puglia,‘Cycling Festival Europe 2016’, Participants of the Dutch Cycling Community, in co-operation with the Dutch Cycling Embassy
Related projects
Assessment state of the art cycling in cities worldwide by Dutch Cycling Embassy.
Related applications
International Cities Cycling Assessment tool
ICCA-basic-tool-v2.1 2018
City Cycling Dashboard 2019
Follow-up research
. Masterthesis Assessment of ‘The Bicycle System’ 2022 by Féline De Pandelaere (2021-2022)
. Development CCA tools, assigned by Province of Gelderland (NL), 2017
. Various International Cities Cycling Assessments by Dutch Cycling Embassy, since 2016: Aalborg (Denmark); Arnhem, Eindhoven, Groningen (Netherlands); Bari, Lecce, Milan (Italy); Bergen (Norway); Calgary (Canada); Cambridge (UK); Bogotá (Colombia); Ghent (Belgium); Isfahan (Iran); Turku (Finland); Moscow (Russia); Munich (Germany); Sofia (Bulgaria) and more …
Links
https://www.dutchcycling.nl/
http://www.lightrail.nl/bicycles/
Other media
Download the final report:
ItalianCitiesCyclingReport-final
Text and image credits
Vento by Paolo Pileri e.o. (2015), Bari in Bici, Bari Pedala, La Stazione delle Biciclette, RVDB Urban Planning
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Acknowledgements
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