AURORA - A Pre-study on Accessibility to and from Areas of National Interest for Outdoor Recreation

The pre-study aimed to contribute to increased knowledge about sustainable travel to, from, and within outdoor recreation areas (ORAs) focusing specifically on public transport (PT) and its combination with active mobility (e.g. walking and cycling). The project activities included a literature overview, a GIS analysis, and a stakeholder workshop, and allowed to identify challenges to sustainable accessibility, as well as possible solutions and knowledge gaps.

Main takeaways:

• The fact that PT is not considered as a feasible mobility option by potential passengers may depend on several reasons: a) PT provision (timetables, routes, vehicles) is not adapted to the actual flows of visitors and commuters (number of passengers, temporal/seasonal variations, travel needs). The collection and analysis of detailed demand data, which are currently not available, would support planning decisions and improve PT attractiveness; b) There is a lack of information on opportunities for and advantages of sustainable accessibility to ORAs. Communication campaigns should be jointly reviewed by regional and local actors and address residents, visitors, and commuters. Already existing platforms that contain information on physical accessibility (e.g. Tillgänglighetsdatabasen) should be maintained and updated;
• Testing opportunities for combined mobility (e.g. bikes on board of trains and busses) while simultaneously improving road safety (in relation to speed limits and walking and cycling infrastructure) would enhance the feasibility, convenience, and safety of sustainable multimodal trips;
• Any measure should take into account the delicate balance between improving access to natural areas while considering their limited environmental capacity and the impact of visits.
• The points above should be addressed adopting a “whole trip” perspective and through the valorisation of the local knowledge. This goal could be reached through the creation of a multi-actor forum for coordination and cooperation involving public, private, and civil society actors working at different scales.