Every year from September 16 to 22, European Mobility Week (SEMS) is held, the largest European campaign dedicated to promoting sustainable urban mobility and raising awareness of active and environmentally friendly transportation solutions.
The B.I.T.U. - Bitonto Interventi Tattici Urbani - project was developed within this context, with the aim of rethinking Bitonto's urban public spaces by actively involving schools and some local associations. The redevelopment took place through actions of tactical urbanism, an approach to urban design that involves temporary and low-cost interventions to experiment with quick and easily implemented solutions, such as the creation of safe pedestrian paths, green areas and bicycle stalls. The project was realized thanks to the contribution of private sponsors, including Favaro1, a company particularly sensitive to these issues and always ready to support initiatives in line with its values.
Loredana Domenica Modugno, an architect and urban planner, managed and coordinated the activities of the B.I.T.U. project, which came about as an evolution of the My Bit Map initiative carried out the previous year. We met with her to hear about the project.
How did the project on sustainable mobility in Bitonto come about?
“Bitonto participates in European Mobility Week every year, and this year I was asked to coordinate the project because the previous year I had overseen My Bit Map, an initiative that led to the creation of the first participatory map on mobility, working with about two thousand male and female students from the municipality of Bitonto and the hamlets of Palombaio and Mariotto, from elementary school to high schools. With them, I built a concept of sustainable mobility that is closer to their daily experience: related to the ways they move, how they feel during their commute, and the quality of the public spaces they pass through.
Those who live in a big city can get around in a thousand ways - with Uber, the subway... - while in smaller realities the possibilities are very limited. Let's think of a 16-year-old girl who has to go from one small town to another or get to school: she has to be accompanied by her parents by car. Her experience will therefore be heavily influenced by the car. But if she could move around on foot, that route would also become an experience linked to the emotions experienced along the way, the perception of space, the presence of degraded elements or, on the contrary, a good urban quality. Walking is linked to all indicators of public space quality: beauty, safety, sociality.
My Bit Map was born from these considerations. The work was not only explaining what sustainable mobility is, but also investigating and measuring indicators of public space to arrive at a real community map. I showed boys and girls different examples of urban transformation: streets previously dominated by cars, then converted with simple and temporary interventions to be returned to people. Male and female students recounted their experiences by answering questionnaires with questions such as, 'How do you experience the home-school route?', 'How do you feel during the commute?' From their answers, we then worked on the indicators that emerged.”
What does My Bit Map consist of and how was it created?
“My Bit Map is an interactive map that is accessible to anyone, you just need to have the link. Male and female students told how they get around on a daily basis and what difficulties they encounter; all this information was then translated into the map. By clicking on the various points, it is possible to discover, for example, the presence of an incomplete and therefore dangerous bike lane or a poorly functioning traffic light. The map also includes reports on the use of different places in the city: meeting points, bus stops, the theater, the places where they hang out to eat.
I taught them how to map and use digital tools. The boys and girls actively participated, rethinking many parts of the city. Each class made videos, drawings and projects to make Bitonto safer, with an eye on urban regeneration. My Bit Map was also awarded as one of the best projects of the last 15 years.”
And from My Bit Map it then led to B.I.T.U.?
“That's right, B.I.T.U. was the natural development of My Bit Map, carried out with the schools themselves to start a process of urban regeneration of public spaces. In agreement with the municipality, the interventions were concentrated in the areas joining different institutions. Unfortunately, the time frame for organizing and implementing the project was very tight and there was no way to apply for public funding. Therefore, I turned to private sponsors, including Favaro1.
Then we structured the work by groups: each had in management a stretch of road and the tools to rethink it, draw it, color it, and integrate it with the other areas. The result was very creative and also included the recovery of old tires turned into seats and the installation of hammocks in a public park. The actions put in place have restored life to areas of the city previously dominated by cars, such as a square in front of a historic school. Another important aspect was to make people aware that parking in those places was no longer possible, to ensure safe spaces at school entrances.”
Thanks to the architect Modugno for sharing her experience: initiatives like this represent a valuable opportunity to raise awareness and stimulate concrete changes. Favaro1, which has always been attentive to sustainability and environmental responsibility, is proud to have taken part in this project and renews its commitment to promoting a vision of construction that focuses on respect for the environment and for people.
We hope that projects of this kind can multiply, receiving more and more attention, support and dissemination.