In both the Netherlands and Germany, shared standard bicycles are currently used mainly by young urban adults. New adapted vehicles, such as tricycles, rickshaws, wheelchair transport bikes and duo-bikes (see annex), could allow older adults and people with reduced mobility to continue cycling; however, these options are costly and require substantial storage space, and are not available through bike sharing scheme services. As a result, many people are unable to cycle any longer anymore, leading to social exclusion, negative impacts on mental health, and reduced personal independence.
FITS aims to flip the narrative in the Interreg Dutch-German space, by developing new and emerging shared mobility services to provide access to these adapted bikes. FITS is a unique collaborative effort involving care facilities, municipalities, (social) mobility operators, research institutions, and adapted bike manufacturers.
Adopting a co-creative approach, FITS places end users at the heart of the development process, ensuring services are tailored to real needs and effectively used beyond the project timeframe.
The project will:
- Deploy and enhance two new shared mobility services:
(1) FITS Volunteers: services working with volunteers where end-users are either transported or cycle together with a companion.
(2) FITS Stations: where end-users directly access the bikes and use them themselves. - Offer new designs for adapted bikes suited for shared use, that enhance user experience, reliability and durability.
- Develop a user-friendly booking and management platform, to support efficient operations of shared mobility services.
- Deliver a toolkit and policy recommendations for the deployment and upscale of shared mobility schemes.
FITS will demonstrate the increased social value of a shared adapted bike system for citizens in the Interreg space. The project will support the mobility goals of both Germany and the Netherlands, while contributing to general wellbeing and ensuring everyone has the right to move.
