Fostering Green Mobility in UNESCO Cities: Luang Prabang and Siem Reap

AFFILIATION
Arup

DESCRIPTION 
Arup developed a green mobility strategy and action plan for Luang Prabang and Siem Reap, focusing on two UNESCO heritage areas to facilitate the transition to more sustainable transport options. Arup, the consultant and mediator for this project, created a collaborative vision among various stakeholders, including the World Bank, local municipalities and the ministries and departments of transport, planning and finance. 

Urban growth and increasing tourism spurred by these UNESCO designated areas are negatively impacted by new infrastructure projects. There is an urgent need to boost the public’s use of more sustainable transport options, such as public transport, walking or cycling. Several tools were developed to facilitate green mobility decision-making, including a City-Level Index that compares the two cities to other UNESCO heritage cities in terms of infrastructure, public opinion, travel behaviour and institutional regulatory frameworks, in addition to a Street-Level Index that uses more than 20 metrics to assess green mobility conditions from a user perspective to give a composite "heat map" of the city’s streets to identify areas for improvement. Pre-pandemic travel patterns were analyzed to plan future mobility improvements. The study was undertaken from 2020-2022, with an infrastructure plan timeline up to ten years out. 
 

20230627_Fostering Green Mobility in UNESCO Cities_Plan1

 

Beneficiaries

  • Residents, including disadvantaged groups; 
  • Visitors and tourists. 

Outputs

  • Green mobility vision, strategy and roadmaps of specific investments;

  • Funding planning for different green mobility investments;

  • Workshops and training with local stakeholders and universities on green mobility, data analytics, etc. 

Outcomes

  • Increased knowledge and understanding among local stakeholders;

  • Enhanced skills for urban mobility in UNESCO designated cities;

  • Database of the street network given to cities to identify areas for improvement.