The Laboratory of Urban Sociology will run a large mobility survey in Sion. The results will help identifying the opportunities for modal shift from cars towards public transport, bicycles, walking.
A performant alternative public transport offer is often not sufficient to make people give-up driving. A series of research studies lead for the past 15 years by the Laboratory of Urban Sociology (LASUR) demonstrated that transportation mode choice is complex and often determined by elements linked to lifestyle such as values and activities. These past years, cars have been regarded from a more critical angle, public transport offers are beefing up, and bicycle paths are multiplying leading car to lose their status in some places. If this tendency seems generalised in large urban centres, is it the case in medium sized towns like Sion?
This project aims at answering this question by demonstrating the logics of modal choices and the opportunities for modal shifting for the inhabitants of the agglomeration of Sion. Scientists form the LaSUR will evaluate the motivations of the inhabitants of the town and the agglomeration of Sion as well as of other communes of the plain and the Coteau that determine their choices of transportation modes. Sion’s identity as a middle-sized town as opposed to larger, equal and smaller ones will be defined and taken into consideration.
Based on these elements, scientists will discuss several operational paths, of urban planning, pricing or communication for example, allowing to play with mode choice in favour of alternatives to cars (public transport, bicycle, walking etc.). Specific measures related to bike sharing systems and their usage will be put forward. The project in partnership with the town of Sion, the Canton of Valais and «La Poste/Car Postal» was launched in December 2014 and will last approximately 7 months.
| Principal investigator | Prof. Vincent Kaufmann |
|---|---|
| Project manager | Emmanuel Ravalet |
| Sponsors | La Poste/PostBus, Canton of Valais, Ville de Sion |
| Period | 2014-2015 |
| Laboratories | Mobility Lab Sion-Valais, LASUR |
| Collaboration | TRACE |