In 2021, Viable Cities and its sibling program Drive Sweden joined forces to accelerate the climate transition in cities, with a focus on climate-neutral mobility.
Cities cover 3% of the Earth's land surface, but account for more than 70% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions in cities come largely from the transportation of people and goods. Viable Cities' mission is climate neutral and sustainable cities by 2030, and Drive Sweden's vision is to create sustainable and safe mobility systems for people and goods that are accessible to all.
In the collaboration between the two strategic innovation programs Drive Sweden, focusing on future mobility, and Viable Cities, focusing on climate change, Vinnova announced support for innovations that contribute to sustainable accessibility throughout Sweden. The call was held within the framework of Climate Smart Mobility 2030.
More details on the initiatives supported under the cooperation are given below.
Borlänge municipality, together with a number of partners - Sustainable Innovation, SSAB, IKEA, Borlänge Energi, and KLOT - the climate psychologists - will develop mobility services adapted for commuting between city centers and rural areas. New knowledge about behavioral patterns and digital carpooling services will contribute to increased sustainability and less climate impact in transport. The work is part of accelerating the transition to a climate-neutral Borlänge by 2030 and has significant potential for upscaling.
Skellefteå municipality, together with Skellefteå Science City, will develop future-proof mobility hubs that increase accessibility to local services and promote climate-smart travel behavior and freight transport in cold climates with snowy winters. This builds on the previously established test bed for electric aviation, drone transportation and electric helicopters (eVTOL) in northern Sweden. The work is part of accelerating the transition to a climate-neutral Skellefteå in 2030 and has significant potential for upscaling.
Together with the Swedish Taxi Association and the association Klimatkommunerna, Karlstad Municipality will investigate the economic, environmental and social consequences of replacing municipal company cars with transport services such as taxis or various forms of shared mobility with high environmental performance. The work is part of accelerating the transition to a climate-neutral Karlstad by 2030 and has significant potential for upscaling.
Drive Sweden is a strategic innovation program that focuses on creating future mobility systems for people and goods that are sustainable, safe and accessible to all. Drive Sweden is an ecosystem of about 200 actors from business, society and academia who together develop, test and implement efficient, connected, shared and automated transportation solutions.
