Measuring the progress of Dresden’s SUMP

The German city of Dresden’s sustainable urban mobility development plan (SUMP) plays an important role in improving transport in the city. The SUMP assists political decision-makers, traffic-related institutions, NGOs and institutional partners while aiming to support the economy and providing city residents with a clear direction in which policy will move. This was the conclusion of a recent evaluation report, ‘Initial evaluation of the Transport Development Plan 2025plus of the City of Dresden'.

The development of Dresden’s SUMP is of huge importance for the city. Within its framework, goals, priorities and transport strategies to 2025 were developed during an intense, collaborative process. The SUMP’s initial planning began back in 2009, and it took five years until the final version of SUMP 2025plus was delivered. The city administration, representatives of interest groups, transport operators, professional associations, organisations, politicians, consulting scientists, residents and local partners have all contributed to the development of the plan. 

In 2018, after three years of implementation, the Urban Planning Office began the first of two evaluations. A detailed report and brochure have been produced to provide information on the traffic and mobility developments of the last few years, the implementation of the SUMP so far, the extent to which the goals that were set have been achieved and what areas need to be worked on and taken into account when updating the plan. Connections between the development of the urban population and the development of traffic have been highlighted. The population has increased more than motor vehicle traffic, while the environmental impact of traffic has decreased and the accessibility of many city destinations has been enhanced. Overall, stakeholders and commentators have been very satisfied with the transport system that the city is providing.

Raoul Schmidt-Lamontain, Deputy Mayor for Urban Development, Building, Transport and Municipal Properties, stated: “The development of sustainable urban transport in Dresden requires coordinated, integrated planning in order to increase the quality of life in our city and to create an attractive living space. The SUMP 2025plus is a suitable instrument for coping with the upcoming challenges locally."

MAtchUP

An English version of the SUMP has been published, and this was made feasible due to the EU-supported project MAtchUP. This European flagship project creates and adopts intelligent solutions that can turn urban problems into smart opportunities to improve citizens’ mobility and quality of life while boosting local economies. It supports the development of an intelligent sustainable city that can meet climate change challenges, improve energy efficiency and integrate smart communication technologies, with mobility developments as the main focal point.

The Johnannstadt district of Dresden is to be transformed into an intelligent and energy-efficient urban district. The most important mobility measures being implemented through MATchUP will be:

• Ensuring the rapid switching between the more environmentally-friendly, urban modes of transport (bicycles, car sharing, local public transport).
• The establishment of mobility hubs with charging stations for electric cars, including with fast-charging stations.
• An increase in the number of electric vehicles in the Dresden city fleet.
• The provision of charging points for Dresden's tenants.
• The introduction of intelligent measurement technology.

The MATchUP project in Dresden is coordinated by the city's Department of Economic Development, uniting partners within industry, research and administration. Head of the Office of Economic Development of the city, Dr Robert Franke, stated "Our goal is to ensure a good development of the economy, education and science in Dresden. We achieve this in particular through constructive cooperation within the city administration and with external partners. MAtchUP offers us the possibility to exchange competences, to use synergies and to create added value."

Within MAtchUP’s framework, Dresden's SUMP is introducing a pilot “Smart City” project. Its focus will be on:

• Mobility and traffic management.
• Intermodal navigation and information systems.
• Individualised city tours with electric vehicles.
• Information campaigns.

The first SUMP evaluation brochure in English and in German, along with detailed information about SUMP 2025plus, additional brochures, a 25-minute video documentation and much more, can be downloaded here. The translation of the brochure enables international project partners to learn from the results of the SUMP and from the measures that have been implemented.

Article first published by Build Up on 4th April 2019