The necessity of radical innovations Radical innovations are to be found out of the field of transport. They fall within the scope of three categories:
mobility. In other words, distance solutions offer alternatives to undesired journeys while not restricting desired mobility. They raise, however, organisational challenges which still have to be met.
A. Targeting causes of mobility
C. Downscaling mobility
Public authorities and transport operators must envision radical transformations in the planning of cities and territories as well as in the organisation of daily activities. Within the urban field, there have been interesting initiatives that seek to re-densify neighbourhoods through developing many amenities in close proximity. In this regard, Jeff Speck develops the concept of the walkable city. This urban model is an alternative to urban sprawl and its tremendous environmental, economic and social costs. A city like Portland, Oregon, has decided to give priority to pedestrians, and thereby also increases its attractiveness.
Envisioning a reduction of undesired journeys automatically leads to thinking about downscaling mobility. This reasoning, however, goes against the concept of growth, which lies at the basis of modern and contemporary society. When Marc Andreessen mentions the possibility of reducing the total car fleet by up to 90% without reducing the use of cars, he suggests a path towards de-growth. It is nowadays becoming possible to replace ownership by a pool of services as well as shared and collaborative solutions. We may never reach the values mentioned by Marc Andreessen and his associate, Ben Horowitz. Yet, the fact that the founders of the $2.5 billion venture capital firm consider this path as economically viable, if not profitable, indicates that it is worth exploring.
Another lead to follow is to consider pauses within journeys as part of the mobility chain. In this regard, the development of so-called third places is a growing trend. Those multipurpose places, often started at the initiative of users themselves, accommodate mobile workers, but are open to a wide range of activities within the proximity of residential areas. Thus, they reduce the need for transport. This raises broader questions about the organisation of work. Amsterdam is showing the way. As part of a measure to tackle traffic congestion, the city has developed a network of more than a hundred telework centres in peripheral districts. B. Offering alternatives to motorised mobility What applies to work applies also to a wide range of activities such as retail, training and education, the health industry, etc. The development of e-solutions, or what we would rather call “distance solutions�, does not prevent individuals from moving, but it does reduce the number and the distance of trips travelled. In doing so, it has the potential to directly address the issue of undesired versus desired
Concluding words: the service city The radical transformations mentioned in this paper are first and foremost social and sociological. Individuals’ desire to reduce the negative side effects of mobility must be taken into account. People do not wish to live in cities and societies whose models have reached their limits. They start developing personal strategies, relying largely on mobile technologies and data, which have the power to radically transform mobility in the future. Further development of mobility services, integrating distance solutions, is the key to sustainable and desirable mobility.
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