Partners in SUNRISE
- City of Budapest, District 14, Zugló: www.zuglo.hu
- Mobilissimus Ltd: mobilissimus.hu/en
- BKK Centre for Budapest Transport: www.bkk.hu/en/main-page/news
Ambition
Zuglo’s area Törökör is a pilot neighbourhood using innovative methods of co-planning and co-implementing solutions for the regeneration of public space. There is a special programme for engagement of people living with special mobility needs, in particular elderly, children and disabled people.
Zuglo’s current situation
Zugló-Törökör has a population of approximately 12 000 inhabitants. Numbers show that the population of the neighbourhood has been nearly unchanged since the 1990s, only a slight increase of some 1-2 % can be observed. The issue of ageing population seriously affects the neighbourhood. It causes problems for the municipality to reorganise the institutions like kindergartens, or schools. It also has its effects on mobility. For instance, ageing has an effect on public transport as there are areas with more passengers that suffer from locomotor diseases. Törökör is home to middle-class people with higher qualification than the average of Budapest.
Since the 2014 local elections Zugló has a mayor who is devoted to green issues, sustainability and environmental awareness. This is the first term when the mayor and the council of representatives are elected for a 5-year period, instead of four years only. In the council the number of representatives supporting the mayor and the number of opposition representatives are more or less equal, so the mutual agreement, the continuous operation of political and professional forums is vital in sake of the district’s operation and development.
The participatory approach is a new idea and practice in defining the content of the local developments in more and more projects. Sound support for decision makers is key to reform the old fashioned government-style leadership to a more democratic governance-like process-management that is based on building partnerships.
Mobility situation
The first SUMP based transport development strategy, the Balázs Mór Plan has been accepted in 2015 after a successful public consultation. It contains the key problems, the interventions areas, goals and visions until 2030. Creating a Strategy for Biking in Zugló has started in 2016. Based on citizens’ participation this strategy will be worked out by spring of 2017.
Anticipated activities in SUNRISE
The main task of the SUNRISE project in Zuglo’s Törökör neighbourhood is to widen and deepen the existing process of participatory planning and establish a sustainable cooperation of the local stakeholders for co-assessing and co-planning mobility-related issues. Co-implementing innovative solutions also belongs to the main task, using synergies of other developments involving citizens in the neighbourhood. Regeneration of public spaces in the district is Zuglo’s main goal, Törökör as a pilot neighbourhood for this process could present innovative methods, tools for other neighbourhoods; be they project partners or other locations, in Zuglo, Budapest, or in other cities.
Zuglo has a special programme for the engagement of people living with special mobility needs, in Törökör, this approach will be developed further. The SUNRISE project in Törökör will therefore have a special focus on the elderly, children and disabled people.
The pilot actions, especially related to public space and shared mobility, will be defined as the result of the co-creation process. These can include improving public space; converting an abandoned transformer house to a community-based bike sharing hub/ workshop; bicycle parking at housing estates; innovative sustainable mobility solutions at schools (e.g. designated safe walking routes, public transport information, bicycle parking); local freight logistics incl. cargo bike sharing; extension of the Bubi Budapest bike sharing scheme to Törökőr; parking regulation; applications supporting the above etc. – depending on local needs and vision co-identified during the project.