IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute

Since 2018, the City of Gothenburg has implemented mobility and parking guidelines that allow developers to reduce the number of parking spaces in new housing projects in exchange for various mobility measures. These measures – such as car and bike sharing, free public transport period tickets, and information efforts – aim to reduce the need for private car use and car ownership. The process is voluntary, and property developers can decide for themselves which measures and what level of parking reduction they want to achieve, and in this way tailor the process to the individual project. The GotPark project has evaluated the effects of implemented mobility agreements. In the project, we have analyzed relevant documents such as detailed plans, building permits and the agreements themselves. We have interviewed developers about their views on and experiences of the mobility agreements and associated measures. We have also conducted a survey among residents to investigate the effects on their transport and travel habits as well as attitudes towards the measures as such.

The project shows that mobility agreements contribute to more sustainable mobility in Gothenburg. In properties with mobility agreements, there are approximately 25% fewer parking spaces than in comparable properties without agreements. Both car ownership and car use are lower and public transport is used more than in comparable properties without agreements. Residents have a generally positive view of the measures, while several of the measures are used very sparingly. Property developers have a generally positive view of mobility agreements and see many advantages in creating fewer parking spaces. The reasons are primarily economic, while the climate and urban planning arguments are less prominent. They also point to possible improvements in the agreement process, in the selection of appropriate measures and in the issue of follow-up and evaluation.