Mobility hubs are increasingly being discussed when it comes to mobility in area developments or when mobility problems arise in cities or rural areas. Hubs can be a solution for making travel in the Netherlands more sustainable. By making travel more sustainable, a big step can be taken towards achieving the goals in the Dutch climate agreement. In urban areas mobility hubs can help to solve the lack of space and in rural areas to maintain accessibility. The comfort of travelling is increased with the development of mobility hubs in the Netherlands.
What is a mobility hub?
The definition of a mobility hub now varies quite a bit. There are similarities in this, but also differences. It is often seen as a transfer point or node during a journey, but a mobility hub is more than that. There are shared mobility facilities and services present.
So at the moment there is a fragmented picture of mobility hubs. In practice, it has not yet been experienced what the ideal hub should meet. By researching the needs of travelers and combining this with experimentation, the optimal development of hubs can be considered. Customization is something that is very important when developing hubs. Each location where a potential mobility hub could be realized could be researched for travel movements in the area. This will give an indication of the current situation so that an appropriate hub can be created. In addition, it is important to take behavioral changes into account when realizing a mobility hub. When using a hub, a person does not have to completely abandon the use of their own car, but it does become easier to make part of the journey more sustainable. To change something in the behavior of the traditional car driver, mobility hubs can be used to show that traveling becomes easier, faster and more comfortable in a different way than using only your own car.
Customization is something that is very important when developing hubs.
What should a mobility hub look like?
Through experimentation in developing mobility hubs, there could be some fixed elements at a hub in the future. Nevertheless, hub development is not one universal concept that can be applied everywhere. It can be seen as a hub where a transfer can be made in combination with different modes of transport and services. What these modes of transport and services are depends on the travel needs of the neighborhood. By starting with data research on travel movements, an indication of the most suitable location for the mobility hub can be made. Using the same data, it is possible to map out travel distances so that the supply of transportation modes can be determined. A combination of these data will result in a hub that suits the requirements and higher goals such as sustainability, space usage and accessibility.
MoveYou provides advice on mobility hubs based on knowledge and data. By doing research into the needs and current travel movements a smart choice can be made in the locations of mobility hubs. Data is imperative. MoveYou can play an important role in this.