A Place-Based Multi-sectoral Project for the Definition of Indicators and Thresholds to Support Sustainable Mobility Policies in Italian Cities

This paper describes the background, methodology, and expected outcomes of the URGET VADEMECUM 2030–2050 Research Project of National Interest (PRIN, Progetto di Ricerca di Interesse Nazionale), funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research in the framework of the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) and the Next Generation Europe fund. The project addresses the issue of urban transition towards carbon neutrality, the pivot of the European Green Deal program, by proposing an innovative assessment procedure to support sustainable urban mobility policies in Italy, which is characterized by the highest car-dependency rate among major European countries, following a place-based approach. The proposed step-by-step procedure combines different analysis and evaluation methodologies, i.e., Threshold Theory, Cluster Analysis, and Multi-Criteria Analysis, re-interpreted in an up-to-date way to provide structured guidance for public authorities to select the most efficient and cost-effective measure packages in terms of suitable technologies, transport policies, urban planning, and regulatory issues, fitting to places’ peculiar characteristics. As the first step of the procedure, a set of indicators and related thresholds, processed using GIS tools, are meant to define the spatial variables that can affect urban mobility in that specific context, narrowing down the number of viable transport modes, innovative technologies and services, to be subjected to the subsequent evaluation steps.