Project Details

Project goal

Air and noise pollution caused by traffic are a growing problem in large urban areas. A compromise is needed between environmental quality improvements and urban mobility demands. The overall goal of HEAVEN was to develop and demonstrate a decision support system (DSS). The DSS is now enabling decision makers to integrate real-time measurements of air pollution and noise caused by traffic in large urban areas into their practical transport decisions. Thus environmental effects of Transportation Demand Management Strategies (TDMS) can be evaluated.

HEAVEN combined efficient Transportation Demand Management Strategies and integrated environmental Information Society Technologies. Large European cities exchanged experiences of how to reduce air and noise pollution on a European level.

Concrete sustainable development perspectives were provided and environmentally effective policy strategies could be identified.

The concrete project objectives were:

• To provide the basis for decision-making through integrated and real time information.
• Inform key actors and the public on air and noise pollution levels.
• Investigate the data needs of health experts and develop a data exchange platform with health experts and authorities.
• Draw conclusions for the implementation of local noise and air action plans.
• Generate commercial value out of the project.

Results

Rupprecht Consult had a key role in the preparation of the project Evaluation Report. Derived from evaluation results, the document provides recommendations for:

• HEAVEN partners for further roll-out activities they may envisage;
• Potential take-up partners for new implementations;
• The European Commission for setting up future programmes; and
• Readers interested in methodological issues for future assessments.

HEAVEN and the system it developed has the potential to become a widely accepted and implemented tool to support key actors in their decision making with regard to traffic, air quality, noise, and beyond.

HEAVEN developed and demonstrated a DSS to evaluate environ-mental effects of Transport Demand Management Stragegies. The project objectives were to a large extent achieved:

• Decision makers have more and better quality environmental data at hand in the common HEAVEN data repository, includ-ing valuable test results from traffic management scenarios.
• Key actors in urban planning issues, including the general public, can now quickly be informed on the current state of air pollution levels as well as noise to are enabled to make deci-sions.
• HEAVEN allowed to draw conclusions in regard to the imple-mentation of local noise and air action plans as they are part of current EU legislation.

HEAVEN successfully achieved, either aprtially or completely, the impacts identified by the Evaluation Team:

• Enhanced description of current environmental situation
• Enhanced environmental scenario analysis
• Improved access and quality of environmental information for professional as well as for public user
• Improved institutional co-operation
• Increased support of urban planning on an environmental basis

Documents produced for this project by Rupprecht Consult GmbH are available from info(at)rupprecht-consult.eu

Project partners

• Società Trasporti Automobilistici Spa, Rome, Italy
• Elsag S.p.A., Genoa, Italy
• Mizar Automazione S.p.A, Turin, Italy
• World Health Organisation (WHO)
• Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung Berlin, Berlin, Germany
• IVU Traffic Technologies AG, Berlin, Germany
• European Academy for the Urban Environment, Berlin, Germany
• Beratungs- und Servicegesellschaft Umwelt mbH, Berlin, Germany
• City of Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands
• DGMR (Environmental Protection Agency), Rotterdam, Netherlands
• Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), Delft, Netherlands
• Goudappel Coffeng, Deventer, Netherlands
• Airparif, Paris, France
• Ville de Paris, Paris, France
• Carte Blanche Conseil, Paris, France
• DREIF/SIER, Paris, France
• MERCUR, MAINTENANCE ETUDES ET REALISATIONS EN CIRCULATION URBAINE ET EN REGULATION, Paris, France
• Leicester City Council, Leicester, United Kingdom
• University of Leeds, Institute for Transport Studies Leeds (ITS), Leeds, United Kingdom
• Swedish Meteorological & Hydrological Institute (SMHI), Norrköping, Sweden
• City Development Authority of Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
• Institute of Municipal Informatics of the City of Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
• Institute of Transportation Engineering, Prague, Czech Republic
• Czech Hydrometeorological Institute, Czech Republic
• Heich Consult, Hürth, Germany
• Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe, REC, Szentendre, Hungary
• Luca Persia, Rome, Italy
• ARIA Technologies, Boulogne-Billancourt, France
• ECOAIR Prague, Czech Republic
• Rupprecht Consult GmbH, Cologne, Germany