Sesil Koutra

A Comparative Study on User Characteristics of an E-car Pooling Service in Universities in Europe

An impactful solution for confronting critical environmental problems may be pursued within the context of e-carpooling services. Nevertheless, a crucial part in our intervention through the introduction of efficient carpooling systems is that of the conceptualization of user preferences and attributes. This study presents a comparison between two surveys focused on a respondent sample consisting mainly of members of a university community. Specifically, the first survey involved students and employees of a private academic institution (University of Deusto, Bilbao, Spain) while the second members of a public institution in (University of Mons, Hainaut, Belgium).

User characteristics of an e-carpooling system at UMONS as part of a smart district concept

Carpooling is a mobility concept that has the potential to effectively reduce the single occupancy trips with passenger cars, and thus energy consumption as well as traffic congestion, while coupled with electric vehicles (EVs) and intelligent transportation systems (ITS) can contribute to the smarter and more sustainable use of transportation networks as integrated part of smart cities. However, in practice, the success of carpooling systems has been limited by psychological barriers related to the level of trust for sharing a ride with strangers, and the necessity for convergence of schedules and trips for ride-matching. To this end, the present work advances the concept of a university-based carpooling system with EVs (e-carpooling), as a means of restricting the access to a closed community with a critical mass of users having the same origin/destination. In particular, this paper reports on the results of a preliminary survey conducted at University of Mons (UMONS), Belgium, in order to explore the characteristics of this user community with respect to the concepts of carpooling and electro-mobility. The results of the survey not only reveal the user preferences for the adoption of the proposed system, but also provide some useful insight for the implementation of the e-carpooling concept in the city of Mons.

User characteristics of an electric bike sharing system at UMONS as part of a smart district concept

The widespread deployment of electric vehicles (EVs), combined with the shift towards alternative modes of transportation, has the potential to alleviate the problems associated with the high use of private vehicles for commuting trips, mainly in urban areas. In this context, the present paper discusses a survey conducted at the University of Mons (UMONS), Belgium, in order to examine the characteristics and attitude of the students in this university community with respect to renting an electric bike (e-bike), as well as to identify the key factors that influence the use of an e-bike sharing system as integrated part of smart cities. The results of the survey indicate the preferences and intentions of the population under study to use such a system and provide some useful insight for its implementation in the city of Mons.

Towards a Net-Zero Energy District Transformation in a Mono-criterion Scenario Analysis - The Case of Bo01, Malmö District

Transforming cities to deal with the resource scarcity and the threats of the climate change remain major challenges in the urban development. Hence, districts are already taking an active key role in European policies. Buildings are a key consumer of energy worldwide representing over than 40% of the overall energy consumption at European level. In this current context of arising interest, reducing energy consumption is an important target. During the last years, the ‘zero energy idea’ has been introduced in international scientific literature review aiming at a more sustainable urban and built environment focusing on individual buildings by articulating the requirements for an annual basis of an energy balance equal to zero. ‘U-ZED’ (Urban-Zero Energy Districts) methodological assessment tool focuses on the challenge of zero energy objective on a district scale. In this paper, the analysis emphasises the ‘transformation’ of Bo01 Malmö area in a mixed-use zero energy district.

A Simplified Methodological Approach Towards the Net Zero Energy District

Zero energy conceptual framework is attracting increasing interest in European target policies aiming at more sustainable and liveable urban and built environments. Despite its compelling context in scientific literature and practical applications, the commonly used approach is principally adopted on the aspect of an individual building. Cases with zero energy concept are few in literature. The aim of this paper is the development of a methodological approach to extend the ‘zero energy building’ to the ‘zero energy district’ by taking into account two challenges: (1) the impact of urban structure (typo-morphology) on the actual energy needs and (2) the location. It proposes a simplified methodology within three strategic axes through the systemic approach of the district and thereby opens and addresses future research perspective to be widely investigated to develop ‘smart’ districts with operational and long-term context by introducing the notion of ‘smart ground’.