As a follow-up to the vision for mobility hubs, the municipality of Amsterdam is looking for guidelines for the spatial integration of neighborhood and district hubs. This vision should give direction to possible opportunities in the short, medium and long term for the development of mobility hubs for shared mobility within the city of Amsterdam, supported by a useful GIS tool for determining locations with potential.
Defining mobility hubs
Before going into general principles, it is essential to understand what a mobility hub is. We define mobility hubs as key nodes in a transportation network where the transition between different transportation modes can occur, with at least one mode being collective (shared and/or public). Our research on hubs began with the report, "Hubs in existing neighborhoods," which highlighted the potential of hubs to save urban space, especially when integrated with "superblock" strategies that advocate pedestrian-friendly zones with green spaces and roadway transformation.
A mobility hub can be a catalyst for significant urban transformations and offers numerous benefits for our cities. However, this ambition is more complex than simply implementing shared mobility. It requires a comprehensive planning approach. The Spatial Strategy for Mobility Hubs we developed for Amsterdam outlines seven key principles to guide this transition:
(1) Plan Hubs as Networks:The true potential of mobility hubs can be realized when they are seen as part of a coherent network, rather than isolated entities. In Amsterdam, we refer to this as the "area network." This approach ensures that every household within Amsterdam is within a maximum walking distance of 5 or 10 minutes from a mobility hub, making them city-wide accessible.
(2) Define multiple goals for hubs: Mobility hubs should be guided by multiple objectives. Promoting sustainable mobility with shared transportation as a key component is one goal, but they can also contribute to social cohesion and accessibility for vulnerable groups. Spatially, hubs should free up more space than they take up.
(3) Plan area-specific strategies: To effectively integrate hub networks with their surroundings, they must be adaptable to the unique characteristics of different urban neighborhoods. Planning hub networks in the city center must differ from those in the suburbs to fit diverse built environments and resident behaviors.
(4) Use existing infrastructure: Urban areas often have a surplus of parking facilities. Mobility hubs can promote parking and vehicle sharing by making better use of existing parking infrastructure. This transformation can be enhanced through collaboration between public and private stakeholders, especially with owners of private parking garages.
(5) Link to (new) parking policies: Mobility hubs should be integrated into existing and new parking policies to address parking management challenges. For example, introducing mobility hubs and shared vehicles along with paid parking can encourage people to switch from private to shared vehicles. Introducing hubs should also reduce an area's parking standards.
(6) Link to (urban) transformation: Mobility hubs can relieve parking pressure in existing urban developments, which is particularly useful in space-constrained areas such as Amsterdam. In addition, hubs can encourage new urban development in locations not previously considered, freeing up space for new housing, workplaces and amenities.
Move across scales
To effectively address all of these principles, the last but perhaps most crucial principle of hub design is to plan across scales. Mobility hubs must meet citywide, neighborhood, neighborhood and street-specific needs, allowing for a range of urban functions and achieving multiple goals.
Looking ahead
As we push the boundaries of mobility transition, we can imagine in the short and long term that hubs will continue to play a central role in urban dynamics. Starting with simple parking spaces for shared vehicles, they can be upgraded to collective parking facilities. Eventually, they evolve into logistics hubs or parking spaces for bikes, scooters and other new small vehicles in our future urban landscapes.
Learn more?
At its core, hub design must follow the local context to maximize its potential and integrate successfully with the urban environment. We also present four examples of hub designs tailored to their specific context, which you can download on this page.
