Human scale instead of gigantomania - Review Kassel Symposium Fine Mobility, September 26-28, 2022

Couldn't it be finer? This question arises in view of the glut of ever larger and heavier cars in our cities. On the other side of the spectrum, more and more innovative, fine, light and maneuverable vehicles are offering a more economical and environmentally friendly alternative to the bicycle.

Around 60 experts from manufacturing companies, industry associations, federal authorities, urban and transport planning institutions, environmental institutes, communication agencies and universities spent three days at the Kassel Symposium on Fine Mobility from September 26 to 28, 2022, examining passenger and freight transport using individual means of transport from the "between shoe and car" spectrum.

It was the first interdisciplinary exchange of information, experiences, findings and insights on the topic of fine mobility, which includes micromobility, mobility aids, bicycles, cargo and special bicycles, velomobiles, cabin scooters, light electric vehicles and electric minicars.

The topics of the discussion rounds were vehicles, the vehicle ecosystem, sectors and the market; micromobility in traffic law; environmental and resource effects and the safety of micromobility; infrastructure planning for micromobility and communication.

The event was hosted by the Department of Transport Planning and Transport Systems at the University of Kassel (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Carsten Sommer) and the Freiburg-based creative studio The Urban Idea. The framework project "Mobility with a human dimension" is funded by the German Federal Environmental Foundation.

How is fine mobility defined? In a partnership between Verkehrsclub Deutschland (VCD) and the urban planners' association SRL with the University of Kassel and The Urban Idea, all types of individual passenger vehicles and light goods vehicles have been recorded according to length, width, height, area, space (external volume), turning circle, weight and kinetic energy and ranked from fine to coarse and divided into seven categories (XXS, XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL) according to known clothing sizes. Fine mobility uses the vehicle categories XXS, XS and S. This makes fine mobility city-friendly, environmentally friendly and climate-friendly.

The organizations also propose a system of traffic areas with certain speed levels for which compatible vehicle categories are determined.

Designers, managing directors, traffic engineers, planners, mobility and environmental researchers, lawyers, psychologists and marketing experts will meet again to further refine the methodology of vehicle categories according to size, weight and speed (GGG) as well as the approach to traffic areas.

In view of today's gigantomania in the vehicle population, everyone agreed: our traffic must become finer!

Contact:

University of Kassel: Prof. Dr.-Ing. Carsten Sommer, c.sommer[at]uni-kassel[dot]de, T. 0561 / 804 3381
The Urban Idea: Konrad Otto-Zimmermann, projekte@theurbanidea.com, T. 0761 / 701 0009