Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city of Spain. The city has a high population density and is at the center of an important European metropolis. City transport is mostly public, thanks to integrated multimodal pricing that allows indiscriminate use of bus, metro, tram and train. Non-motorized transport equals 41.7%, thanks in part to Bicing, a public bike system, with 35,000 daily uses. Powered two-wheelers (PTW) account for 40 percent of private travel within the city.
The city is pursuing electric mobility solutions as a way to reduce CO2 emissions and noise, reduce oil dependency and improve efficiency, and to provide opportunities for entrepreneurial, technical and economic development.
1. MOBECPOINTS COME TO BARCELONA
Barcelona is second only to Rome in the use of motorbikes for personal mobility. In the spring of 2011, Barcelona launched its first electric Mobecpoint (mobecpoint.com) motorcycle charging stations in the city at hotels (where e-bikes are available to guests for rental) and on university campuses. The stations are available free of charge through the end of 2012 to encourage e-bike ridership.
2. CHARGELOCATOR
The city of Barcelona, through its LIVE platform, has partnered with Chargelocator (chargelocator.com), to enable users of its mobile app to:
3. VOLTA MOTORBIKES
Volta Motorbikes is an electric motorbike manufacturer created with the mission of providing new solutions for the pollution problems of big cities. The firm's first model, the Volta BCN, bears the name of Barcelona because it shares a number of different values that are associated with the Catalan capital: design, environmental respect and quality.
4. LIVE Barcelona
LIVE (Logistics for the Implementation of the Electric Vehicle) Barcelona is an open public-private platform that seeks to position Barcelona as a center of innovation in electric mobility. It is promoted by the Government of Catalonia, Barcelona City Council, the Spanish Government, SEAT, ENDESA and SIEMENS.
LIVE set up the first citizens' office in Europe to provide practical information regarding electric mobility in Barcelona. As well as providing information for the general public, LIVE issues electric vehicle users cards required for using the municipal network of recharging points.
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