Mobility hubs bring together shared transport with public transport and active travel in spaces designed to improve the public realm for all. Our pop-up mobility hubs are small, modular parklets that can be moved to different locations to support a variety of sustainable transport initiatives.
The hubs have planting, seating, cycle parking, a bike repair stand and an information sign about local sustainable transport. The hubs act as a virtual docking station in areas with a bike sharing scheme.
We are using the pop-up mobility hubs to encourage more people in Scotland to walk, wheel or cycle for short journeys, and to test demand ahead of long-term mobility hub strategies being developed. This project has been funded by Paths for All’s Smarter Choices, Smarter Places Active Nation programme, a grant-fund from Transport Scotland.
While mobility hubs are common in many parts of continental Europe, in the UK they are a new but growing concept. Our project is helping to demonstrate the potential of mobility hubs in a UK context.
The first phase of the project ran August 2023 - March 2024. One hub was based in Inverness and one in the Forth Valley, with two pop-ups per hub, spending 4-8 weeks per site. Engaging with the community was crucial for the success of the hubs. Free activities for the pop-ups included led walks, bike repair sessions, smoothie bikes and bike sharing try-outs.
The hubs were built by Meristem Design. The project drew inspiration from other initiatives, such as: Meristem’s permanent parklet mobility hub for the London Borough of Redbridge; Flemish shared transport charity Mobipunt vzw’s short-term pop-up mobility hubs (‘Hoppinpunts’) in Leuven; and Transport for West Midland’s mobility hubs trial in 2021.
Project partners for phase one included HITRANS (operator of Hi-Bikes), FEL Scotland, Velocity Café and Bicycle Workshop and Partnerships for Wellbeing. We are grateful to the following community groups and organisations that helped to host and promote the hubs: Merkinch Primary School, Kidical Mass Inverness, Stoneywood Care, Ness Side Tesco superstore, BetterPoints, Holm Community Council, Incredible Edible Inverness, and Tamfourhill Community Hub.
Phase two of the project began in April 2024, funded by Smarter Choices, Smarter Places' Open Fund. It will see the pop-ups visit eight locations across Scotland (four locations each), over the course of one year.
The pop-up hubs concept could be replicated anywhere that aims to boost active travel through a bike sharing scheme or bike library. With sufficient funding, the project could be broadened to include a car club vehicle, to address car dependency issues. The pop-ups could also be used to help public authorities reallocate kerb space in a way that is more equitable to all road users.
We would be happy to discuss designing a bespoke mobility hubs project for your organisation on a funded basis, or as part of a joint funding bid. Please contact antonia@como.org.uk to discuss potential opportunities for collaboration.
Below we have shared some images from phase one of our pop-up mobility hubs project. Please see the captions of the individual images for more information.
Click on any of the images for more details. For credits and high-resolution copies please contact us.
Future publications relating to the pop-up mobility hubs will be highlighted here.
