Santa Cruz de Tenerife is set to introduce a personal mobility network in its city centre, which will include increased parking facilities, dedicated lanes, and charging stations exclusively for personal mobility vehicles (PMVs) such as scooters and bicycles. This 1,695 million euros project, with a duration of six months, was approved by the City Council’s Governing Board last Monday.
Under the Public Services, Environmental Sustainability, and Strategic Planning department, overseen by Carlos Tarife (PP), this new initiative will significantly impact the central area of the city with the goal of transforming the current traffic model by decreasing the number of cars in favour of eco-friendly vehicles.
The Mayor of Santa Cruz, José Manuel Bermúdez, stated that “this project, funded by European resources, represents a crucial milestone in our journey towards the digital and sustainable evolution of urban transportation. Therefore, we will continue our efforts to align with the 2030 Agenda and ensure the sustainable development of our environment.”
Carlos Tarife added that, “Santa Cruz is progressively adapting to the environmental standards set by Europe to address future challenges progressively and within the established timelines.”
Additionally, the conservative councillor highlighted the importance of pursuing actions aimed at enhancing sustainable mobility, including the development of this personal mobility network, the establishment of Low Emission Zones, regulated parking areas for both residents and non-residents, as well as the introduction of park-and-ride facilities, demonstrating a steadfast commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Through these measures, the city council aims to enhance mobility flow, allocate public spaces for diverse usage benefiting citizens, facilitate the systematic integration of new, eco-friendlier mobility models to enhance quality of life and the environment, optimize goods distribution, and diminish environmental impacts.
The project, expected to be completed by the year’s end, includes the installation of 80 parking spaces designated for scooters and bicycles within the new cycling zone, aligning with the city’s updated Circulation and Mobility regulations that replaced those from 1985 on February 9.
This new regulation focuses on improving road safety, ensuring pedestrian movement, and promoting the circulation of bicycles, personal mobility vehicles, and other sustainable transport modes compatible with various public road usages.
Zone 30 Implementation
To facilitate this, the regulation advocates for the establishment of modal coexistence zones – areas within the city promoting non-motorized modes of transport such as walking, cycling, or using PMVs alongside automobiles. These areas, termed Zone 30, are marked and managed zones where the maximum speed limit for all vehicles is 30 kilometers per hour, with pedestrians being given priority. Bicycles, skates, skateboards, and PMVs will have precedence over other vehicles in these areas.
Furthermore, the initiative includes the development of broader and clearly marked cycle lanes and walkways for PMVs, encompassing bike lanes, cycle paths, cycle streets, and cycle lanes, all designed to ensure the safe and efficient movement of cyclists and pedestrians.
Additionally, the regulations specify that children under 12 years old, accompanied by an adult, may use skates, scooters, skateboards, tricycles, bicycles, etc., on walkways while maintaining a speed no higher than 5 kilometers per hour, aligning their pace with pedestrians.
