Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan of Batumi · the City of Batumi for the next decade – the Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan – ISUMP “A n Integrated Sustainable

მომზადებულია კომპანია A+S Consult GmbH-ის კონსულტანტთა ჯგუფის მიერ

The report has been prepared by a team of experts from A+S Consult GmbH

Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan of Batumi Technical Report #6

Consultant: A+S Consult GmbH; Germany, 01277 Dresden, Schaufussstraße 19; Tel: +49 351 3121330, E-mail: [email protected] Client: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Project: Green Cities: Integrated Sustainable Urban Transport for the City of Batumi and the Achara Region (ISTBAR)

Page 2

Sub-project: Feasibility Studies for Pilot Low-Carbon Urban Transport Corridor and Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan for the City of Batumi (ISUMP)

Output 6: Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan for the City of Batumi

The report has been prepared by A+S Consult GmbH

CEO Dr. Veit Appelt

Team Leader Daniel Wolf

Batumi

2017

mailto:[email protected]


Page 3

Published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) UNDP Georgia, 2017

All rights are reserved Published in Georgia

The report has been prepared by the company A+S Consult GmbH in the scope of the project – “Green

Cities: Integrated Sustainable Transport for the City of Batumi and the Achara Region”, funded by the Global

Environmental Facility (GEF) and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), with

support from Batumi City Hall and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia.

The views expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of GEF

and UNDP.



Page 4

TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Tables ............................................................................................................................ 8

List of Figures .......................................................................................................................... 9

1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 10

2 Strategic Framework ......................................................................................................... 12

2.1 Common Vision .................................................................................................................. 12

2.2 European and National requirements ................................................................................... 13

2.2.1 ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND GEORGIA ..... 13

2.3 Assessment of the current situation of development sustainable transport ............................. 15

2.3.1 Low Emission Development Strategy Transport Sector, USAID, September 2016 ........ 15

2.3.2 A Policy Framework for Green Transportation in Georgia, The World Bank, June

2012 ...................................................................................................................... 15

2.3.3 Georgia: Transport Policy Study Policy Framework and Preliminary Action Plan

2016-2025 .............................................................................................................. 16

2.3.4 INDC Support Georgia – Vertically Integrated Approaches in NAMA Development

with Focus on the Urban Transport Sector, GIZ, March 2015 ..................................... 17

2.4 Urban Master Plan .............................................................................................................. 17

3 Objectives, Targets and Indicators ................................................................................... 19

3.1 Objectives and Targets ....................................................................................................... 19

3.1.1 Increase transport safety and security ...................................................................... 19

3.1.2 Offer and optimize alternative sustainable transport options for walking, cycling and public transport ................................................................................................ 19

3.1.3 Reduce the effects of transport on people, health and environment ........................... 20

3.2 Indicators ........................................................................................................................... 20

3.2.1 Efficiency ............................................................................................................... 20

3.2.2 Congestion ............................................................................................................. 21

3.2.3 Health and Attractiveness ........................................................................................ 21

3.2.4 Eco-Friendly ........................................................................................................... 21

3.2.5 Safety & Security .................................................................................................... 22

3.2.6 Fairness ................................................................................................................. 22

4 Opportunity and Shortcoming Analysis ............................................................................ 23

4.1 SWOT analysis for Batumi ................................................................................................... 23

Internal factors ................................................................................................................... 23



Page 5

External factors .................................................................................................................. 23

4.2 City Structure and Mobility in Batumi ................................................................................... 25

4.2.1 General information ................................................................................................ 25

4.2.2 Income .................................................................................................................. 25

4.2.3 Mobility of inhabitants ............................................................................................. 26

4.3 Usage of transport modes ................................................................................................... 32

4.3.1 General .................................................................................................................. 32

4.3.2 Motor Vehicle Traffic ............................................................................................... 33

4.3.3 Local Public Transport ............................................................................................. 34

4.3.4 Pedestrian Traffic .................................................................................................... 35

4.3.5 Bicycle Traffic ......................................................................................................... 35

4.3.6 Freight Transport .................................................................................................... 35

5 Fields of Action .................................................................................................................. 37

5.1 Parking .............................................................................................................................. 37

5.1.1 Reorganization of On-Street Parking ........................................................................ 38

5.1.2 Enforcement ........................................................................................................... 39

5.1.3 Tourist P&R ............................................................................................................ 40

5.1.4 Organizing Off-Street Parking .................................................................................. 40

5.1.5 Parking Guidance System ........................................................................................ 41

5.1.6 Public Transport P&R .............................................................................................. 41

5.2 Public Transport and Taxi .................................................................................................... 42

5.2.1 Bus Route Network Optimization .............................................................................. 42

5.2.2 Replacement of the minibus network ....................................................................... 44

5.2.3 BRT-like corridor CA ................................................................................................ 46

5.2.4 Improvements for the Taxi Sector ............................................................................ 46

5.2.5 Renewal of the Bus Fleet ......................................................................................... 47

5.2.6 Improvement of Bus Stops ...................................................................................... 47

5.2.7 Improvement of Travel Comfort ............................................................................... 48

5.2.8 BRT-like corridor CBG .............................................................................................. 48

5.3 Walking and Cycling ............................................................................................................ 49

5.3.1 Improvement of the Bicycle Network........................................................................ 50

5.3.2 Improvements for Pedestrians ................................................................................. 51

5.3.3 Improvement of Bike Sharing .................................................................................. 52

5.3.4 Pedestrian and Bicycle Navigation and Information ................................................... 54

5.3.5 Development of Shared Space on Residential streets ................................................ 55

5.3.6 Car free old City ...................................................................................................... 55

5.4 E-Mobility ........................................................................................................................... 56



Page 6

5.4.1 Setup of Loading Stations network ........................................................................... 56

5.4.2 Introduction of E-Taxi fleet ...................................................................................... 56

5.4.3 Special Offers for E-Cars’ ......................................................................................... 56

5.5 Freight Transport ................................................................................................................ 57

5.5.1 City Delivery Logistics ............................................................................................. 57

5.5.2 Trucks Parking ........................................................................................................ 58

5.5.3 Garbage Collection .................................................................................................. 58

5.6 ITS .................................................................................................................................... 58

5.6.1 Establishment of Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre ............................... 59

5.6.2 Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State ............................................................. 61

5.6.3 Traffic Data Collection ............................................................................................. 62

5.6.4 Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport ................................................................. 62

5.6.5 Dynamic Message Signs .......................................................................................... 63

5.6.6 Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization ........................................................ 63

5.7 Mobility Management .......................................................................................................... 64

5.7.1 Information Campaigns and Public Relations ............................................................ 64

5.7.2 Integrated Mobility Platform and Information Services .............................................. 65

5.8 Summary of Actions ............................................................................................................ 67

6 Urban Mobility Scenarios .................................................................................................. 69

6.1 Baseline Scenario – No actions ............................................................................................ 69

6.1.1 5%-8% Growth in car ownership ............................................................................. 69

6.1.2 Summer tourist season............................................................................................ 72

6.2 Moderate Sustainable Scenario ............................................................................................ 75

6.2.1 Definition of measures and packages to implement ................................................... 75

6.3 Full Sustainable Scenario ..................................................................................................... 76

6.3.1 Definition of measures and packages ....................................................................... 76

6.4 Scenarios Comparison ......................................................................................................... 78

6.4.1 Scenario summary .................................................................................................. 78

7 Implementation Plan ........................................................................................................ 80

7.1 Action Plan - Short-Term 2017-2020 .................................................................................... 80

7.2 Action Plan - Mid-Term 2021-2024 ....................................................................................... 81

7.3 Action Plan - Long-Term 2025-2030 ..................................................................................... 82

7.4 Budget ............................................................................................................................... 83

7.5 Responsibilities ................................................................................................................... 86

7.6 Financing ........................................................................................................................... 88

7.7 Evaluation Plan ................................................................................................................... 88



Page 7

8 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 90

9 Bibliography ...................................................................................................................... 91



Page 8

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 - Overview and Evaluation of Actions ........................................................................... 68

Table 2 - Modal Split values for the 5% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership ............................ 69

Table 3 –Modal Split values assuming 8% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership ......................... 71

Table 4 –Summer tourist season scenario indicators. ................................................................. 73

Table 5 - Moderate sustainable scenario indicators .................................................................... 76

Table 6 - Full sustainable scenario indicators ............................................................................ 77

Table 7 - Scenario modelling summary ..................................................................................... 79

Table 8 - Action Plan Measures for Short-Term Period 2017-2020 .............................................. 81

Table 9 - Action Plan Measures for Mid-Term Period 2021-2024 ................................................. 82

Table 10 - Action Plan Measures for Long-Term Period 2025-2030 ............................................. 83

Table 11 - Estimated budget for the proposed measures ........................................................... 85

Table 12 - Responsibilities for measures implementation ........................................................... 87



Page 9

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 - Quantity of public transport routes on the streets of Batumi ....................................... 43

Figure 2 – Total daily emissions in the analyzed networks, kg .................................................... 44

Figure 3 - Network concept sketch in Batumi ............................................................................ 51

Figure 4 - Functions of a Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre ................................... 60

Figure 5 - Problem areas with the transport network (5% growth rate of ownership) .................. 70

Figure 6 - Problem areas within the transport network (8% growth rate of ownership) ............... 72

Figure 7 - Critical areas during the summer tourist season ......................................................... 74

Figure 8 – PrT volume difference - base scenario and summer tourist season scenario ................ 75



Page 10

1 INTRODUCTION

As Georgia's leading tourist destination located on the Black Sea and with close economic relations

with neighbouring countries, City of Batumi has an increasingly important role and function both as a sea

resort and as a sea and land gate of Georgia. Due to its growth in area from 18 km2 in 1990 to 65 km2

through the inclusion of neighbouring towns and villages, Batumi's image has changed from a relatively

small city into a non-uniform conglomerate with highly developed districts with modern architecture. The

city's image, however, is evolving into a much larger urban conglomerate with increasingly congested

streets that contribute to a growing air pollution problem.

More recently, the City has shown a strong interest in green urban development and sustainable

transport based on the active involvement of the City administration on these issues, and the willingness

of the City to implement a demonstration for sustainable transport that can be replicated in other cities in

Georgia.

The present document describes the strategic plan for the development of sustainable mobility in

the City of Batumi for the next decade – the Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan – ISUMP

“An Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (ISUMP) is a strategic plan designed to

satisfy the mobility needs of people and businesses in cities and their surroundings for a better

quality of life. It builds on existing planning practices and takes due consideration of

integration, participation, and evaluation principles” /1/.

An Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan lays out the a vision for the city, prioritizes transport

system improvements, clarifies the respective responsibilities of different stakeholders in implementing

these initiatives, and identifies a robust financing plan /2/. It aims to create an urban transport system by

addressing – as a minimum the following objectives /1/:

Ensure all citizens are offered transport options that enable access to key destinations

and services;

Improve safety and security;

Reduce air and noise pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption;

Improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the transportation of persons and

goods;

Contribute to enhancing the attractiveness and quality of the urban environment and

urban design for the benefits of citizens, the economy and society as a whole.

,and is characterized by five features /1/:

A participatory approach involving stakeholders from the very start and throughout

the entire planning process



Page 11

A commitment to sustainability to balance economic development, social equity and

environmental quality

An integrated approach taking into consideration practices and strategies from

various policy areas, administrative levels and related agencies

A clear vision, an objective and a focus on reaching measurable required targets

embedded in a strategy for sustainable development

A review of the costs of traffic and its benefits against the wider costs and benefits

to society.

The document will start with an introduction to the strategic framework. It continues with the

determination of objectives and targets, and introduces indicators for the evaluation of the proposed

sustainable mobility measures. Before presenting the measures in the chapter “Fields of Action” a

shortcoming analyzes of the mobility situation in Batumi is elaborated. After presenting the sustainable

mobility measures and evaluating them, certain development scenarios are investigated and analyzed. The

final chapter contains action plans for short-term, mid-term, and long-term development of the Batumi

mobility, as well as the budgets, responsibilities, financing and the evaluation plan.



Page 12

2 STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK

2.1 Common Vision

The central idea of today’s transport planning is that transport modes need to use space efficiently.

To meet the demands of an increasing number of people – which causes more traffic – distances must be

covered efficiently. Trips have to be as short as feasible and transport must be managed with as little need

for resources, such as space and energy, as possible. Cars need a lot of space. Hence, in the long run, it

is not viable to cover distances only by car in cities with constantly rising populations. Equitable access to

mobility can only be ensured by means of other modes of transport /3/.

The advancement of pedestrian, bicycle and public transport to enable mobility in growing cities is

internationally recognized as a concept for which there is no alternative. Decades of concentration on

segregated functions and car-oriented growth in cities has not produced the desired results and caused

decision-makers throughout the world to reconsider their approach.

The European Union is paying more attention to a sustainable and eco-friendly transport planning in

the cities. The objectives are set out by the European Commission in the “White Paper on Transport” and

the guidelines for “Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans” or SUMP, which sets a new standard for strategic

transport planning /1/. The present document is strongly oriented on these guidelines.

Batumi was in the years of USSR like the “dead-end” of the country. The old city’s street grid built-

up in the second-half of 19th sentury is mainly focused on walking and not on an extensive use of motorized

transport i.e. private cars. While during the Sovier Union the number of private cars was directly or indirectly

controlled, the number of cars did not put a major pressure on the city network and of course no “transport

demand management” principles have been put in place. Thus based on this legacy Batumi’s urban

transport system was caught off guard by increasing number of inhabitants, visitors and vehicle ownership.

Since 2004, it is actively developing and became one of the most demanded tourist locations in Georgia.

The construction of new hotels and entertainment centers is intensive and will go on further. As a

consequence of this development the traffic is growing but the transport system is not adapted to that

higher demand. The demand has not only grown in the summer season, but also in the winter, because of

lots of new inhabitants in Batumi. The number of inhabitants has grown from 121.0 thousands to 152.0

/4/ thousands in 2014.

The association agreement between the European Union and Georgia defines some standards and

requirements for the member countries and Georgia is not an exception. The association document contains

some articles about all the categories of the transportation system (marine, railway, air, road …).

A big strategic issue for Batumi is the lack of general planning documents for the city’s development.

There is no Master Plan that integrates all the strategic objectives of the city’s future. There is also no

systematic approach to transport planning. The present ISUMP is a first step to a strategic transport



Page 13

planning in Batumi. Interviews with city’s stakeholder have shown the following issues regarding mobility

and transport system in the city:

Public transport is inefficient

Parking Management doesn’t work

Taxi market is unregulated

City suffers from permanent traffic congestion

City is not comfortable for pedestrians and bicyclists

Abscene of systematic planning approaches

Batumi is willing to force the development to modern sustainable mobility and to solve the existing

problems. Batumi will have:

2.2 European and National requirements

2.2.1 ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND GEORGIA

TITLE VI./CHAPTER 1. TRANSPORT/ARTICLE 292

The Parties shall:

(a) expand and strengthen their transport cooperation in order to contribute to the

development of sustainable transport systems;

(b) promote efficient, safe and secure transport operations as well as intermodality and

interoperability of transport systems, and

(c) endeavour to enhance the main transport links between their territories.

ARTICLE 293

This cooperation shall cover, inter alia the following areas:

A greener and more comfortable city

More bike traffic

More street city life

An efficient public transport and less private transport



Page 14

(a) development of a sustainable national transport policy covering all modes of transport,

particularly with a view to ensuring environmentally friendly, efficient, safe and secure transport systems

and promoting the integration of these considerations in the sphere of transport into other policy areas;

(b) development of sector strategies in light of the national transport policy, including legal

requirements for the upgrading of technical equipment and transport fleets to meet international standards

as defined by Annexes XXIV and XV-D to this Agreement, for road, rail, aviation, maritime transport, and

intermodality, including timetables and milestones for implementation, administrative responsibilities as

well as financing plans;

(c) strengthening of the infrastructure policy in order to better identify and evaluate

infrastructure projects in the various modes of transport;

(d) development of funding policies focusing on maintenance, capacity constraints and missing

link infrastructure as well as activating and promoting the participation of the private sector in transport

projects;

(e) accession to relevant international transport organizations and agreements including

procedures for ensuring strict implementation and effective enforcement of international transport

agreements and conventions;

(f) scientific and technical cooperation and exchange of information for the development and

improvement of technologies in transport, such as intelligent transport systems; and

(g) promotion of the use of intelligent transport systems and information technology in

managing and operating all relevant modes of transport as well as supporting intermodality and cooperation

in the use of space systems and commercial applications facilitating transport.

ARTICLE 294

1. Cooperation shall also aim at improving the movement of passengers and goods, increasing

fluidity of transport flows between Georgia, the EU and third countries in the region, by removing

administrative, technical and other obstacles, improving transport networks and upgrading the

infrastructure in particular on the main networks connecting the Parties. This cooperation shall include

actions to facilitate border-crossings.

2. Cooperation shall include information exchange and joint activities:

(a) at regional level, in particular taking into consideration and integrating progress achieved

under various regional transport cooperation arrangements such as Eastern Partnership Transport Panel,

the Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRACECA), the Baku process and other transport initiatives;

(b) at international level, including with regard to international transport organizations and

international agreements and conventions ratified by the Parties, and



Page 15

(c) in the framework of the various transport agencies of the EU.

ARTICLE 295

A regular dialogue will take place on the issues covered by this Chapter.

ARTICLE 296

Georgia shall carry out approximation of its legislation to the EU acts and international instruments

referred to in Annexes XXIV and XV-D to this Agreement in accordance with the provisions of those

Annexes._ANNEX_XXIV._TRANSPORT_ANNEX_XV-D._RULES

2.3 Assessment of the current situation of development sustainable transport

For the purpose of this document, we had to analyze documents, which had be done with different

international or municipal organizations. There are some very useful documents, which had helped us to

analyze the current strategy of the country/region.

2.3.1 Low Emission Development Strategy Transport Sector, USAID, September 2016

This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development.

Winrock International prepared it in cooperation with Sustainable Development Center “Remissia”. This

document aims to reduce GHG emissions, which are mostly caused by the transport, and proposes a

roadmap for 2030 with corresponding measures, timetable, approximate costs and assumptions and

evaluations.

2.3.2 A Policy Framework for Green Transportation in Georgia, The World Bank, June 2012

The World Bank team prepared this report.

Goal: Reduce transportation costs. The primary goal of a green transport policy framework would

be to reduce the total cost of transportation including all direct and indirect costs, while maintaining total

social welfare benefits. Direct and indirect costs borne by private parties would be lowered through

improved infrastructure, and fair competition among modes and operators. Indirect costs, borne by society,

would be reduced by mechanisms that internalize quantifiable external costs.

Principle: Influence and Improve consumer choices. At the heart of green transportation is

consumer choice about whether to move, when to move, which route to take, which mode and vehicle to

use and so forth. In the aggregate, transport user decisions establish the degree of green transportation,

which in turn affects levels of environmental impact and economic development, national dependence on

petroleum products, air pollution, transport costs, and labor productivity. Therefore, Government needs to

adopt policies that provide incentives for greener transportation and improve options available to



Page 16

consumers. Georgia has made significant progress toward a market economy, and greening policy

measures should not undermine the market economy.

There several objectives discussed in the document:

A. Integrate environmental concerns into transport policy

B. Achieve and maintain a greener vehicle fleet

C. Promote Low Emission Freight Transport Modes

D. Support commercial development of intercity passenger transport services

E. Transform minibuses and taxis into modern urban transport modes

F. Support sustainable development of urban transport

Measures proposed in the above policy framework can be prioritized based on urgency and

sequencing. The proposed roadmap below lays out priority actions for the short-term (2012-2014),

medium-term (2015-2020), and longer-term (after 2020).

2.3.3 Georgia: Transport Policy Study Policy Framework and Preliminary Action Plan 2016-

2025

Asian Development Bank prepared this report in 2016.

Georgia aims to become a regional distribution hub and tourism destination and producer of high

value agricultural products. The transport sector will contribute to this goal by supporting trade-based

economic growth, enhancing social mobility and achieving environmental sustainability.

The initiatives in support of economic liberalization have created the environment to achieve this

vision. Georgia now confronts the same challenges as other small entrepreneurial nations. Strong leadership

is required to develop an economy based on value-added processing and services.

The transport policy presented in the report is based on three basic concepts.

1. Transport is a service and the demand for this service is derived from general

economic activity. The availability and quality of this service can facilitate economic

activity but it cannot create this activity.

2. Transport and logistics are complementary and increasingly integrated. Transport

services were traditionally defined in terms of movements of goods and people by a

single mode. Over the last few decades, the definition has changed to the movement

between origin and destination by one or more modes. For freight transport, this

movement includes the logistics services used to integrate the modes and to add value

to the goods while in transit.



Page 17

3. Transport policy refers to public policy. The private sector, which has a substantial

role in the provision of transport and logistics services, has a separate set of

commercial policies. Public policy can influence the latter through regulation and

public investment.

Extracts from this report related to Batumi transport system:

The coordination between the ports and land transport is limited. In Batumi, the rail wagons

are shunted from the nearby rail yards and there is very little area for storage of containers.

There has been no long-term planning for the development of the port sector in Georgia.

The layouts for the port of Batumi have changed little over the last half-century. The only

plan for development of port infrastructure that includes a marketing study, detailed

engineering plan and financial analysis, was prepared by the owner of Poti port for the

expansion of the container facility.

The ports at Batumi is primary gateways for the Trans Caucasus Corridor, other than oil and

oil products. These ports need to improve their efficiency and increase reliability to support

day-of-the-week container and RoRo shipping services coordinated with scheduled block

trains services.

One of the major changes in ports and shipping over the last century has been the dramatic

increase in the size of vessels carrying both bulk and non-bulk cargoes. The layouts of Batumi

port were designed 40-50 years ago. They have not required much modification since the

vessels presently calling at these ports are relatively small. However, as the traffic volumes

increase, the size of vessels is expected to increase. Modern facilities will be needed to serve

these larger vessels efficiently. These require longer berths, greater alongside depths and

larger backup areas to provide short-term storage for cargo.

In Batumi, the current reliance on under-regulated taxi services provides benefits in terms

of costs but also limitations in terms of quality.

2.3.4 INDC Support Georgia – Vertically Integrated Approaches in NAMA Development with

Focus on the Urban Transport Sector, GIZ, March 2015

This report was prepared by a GIZ Team upon invitation from the Climate Change Office of the Ministry of

Environment and Natural Resources to support the preparation of Georgia’s INDC (Intended Nationally

Determined Contributions).

2.4 Urban Master Plan

Batumi has actually no Urban Master Plan. An Urban Master Plan is a document that shows a city as

it is and recommends how it should exist in the future. A typical Urban Master Plan addresses the following

/5/:



Page 18

Transportation and Traffic – the present ISUMP and its linked studies can be the base

documents, highlighting the current situation and already elaborated future scenarios. An

efficient transport planning takes into account the strategic economic and social

development and takes into consideration all the other topics of the Master Plan.

Community Facilities - community facilities that satisfy its demand for social and cultural

enrichment. These include public and charter schools, police and fire departments and

community centers

Parks and open space

Neighborhoods and housing - neighborhoods emphasize community, livability, appearance,

transportation opportunities, convenience and safety for all residents

Economic development – recommendation on how a city's design can be enhanced to attract

new businesses and protect existing businesses

Land use - land use recommendations result from analysis of a city's environmental and

physical conditions, as well as the planner's vision for future growth. Recommendations

about land set aside for parks and open space; residential areas; commercial, office and

industrial uses; civic and institutional uses; and mixed-use areas

It has to be underlined, that one of the primary strategic goals is an efficient integration of

transport and urban planning.



Page 19

3 OBJECTIVES, TARGETS AND INDICATORS

3.1 Objectives and Targets

A strategic plan needs targets and objectives. Target and objectives are some goal or result that is

aimed to achieve when implementing and following the strategic plan. It is some kind of a main idea and

underlying base thought, which influences the establishment of the plan.

The development of the future system of sustainable transport and mobility in Batumi, targets the

following three objectives, which form the guiding ideas and strategic thoughts through this ISUMP:

3.1.1 Increase transport safety and security

Safety and security have different meanings in the transport context. Safety means the safe usage

of transport with fewer accidents, especially for vulnerable road users. Security is related to the secure

feeling in the transport system – illumination on the streets and on public transport stops, video surveillance

in busses, etc. To increase safety and security means for all users of the transport system less risk in being

injured when using it and it means an improvement of the quality of life when being able to move in a

secure and safe transport system.

3.1.2 Offer and optimize alternative sustainable transport options for walking, cycling and

public transport

Batumi transport system is focused on individual transport. Public transport is mainly operated by

private Minibus companies and is inefficient. Bicycle transport has been started to develop but is currently

in an incomplete and not strategical established state. Pavements are often narrow and end up in nowhere.

The progress to more sustainable mobility gives to best result when concentrating on the development and

improvement of walking, cycling and public transport. Special attention has to be given to vulnerable and

disabled persons.

“Increase transport safety and security”

“Offer and optimize alternative sustainable transport

options for walking, cycling and public transport”

“Reduce the effects of transport on people, health and

environment”



Page 20

3.1.3 Reduce the effects of transport on people, health and environment

Batumi suffers from a high level of congestion of individual transport. This is even more true in the

summer season and leads to air pollution, to noise pollution and to discomfort for drivers and other

transport users. The attractiveness if Batumi as tourist city plays an important role in the strategic and

economic positioning of the city. Congestion decreases attractiveness. The sustainable mobility concept

has to propagate the encouragement of alternative and sustainable means of transport, like E-Mobility,

public transport, cycling and walking.

3.2 Indicators

The following indicators will serve to assess and evaluate the proposed measures to answer the

question “How does each measure contribute to the development of sustainable mobility in

Batumi?” Each of the proposed measures in chapter 5 “Fields of Action” is evaluated against this

indicators and how it contributes to a sustainable urban mobility. As a result a matrix is elaborated which

shows the contribution of each measure on a rating scale from 0 to 6.

The following indicators were selected for evaluation of the sustainable measures:

1. Efficiency – how efficiently resources are used?

2. Congestion – will congestion be reduced?

3. Health & Attractiveness – contribution to an every-day active mobility

4. Eco-Friendly – minimize air/noise pollution and GHG emissions

5. Safety & Security – improvement of safety&security on sustainable means of transport

6. Fairness – fairly use of available space for transport

3.2.1 Efficiency

“Resources are used in a more efficient way – helped by innovative technologies and

processes.”

Urban infrastructures, such as streets and public transport facilities, are particularly valuable

resources, which should be used efficiently and maintained well. The responsible use of common goods

must be achieved, especially in a fast-growing city. This includes the best possible utilization and

conservation of energy in the context of mobility. Innovation in propulsion technology as well as new

technical solutions for both the

Individual and overall control and optimization of every-day traffic and ongoing infrastructure

management can contribute to this. To reach this goal, the remaining private motorized transport and

commercial transport should also be as efficient and resource conserving as possible. Public transport is a



Page 21

pioneer anyway as it is already highly efficient: On average, using the same energy expended for a trip by

car, you can travel six times the car-trip distance on public transport. Remaining MIT is to be efficient and

safe, congestion-free and thus causing minimum emissions – in particular in districts where population

growth is highest.

3.2.2 Congestion

“Traffic congestion has to be reduced to improve the quality of city life”

Traffic congestion, especially during peak hours, is one of the most visible problems that almost

every European city has to deal with. Congestion occurs when the traffic volume at certain points in the

mobility network requires more capacity than is available. Congestion occurs in areas of high population

density, and is a matter of too many people wanting to be in the same place at the same time.

3.2.3 Health and Attractiveness

“The share of active mobility in every-day life increases; accident-related personal

injuries decline.”

Active mobility, i.e. walking and cycling, demonstrably improves people’s health. A lack of exercise

is a main risk factor in many diseases and disorders, such as back and joint aches, cardiovascular diseases

and type II diabetes. People who frequently cover above average distances not only reduce their disease

risk, they also help avoid health care costs. An added value is that this “human scale” of speed opens up

opportunities for encounters and communication.

3.2.4 Eco-Friendly

“Mobility causes as little pollution as possible, the share of eco-mobility in the trips in

Batumi and its environs is rising. The relative change in the modal shift will be largest in

bicycle traffic. In absolute figures, the largest increase in the number of trips will be

attributable to public transport.”

To safeguard the quality of life Batumi is offering, particulate matter and nitrogen oxide (NOx)

pollution must be reduced. After all, less private motorized transport and more eco-mobility is also beneficial

in terms of noise. The decisive factor for a reduction of traffic-induced pollution is a change in mobility

behavior, including changes in the environs of the city. New forms of data collection will be needed to

observe the overall development of the modal split, also to include commuters.



Page 22

3.2.5 Safety & Security

“The improvement of safety and security is essential for the acceptance and wider us of

sustainable means of transport”

Both safety and security are closely related to mobility. The term safety in the mobility discipline

merely relates to traffic safety: to accidents, or rather the prevention of accidents. Safety is usually

measured in hard figures, in numbers of injured or fatalities. Obviously, infrastructure decisions and mode

choices have an influence on traffic safety.

Security is mainly related to infrastructure: to places and public transport vehicles. It relates to the

quality of these places, whether people feel secure being in these environments. More than to mobility,

there is a direct link to the threat of crime, or even terrorism. However, many decisions taken in the mobility

discipline have a direct influence on this feeling of security. For instance, good lighting at public transport

stops in the evening is crucial for security – or the presence of attendants on public transport vehicles.

3.2.6 Fairness

“Street space is allocated fairly to a variety of users and sustainable mobility must

remain affordable for all. “

The allocation of public spaces is the key enabler of mobility for all. It is to take into consideration

that eco-mobility has the largest share in trips made, it should consider persons with a small radius of

action, such as people with restricted mobility and children, and ensure as well as create space for other

use than motorized traffic.

Target is to increase the space, allocated for sustainable means of transport – pedestrian, cycling

and public transport – in future city transport development projects. The cost factor should not cause major

limitations to the mobility of people in Batumi. A targeted improvement of conditions for cycling and walking

as very low-cost ways of moving around is also a contribution to more fairness. Fairness also means to

consider the needs of vulnerable transport users and disabled persons.



Page 23

4 OPPORTUNITY AND SHORTCOMING ANALYSIS

4.1 SWOT analysis for Batumi

SWOT analysis is a process that identifies an organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities

and threats. Specifically, SWOT is a basic, analytical framework that assesses what an entity (usually a

business, though it can be used for a place, industry or product) can and cannot do, for factors both internal

(the strengths and weaknesses) as well as external (the potential opportunities and threats). Using

environmental data to evaluate the position of a company, a SWOT analysis determines what assists the

firm in accomplishing its objectives, and what obstacles must be overcame or minimized to achieve desired

results: where the organization is today, and where it may be positioned in the future.

Internal factors

The first two letters in the acronym, S (strengths) and W (weaknesses), refer to internal factors,

which means the resources and experience readily available to you. Examples of areas typically considered

include:

Financial resources (funding, sources of income, investment opportunities)

Physical resources (location, facilities, equipment)

Human resources (employees, volunteers, target audiences)

Access to natural resources, trademarks, patents and copyrights

Current processes (employee programs, department hierarchies, software systems)

External factors

External forces influence and affect every company, organization and individual. Whether these

factors are connected directly or indirectly to an opportunity or threat, it is important to take note of and

document each one. External factors typically reference things you or your company do not control, such

as:

Market trends (new products and technology, shifts in audience needs)

Economic trends (local, national and international financial trends)

Funding (donations, legislature and other sources)

Demographics

Relationships with suppliers and partners

Political, environmental and economic regulations



Page 24

SWOT analysis for the Batumi sustainable urban transport and its potential was performed with the

help of stakeholder interviews in the very beginning of the project, where they stated the key features and

key issues of today’s Batumi.

+ -

Inte

rnal

Strengths

Transportation accessibility o International airport o Railway station o Port o International and national roads

Tourist attractiveness and infrastructure o Geographic location o Historical heritage

Urban Mobility o Modal Split which already favors

Walking and Public Transport o Flat area – good for cycling o Compact city – allows to reach many

targets by walking or cycling

Weaknesses

Parking policy and enforcement

PuT route duplication

Heavy minivan traffic

Minivans are owned, driven and maintained by a single person (one person drives all the day)

Not enough taxi market regulation

Low bus fares

Through-city transit (Bagrationi street capacity is not enough)

City is non-suitable for disabled

Traffic safety for pedestrians and bicyclists

Minibuses owned by drivers . There is a contract with driver and operator

The city does not have a fully functional bus station.

Exte

rnal

Opportunities

Bypass road projects (one for the city and one for the region),

Ski resort will be fully functional at 2018

Railway modernization project (Batumi-Tbilisi travel time reduction)

The port may be moved out of city

If railway infrastructure is no more necessary, 14 hectares of land are available for the city

Bus terminals separate suburban from urban public transport – deduplication of routes

City aiming to better integrated land-use and urban transport/mobility planning

City is planning to purchase new low-emission buses

Intensive financial funding for Georgia from international institutions

Threats

Rainy climate may be uncomfortable for cyclists.

Traffic seasonality due to tourism

City data availability and integrity

Increasing number of cars

Parking legislation – on the national level

Psychology issue: people may be too proud to use PuT or bicycle

Poor regulation on cars leads to heavy emissions



Page 25

4.2 City Structure and Mobility in Batumi

4.2.1 General information

Population density of Batumi is high in the central parts of the city, rather high at the zone near

Central Station (blue zone at the northeastern part of the map) and rather low at suburban area.

Zones where seafront boulevard, university and botanical garden are situated officially are not

inhabited, though part of these zones was depicted in trips analysis.

4.2.2 Income

As for the economy image of the city, wealthiest respondents live in central quarters and on airport

highway (though last could be outnumbered because of low level of household presentation in sample).

Inhabitants of port and central market zones, Kvariati, Sakhalvasho and beach part of Gonio have the

lowest average income level.



Page 26

4.2.3 Mobility of inhabitants

4.2.3.1 General

The mobility rate (average number of trips per person per day) of Batumi stands at 1,47. It is lower

in international point of view (in comparison with 4 for Paris, 3,8 for USA), though it is typical for Georgia

(Tbilisi mobility rate in the recent research was 1,55).

The proportion of people who do not perform any trips on the previous day before survey is 43%

(for comparison, in research on Tbilisi there were 35% of such people). Usually Batumi inhabitants make

2 trips per day, though part of 3-4 trips is higher than for capital. Among those, who stay at home, prevail

women.



Page 27

Generally, low mobility rate could be explained by the fact that survey was conducted after the end

of touristic season and part of citizens does not require frequent coming out of home (except those, who

have to accompany children to school or nursery). Another possible reasons for the people to reduce

mobility are the inefficient transportation system and poor socio-economic conditions of the population. If

it takes too much effort, or too much money to travel, people will avoid the mobility whenever it is possible.

4.2.3.2 Trips between city districts

According to the survey, the most concentrated travel demand is generated between the Zveli

Batumis ubani, Gonio-Kvariatis ubani and Kaxabris ubani.

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Number of trips made by person, %

male female



Page 28

Administrative districs also feature different mobility rates. As it may be seen on the figure,

Ximsiasvilis ubani generates the most trips per population.

In the table format this can be represented as follows.

Administrative District Mobility Rate

Aeroportis ubani 1.21

Armaseneblis ubani 1.19

Bagrationis ubani 1.48

Batumis samrewvelo ubani 1.35

Boni-gorodokis ubani 1.56

Gonio-kvariatis ubani 1.15

Javaxisvilis ubani 1.29

Kaxabris ubani 1.36

Mwvane koncxis ubani 1.45

Rustavelis ubani 1.68



Page 29

Tamaris ubani 1.39

Ximsiasvilis ubani 2.5

Zveli batumis ubani 1.81

4.2.3.3 Social Preferences

Aims of men and women differ – most popular zone for men is city center, while women are heading

to southern part.

The end of tourist season also explains the fact that there are less people, heading to the distant

parts of the town (zones and places of interests, situated near the beach). Nevertheless, it doesn’t influence

strongly on continental suburb areas (Khelvachauri, Makhinjauri, Makhvilauri, Schvalidzeebi).

4.2.3.4 Purposes

Nearly 50% of all trips are obliged (to and from school, university, work) and more than quarter is

trips for other reasons. Less part of women is heading to work, though they more often go shopping,

visiting relatives and accompanying other people (though in the task of driving to pick up other people men

prevail).



Page 30

Of age groups, children are going to school and clubs (sport, culture activity), people of 17-22 are

visiting university and 6% started their work, citizens aged 22-31 besides heading to workplace have 12%

of trips – accompanying others (probably, they’ve got their children in appropriate age to accompany), for

age 36-55 main purpose is still workplace (28% of trips); people over 55 are more frequently going

shopping.

As for people that live in households of different income level, it is predictable that those who has

no income or income less than 300 Gel are rarely going at work.

Timetable of trips demonstrates that peak hours for going to study are 8-9 A.M. as well as returning

from places of education gains its popularity in 13-14 p.m. (elder students are returning between 17 and

18 p.m.). This matches with layers Home-Other, Other-home because of accompanying others to places of

study. Peak hours for working people are at 8-9 a.m. and 18-19 p.m. Afterwards the most popular type of

activity is other.



Page 31

Regarding options for “other” purposes, generally the most popular option is accompanying

someone, others are parents/friends visiting and shopping. People prefer to accompany others, make

administrative procedures before obligatory activity and other options are more popular afterwards

(especially shopping, eating in restaurants and visiting friends).

4.2.3.5 Duration of Trips

Town of Batumi is not so large, average duration of trips is 23 minutes. It differs regarding layers –

starting from 32 minutes for “Work-Work” trips (that layer includes delivery) and 29- 26,5 minutes on trip

to university and backwards on the one hand and trips to school or nursery (16,6-18 minutes) on the other.

Apparently it comes from the fact that there are only two higher educational establishments in town.

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

Time of departure according to layers

Home-University Home-Study Home-Work Home-Other University-Home

University-Work University-Other Study-Home Work-Home Work-University

Work-Work Work-Other Other-Home Other-Work Other-Other

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450

Accompanying/picking up someoneParents or friends visits

OtherShopping in shopping malls / supermarkets / big markets

Shopping in small downtown storesHaving a walk

Leisure (sport, cultural, social activities)Health

Eating in a restaurantAccompanying/picking up someone to an other …

Administrative procedures (visa, ID…)Job seeking

Other purposes

Home-Other Other-Home



Page 32

4.3 Usage of transport modes

4.3.1 General

Most popular transport modes amongst women are public transport and walking to the destination;

men prefer riding on a private transport, though if needed use other two types with similar frequency.

As for purposes, all three main types of modes are used for getting home and other tasks, but

university students mainly use public transport; children are mostly coming to schools by foot, for the work

public transport is popular as well as the private is. Taxi is used for coming home or to other places (such

as restaurants and relatives/friends).

32.029.1

26.5 25.924.2 23.8 23.6 23.5 22.7 22.6

19.8 18.8 18.7 18.316.6

0.0

5.0

10.0

15.0

20.0

25.0

30.0

35.0

Average duration of trip (by layer)

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

Public Transport PrivateTransport

Walk Bicycle Taxi Passenger Shared ride Other

Mode of transport

Men Women



Page 33

Average duration of trips on public transport is 30 minutes, private transport takes 25 minutes and

mean duration of trips by foot is 15 minutes. Further, we shall regard each mode specifically.

4.3.2 Motor Vehicle Traffic

Of all respondents, 46% have motor vehicle in household; out of them 6% have in their access 2

vehicles and 1% - 3. The last ones are travelling by private transport most intensely (81% of trips) while

those, who have one car are using it less than in half part of trips. That could be explained by price for fuel

or large number of family members that have different timetables of occupation.

Suburban area (except Sakhalvasho where there are nearly no vehicles per households) has highest

coefficient of average number of cars per household that means that nearly every household has its own

vehicle which is demanded by convenience of reaching main town. Actually, strange part is that Kvariati

and northern part of Gonio, that had the lowest income level but had cars nearly in every household, do

36%

54%

27%

41%

29%

27%

13%

16%

35%

35%

33%

31%

54%

21%

33%

1%

2%

1%

2%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Home

University

School/nursery

Work

Other

Modes per purposes

Public Transport Private Transport Walk Bicycle Taxi

51%

24%

15%

4%

7%

47%

62%

81%

40%

28%

21%

15%

2%

1%

1%

0%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

0

1

2

3

Modes to number of cars owned

Public Transport Private Transport Walk Bycicle Taxi



Page 34

not use any of them. That could also be explained by end of season (so that previously cars were used for

driving tourists to the beach or to the castle).

Out of all respondents, 31% have driver license. One quarter from this number are women. This

number of female drivers could be explained by reformation of views for modern adults, because of the

fact that the average age of female drivers is lower, than male’s one. Both groups of drivers demonstrate

nearly the same data on mobility and car usage (only 39% of men and 31% of women that have driver

license had used cars during previous day and performed 2 trips (in average)).

4.3.3 Local Public Transport

Local public transport remains the most popular type for this town, and generally is used in 35% of

trips. Out of types, respondents prefer marshrutkas to buses.

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

male drivers

female drivers

Age of drivers by gender

16 and less 17-21 22-35 36-55 56-64 over 65



Page 35

4.3.4 Pedestrian Traffic

Walking is popular amongst younger citizens on the close distances – average duration of such trips

for different purposes (except those connected to University) varies between 13 and 17 minutes. It is a

little longer for students coming to or from higher educational establishment – 20-23 minutes; and nearer

for those students that combine education with earning – 10 minutes in average. That points that students

are looking for jobs nearby university.

4.3.5 Bicycle Traffic

There were only 0,2% trips made on bicycle, though according to household equipment, there are

61 bicycle per 1000 people in this town. That as well could be explained by the end of warm season and

touristic time. By the time of survey cycled only men.

4.3.6 Freight Transport

Freight transport is crucial for today’s economics of Batumi city. Its location at the Black Sea together

with the railway line and pipeline makes it a logistic hub of the region.

The Georgian railway is one of the crucial links in Eurasian transit and serves as a short-cut linking

Europe and Central Asia. The Georgian railway system directly links to the railway systems of Armenia,

Azerbaijan and Russia. Railway-ferry lines from the Batumi and Poti Black Sea ports directly connect the

Caucasus and Central Asia with the Black Sea regions.

Batumi Port main role is the transportation of Azeri and Kazakh oil that transformed Batumi port into

a bridge linking the Europe-Asia transport corridor. In general, Batumi Port loads oil and oil products on 4

wharfs with the area of 8 hectares and total length of 755 meters. Dry cargo is mainly processed in two

wharfs with the area of 17.5 hectares and total length of 1 590 meters. Cargo carriage capacity for oil

products is 15-18 million tons annually. For dry cargo, it is 2.3-2.5 million tons annually. A container

37%

62%

0,4% 1%

Public Transport

Bus (local bus)

Marshrutka (local)

Intercity bus

Intercity marshrutka(regional and long-distance)



Page 36

terminal (4.5 hectares) is being constructed in the port; its projected turnover is 47-50 thousand containers

per year.

Batumi’s location close to the Turkish border creates a potential for the motorized freight transit.

Although today this traffic is limited because of the restricted street capacity of Batumi, the ongoing

construction of the Batumi bypass road will unleash this potential, attracting more transit traffic to the

region



Page 37

5 FIELDS OF ACTION

5.1 Parking

Every car trip begins and ends in a parking space, so parking regulation is one of the best ways to

regulate car use. Vehicles cruising for parking often make up a significant share of total traffic. Vehicle

parking consumes a lot of land, is blighting, and contributes to disperse development, increasing travel

distances. Each parking space consumes from 15 m2 to 30 m2 /6/, and the average motorist uses two to

five different parking spaces every day. No matter how many new parking garages and motorways are

built, the traffic congestion only grows worse, and as much as 50% of traffic congestion is caused by

drivers cruising around in search of a cheaper parking space. The ample provision of parking, especially

free parking, contributes to excess car use by making driving the most convenient and affordable travel

option. Cities aiming to reduce car use also remove or restrict on-street parking in central areas, and charge

a high price for the remaining spaces. Batumi administration is willing to adjust the current parking

management under the consideration of the following targets:

Favor Public Transport, Cycling and Walking over private motorized vehicle usage

Reduce congestion – discourage the use of private motorized vehicles

Give the public space back to people – regard the urban street as recreational

area – less air pollution and less noise

The Batumi City Administration has identified six measures, which will be introduced to improve the

current parking management:

1) Reorganization of On-Street Parking – Parking Zones

2) Improvement of Parking Enforcement

3) Introduction of special Tourist Park&Ride

4) Organization of Off-Road Parking – Old City

5) Introduction of a Parking Guidance System

6) Introduction of Public Transport Park&Ride

The following explanation of the aforementioned measures can be found more detailed in a feasibility

study, which was developed within the project.



Page 38

5.1.1 Reorganization of On-Street Parking

The implementation of an effective Parking Management requires at first a clear organization of the

parking system itself. That means the clear definition of where parking is allowed, the demarcation of

individual parking places, signage, the definition of prices for paid parking and the organization of parking

for residents. It is essential for the success of Parking Management and in the result for the final target to

reach – reduction of congestion, favoring sustainable transport and returning public space to the people –

to have a clear organization and definition of rules for whole parking system.

5.1.1.1 Parking Zones

Parking Zones are traditionally one of the first measures to organize an effective Parking

Management in modern cities. A Parking Zone defines an area, in which parking is clearly organized. It is

defined, where parking is allowed – by a clear demarcation of individual parking spaces and signage –,

which prices for hourly-based paid parking are valid and for which time frame (workday from 8 a.m. to 22

p.m., free parking on weekend, etc.) as well as the rules which are common within one zone (residential

parking, maximum time of parking allowed, etc.).

The city of Batumi aims to improve the Parking Management in a first step with the introduction of

three Parking Zones. The concept of the zoning is described in detail in a separate feasibility study /7/.

An important step before the implementation of parking zones is the detailed analysis of the current

parking space supply – organized and non-organized - and the demand on parking space, especially for

residents.

5.1.1.2 Adjustment of provided Parking Space

The reduction of congestion is one of the main targets to reach, when introducing a new Parking

Management. The overall supply of parking spaces thereby plays a crucial role. The more parking space

Batumi provides, the more it will be used and the more cars will be on the street network. This counts

especially for the provision of free of charge parking space.

Removal of on-street parking from historic districts and central shopping streets has become a

signature feature of many European cities. This is often a boon for business, too; shops within the

pedestrian precincts generate more income than those outside. Treating street space as a valuable public

asset, by reclaiming it from cars, can lead to much better land uses. Reducing the number of on-street car

parking can be a way to encourage the use of other transportation modes by transforming former spaces

to bicycle paths or wider walkways.

Decreasing the number of available spaces while increasing the cost to park may have five effects

on the behavior of drivers with different implications for commuters, short-term drivers, and residents:



Page 39

1) Find an alternative parking location

2) Start their journey at another time

3) Shift to another mode of transport

4) Change their destination

5) Avoid making the trip altogether

City of Batumi will undertake certain investigations to find an optimal level of parking space provision.

Future investigations and monitoring of the parking demand should determine how to adjust the number

of minimum required and maximum provided parking supply for paid and free of charge parking. Together

with the setup of a system for the online monitoring of current parking demand, an integrated system will

be established to regulate and control the parking management to optimize congestion level, to favor the

usage of sustainable transport modes and to return public space back to the people.

5.1.1.3 Hourly-Based On-Street Paid-Parking

On-street parking fees are set to optimize the use of curb parking space, influencing turnover and

minimizing the number of vehicles slowing traffic by searching for parking. Prices are calibrated based on

demand sensitivities (i.e., vacancy and occupancy targets) and should cover local requirements in Batumi.

The effective improvement and enhancement of the system of an hourly-based on-street paid

parking is crucial to encourage travelers to go by sustainable means of transport like public transport,

bicycle or walking. Parking prices will be defined for Parking Zones and may differ between them. Short-

term parking will be favored and long-term parking will be discouraged – that results in lower prices for

short-term parking and higher prices for long-term parking. A seasonal factor will be introduced which

results in higher prices during the summer season.

Additional payment methods have to be checked for reasonability to introduction – e.g. pay-by-

phone services and the enhancement of Parking Meters to allow cashless payment.

5.1.2 Enforcement

One of the main factors for the proper functioning of a parking management is to enforce the rules.

Without enforcement, nobody is eager to follow the rules, to pay for parking and in consequence, there

will be no effect on traffic congestion and the increased usage of sustainable means of transport. Therefore,

it is most important to implement an effective system of enforcement of the parking management in Batumi.

Enforcement starts with monitoring. Monitoring means to control the cars on the parking space if

they violate any rules. This process can be supported with modern technology, like video equipped patrol

cars, to be able to establish a fair system of parking rules enforcement. Fairness is a key factor and aims



Page 40

to get peoples’ support for the necessary measures, which for one can certainly can be painful but make

sense in the common case. Fairness also means, that all violations – or near to 100% - should be fined.

The current case, where only violations from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. are registered until a certain amount of

violations is not acceptable and should be optimized, especially in the post-processing.

Batumi city administration will review the current process of enforcement of parking rules and

establish a more effective one to support the appointed targets to a maximum.

5.1.3 Tourist P&R

The summer season shows a high number of tourists in the city, of whom are the most coming to

Batumi with their own car and that need to leave their car somewhere parked. Of course, everyone tries

to leave the car as near as possible to the accommodation. Most of the accommodations are located in the

downtown, so there is a high demand on parking space in the summer season. Not only that demand is

leading to serious problems, but also the fact that tourists use their car and produce a much higher

congestion than already existing in the off-season. For a touristic city, this is a problem and leads to less

attractively – or in other words, less congestion will lead to a more attractive city.

The City of Batumi aims to implement special Park&Ride parking spaces for tourists out of the city.

Tourists will stay longer in the city and the aim of a “Tourist P&R” is to encourage them to leave their car

out of the city and not to park in the city near their accommodations. The main effect is, that the tourists

do not consume city parking space and are animated to use sustainable means of transport as bicycle,

public transport, go by foot or even use taxi service to move within the city.

The concept of a tourist Park&Ride should be supported and accompanied by a so-called Hotel

Parking Tax. Batumi Hotels often provide free of charge parking space on their territory, which impedes

the reach of a broader usage of sustainable means of transport. That means, there has to be find a measure

to encourage hotels to provide less parking space and to provide their guests an appropriate alternative.

The City of Batumi will further investigate the possibility to force the hotels in the city to pay a parking tax

for parking places they provide to their guests on their territory. They also can buy parking space on the

street, where it is possible and not have too much influence on the traffic flow. The tax can be used to

finance the Tourist P&R out of the city and to offer tourists a reasonable price for that service.

5.1.4 Organizing Off-Street Parking

Off-Street Parking in the inner city has the function to provide necessary parking space abroad the

transport network without wasting required transport capacity and to provide necessary additional parking

space aside from the on-street provided spaces. On-Street parking is premium service and directly

influences the supply of public space – public space for transport, recreation and business.



Page 41

Off-Street parking facilities exist in several occurrences – as multistory buildings, as underground

parking and as on-ground parking.

On-Ground Parking is a very cost effective way to provide Off-Road Parking but needs a lot of space

to provide on land, which can be otherwise used, for construction of necessary infrastructure buildings.

The general way is to provide On-Ground Parking only the outer parts of the city where land is available,

cheaper, and actually not needed for other purposes. Further rededication of the land for other usage is

possible if needed.

Multistore Parking is a way to provide compact parking space in the inner city on multilevel storage

buildings. It is more cost effective as Underground Parking, needs less space than On-Ground Parking and

can also be implemented in inner city regions to relieve the street network from parking. Multistore Parking

facilities are more expensive to build than on-ground parking.

City of Batumi will drive the further development of installation of off-street parking facilities in the

inner city, as well as in the outer regions of the city.

5.1.5 Parking Guidance System

A Parking Guidance system can help to mitigate drivers from wasting time in searching free parking

space. Drivers can spend nearly 25% of their travel time searching for parking, which has a direct impact

on congestion. Real-time message boards placed at specific locations along the roadway direct drivers to

available parking spaces in nearby garages or multistore parking. The message boards show the direction

to the parking space with an estimated number of free parking lots.

To have an effective Parking Guidance System, the number of available parking spaces in the area

should be more than 15%. Otherwise, the effects for less traffic flow regarding parking space search is

reduced. Therefore, the Parking Guidance System has necessarily to be combined with paid parking policy,

which allows controlling the occupancy of available space.

Off-street parking facilities like on-ground and multistore parking have to be included in the Parking

Guidance System with the estimated number of free parking space.

On-Street parking lots can be equipped with sensors to measure the occupancy of each lot. As an

alternative, parking space control cars could be used to detect the parking space occupancy and provide

that information to the Parking Guidance System.

5.1.6 Public Transport P&R

Public Transport Park&Ride (P&R) is a mobility offer to encourage commuters working in Batumi but

living in cities or villages around Batumi. The main idea is to offer them parking place in the outer city

regions with a direct connection to public transport. P&R can support the reduction of congestion, as more



Page 42

car users will switch to public transport. However, the commuters will not switch to public transport and

usage of P&R only because of the existence of this offer. This measure has to be accompanied by the

development of the public transport system in general – better service and comfort – and by the

introduction and enforcement of hourly-based paid parking in the inner city and the general reduction of

available parking lots.

The key success factor for the public transport P&R is the availability of fast and comfortable public

transport connections to the city center. Certain proposals for organization of an effective P&R have been

elaborated in an integrated feasibility study.

5.2 Public Transport and Taxi

5.2.1 Bus Route Network Optimization

Existing bus network in Batumi is excessive and over-duplicated. It is too much concentrated on the

Chavachadze avenue, where about 20-25 routes are concentrated (see Figure 1), while there are many

streets, poorly served with the public transport. Consequently, their patronage is shared between all routes,

so that each route has poor demand. This affects the economics of transportation making minibus the only

profitable way of business, so there is a will of the city of Batumi to change this situation.

There are different ways of possible network optimizations, depending on the optimization targets

and aims. New network is always a tradeoff between the economic and ecological efficiency and service

characteristics. Two approaches are proposed for the network optimization in the prior studies: Saunders

Group network (hereinafter SG), more focused on the efficiency and Batumi City Hall network (hereinafter

BCH), focused more on the service.



Page 43

Figure 1 - Quantity of public transport routes on the streets of Batumi

Network optimization will help to redistribute routes, removing duplication and improving the service

in the poorly served parts of the city.

The structure of public transport network is tightly connected to the minivan usage. Their extensive

usage causes traffic issues and excessive emissions, so the city sets the goal to reduce minivan traffic.

Network duplication leads to the very short overall headway between the items of public transport

(both buses and minivans), while the street cannot handle this amount traffic. In fact, Chavchavadze

Avenue today requires more than one lane in each direction to handle the existing traffic.

Minivan model of public transport requires huge quantities of minivans due to their capacity: the city

of Batumi network uses over 450 minivans in the network on a daily basis, and overall amount of minivans

is up to 750. There are occasions when mivi-van companies violate daily limits on each route and end up

with more mini-vans than permitted on network. The median age of a minivan is about 18 years so their

engines were constructed in accordance to and obsolete Euro-2 emission standard, however, the real

emissions of the minivans can be even worse due to their age.



Page 44

Removing the minivans from the network within the network optimization project is expected to

dramatically improve the situation with the emissions, reducing CO2, CO, NOx, THC and PM emissions, as

it may be seen on Figure 2.

Figure 2 – Total daily emissions in the analyzed networks, kg

5.2.2 Replacement of the minibus network

Network operating with the minibuses is inefficient, generates much traffic issues and GHG

emissions, so the city of Batumi has a will to replace it. However, it is impossible to switch to the optimized

network overnight, so all the network has to be divided into pieces that can be gradually replaced.

Origin-Destination approach may be used for this purpose. In this case, the city is divided into several

logic districts (10-15, for instance), and the further analysis is conducted in the connection to these districts.

The new network is split into the groups that serve the same OD directions. Feeder routes can be attached

to these groups in case they are complementary to the routes of the respective group. It is very important

to pay the proper attention to the route chains: if the feeder routes is attached to the wrong main route

group, it may be inefficient. Finally, the routes of the old network are analyzed, wether each route’s demand

is covered by the new network. If yes, these routes should be removed along with the opening of the new

routes from the respective group.

0

50000

100000

150000

200000

250000

300000

CO THC NOx PM CO2

BASE SG BCH



Page 45

In these ways the replacement packages are created. They consist of the new routes and routes to

be closed. For example, each package may include 1-2 new routes and about 4-5 routes, and it is very

important to implement each package simultaneousely. Opening the new routes without closing the old

ones will reduce occupancy and and cause negalive effect on the transportation economics, wile closing

the old routes without opening the new ones will decline the accessibility and will make people angry.

The prior study, conducted by the Saunders Group in 2014 had proposed the implementation

schedule upon the election cycle. The reason for that is that any changes to transport will cause residents

discomfort until they are acclimatized to the new system and is common to make such changes only at the

start of an election term.

Year # Minivan

Routes Minivan Lines Minivan Lines Removed

2014 29 No Change No Change 2015 16 BK,22,26,30,31,32,33,34,38,39,42,47

,49, 51,52,56 20,21,24,25,25a,28,29,35,36,40,44,45,46,55

2016-17 16 No Change No Change 2018 13 A,B,C,BK,GK,MK,32,38,42,49,51,52,5

6 22,26,30,31,33,34,39,47

2019 9 A,B,C,BK,GK,MK,32,38,42 49,51,52,56 2020-21 9 No Change No Change 2022 6 A,B,C,BK,GK,MK 32,38,42 2023-24 6 No Change No Change

This plan is already out-of date, so the new one will be developed, possibly within the same logic,

however the recent changes in legislation should be taken into account.In 2014 for the first time Batumi

citizens elected Mayor directly. But for the 2014 elected Mayor and City Council members the cabinet term

would last for 3 years (due to some legislative reasons), nevertheless for all future elections cabinet term

will be 4 years, same for the Mayor and the City Council.

City council Mayor City council Mayor

2014 + + 2025 + +

2015 2026

2016 2027

2017 + + 2028

2018 2029 + +

2019 2030

2020 2031

2021 + + 2032

2022 2033 + +

2023 2034

2024 2035

Table 1 - City council and Mayor election cycles, possible time to conduct network replacement is white



Page 46

To avoid this, network replacement is recommended to be synchronized only with the mayor election

cycle.

5.2.3 BRT-like corridor CA

Batumi has a will to develop public transport priority to promote this mode. One of the measures is

the development of bus priority corridor along Chavchavadze avenue and Abuseridze street (hereinafter

CA corridor). CA BRT-like corridor includes a bus-only lane, traffic light priority and BRT-like stops that

promote public transport.

Exclusive bus lane across the CA corridor will improve the quality of the Batumi transport.

Chavchavadze and Abuseridze avenues are the busiest streets of Batumi with the largest demand for public

transport. Those streets provide direct access to the central business district of the city, facing severe traffic

issues. Bus only lane will give a priority to the public transport, helping it to avoid traffic issues.

Consequently, this will improve public transport speed and overall accessibility; however, this will require

re-planning of the street. The most sensitive issue here is the removal of the parking in the right-most

lane, because this space will be required to provide buses with an exclusive lane. New planning should also

comply with the requirements of the sustainable urban mobility: it should provide comfortable space for all

mobility groups, pedestrians and cyclists first of all.

Traffic light priority improves the intersection passing for the busses. It is an automatic system that

informs the intersection traffic light about the approaching bus and makes it turn green for the CA corridor.

This measure also is a further improvement of the average bus speed.

BRT-like bus stops improve the boarding and alighting speed as well as make bus approach easier

and faster; this affects the perception of the bus as a mean of transport.

CA BRT-like corridor is expected to improve accessibility by 6-7% and attract 6% more people to

use public transport, but network optimization is very important for its efficient performance: too much

routes that use Chavchavadze Avenue and Abuseridze Street will not fit into a single bus lane.

5.2.4 Improvements for the Taxi Sector

The taxi sector in Batumi – and in Georgia in general – lacks in a sufficient regulation. Everyone can

be taxi driver in Batumi – there is no restriction. This is a problem for the tourism, not having a standardized

price level and common tariffs for taxi service and having to negotiate every time or to pay a service fee

too high.

The regulation of the taxi sector has to be done on the national level. Batumi can introduce a taxi

registration and offer certain advantages for registered taxis. One privilege can be the usage of bus lanes



Page 47

for registered taxis. Batumi will on the local level introduce certain measures to contribute to a better

organization of the taxi sector.

5.2.5 Renewal of the Bus Fleet

Acquisition of new busses is very important for the further public transport improvement.

Existing public transport network in Batumi operated with 478 minivans and 107 buses. Even after

the total removal of the minivans, the existing buses will remain and they are rather old and comply with

Euro-2 and Euro-3 standards.

In addition, Zonda-type buses are not accessible for the disabled, so the sooner they will be replaced,

the better is for Batumi.

Modern buses are usually low floor and comply with Euro-5 and Euro-6 standards; there are also

electric buses that get more and more popular and both solutions produce fewer emissions than the existing

buses. New rolling stock may also feature better safety level: equipped with video surveillance, SOS buttons

they will definitely improve the safety inside the bus. Video cameras may also be located at the outside,

filming the road before and after the bus and providing information on cars, illegally using bus lanes or

violating parking policies.

For this reason, acquisition of new busses is an important step for Batumi, because this will improve

ecology and service quality.

5.2.6 Improvement of Bus Stops

The quality of the bus stops is very important for the overall public system perception. It is very

important to have the bus stops built in the same style according to a single standard to be easily

recognizable. A standard bus stop should feature:

Unique name

Rain and wind shelter

Network plan

Information on the routes, stopping at the stops

Display with the information on the routes an arrival times

All the information should be duplicated in the foreign languages, at least in English

Good illumination

Video surveillance

Special attention should paid to vulnerable users.



Page 48

5.2.7 Improvement of Travel Comfort

Public transport comfort is an important part of sustainable mobility. So, if the city aims towards it,

it should clearly understand what incentives make people use different modes of transport. People prefer

cars from different reasons, but comfort is not the least. Travelling in a car is a guaranteed seat, air

conditioner and overall cleanness, so if the city suffers from the excessive car traffic, it should provide a

descent alternative.

Of course, bus cannot be as comfortable as car, but it can be more competitive:

Buses should be clean with everything in working order

Air conditioning is an important feature during the summer time

Low floor of the bus is a comfort for everyone

There should be proper quantity of buses on the routes, as well as the buses should

be of proper size to avoid overcrowding

Public transport should have priority corridors to have reasonable average speed

5.2.8 BRT-like corridor CBG

As the city if Batumi studies bus priority measures, CBG corridor has been analyzed together with

the CA corridor where CBG stands for Chavchavadze-Baratashvili-Gorgiladze. CBG corridor, like the CA BRT-

like corridor, includes a bus-only lane, traffic light priority and BRT-like stops that promote public transport.

Although, CBG corridor features the same priority measures, as CA corridor does, the expected

benefit from its introduction is subtle on the scale of the whole city. The key indicators improve slightly, in

comparison to the effect, caused by the introduction of CA corridor. For example, CA will improve the

accessibility of network by 42.3%, while the improvement caused by CBG will be 12.1%. Also, no synergetic

effect is observed: the accessibility of the SG network is improved by 54.4% by the CA and CBG

combination, which is exactly a sum of individual effects, caused by the corridors.



Page 49

5.3 Walking and Cycling

To be able to travel safely in their community, pedestrians and bicyclists need /8/:

Access to destinations – Pedestrians and bicyclists need direct, convenient routes to

access important facilities, such as schools, businesses, healthcare facilities, and

transit facilities.

A safe space to travel – For pedestrians, this may include a smooth, unobstructed

walking surface at least wide enough for two wheelchairs to pass each other, such as

a sidewalk or a path that is separated from traffic. For bicyclists, it may include a bike

lane, shared lane, or separated facility. In places with slow speeds or very little traffic,

a paved shoulder or the roadway itself may be safe enough for walking or bicycling.

Both pedestrians and bicyclists need safe street crossings with appropriate crosswalks,

signs, and signals.

The ability to see or detect traffic – Pedestrians and bicyclists should also be able to

be seen by oncoming vehicles, both day and night.

Access to sidewalks and crossings – This includes having well-designed curb ramps to

ease changes in elevation.

Enough time to cross streets – Pedestrians should have time to cross at intersections

and crossings with or without pedestrian signals. If there are no signals at the

crossing, there must be adequate gaps in traffic to safely cross.

Continuous facilities – Sidewalks, trails, and bicycle facility networks should be free

from gaps, obstructions, and abrupt changes in direction or width.

Signs and markings designating the route – This includes crosswalk markings,

pedestrian way-finding signs, bicycle route markers, and detour signs in construction

areas. These signs should be understandable to those with limited English language

skills.

Bicycle policy is on today’s agenda in many European cities. In recent years and decades, many local

leaders take numerous measures to stimulate the bicycle infrastructure development, as more and more

people are convinced that cycling contributes to the development of the city, meeting the transportation

needs of residents, positively affecting the environment, quality of life, economic development.

An additional study /9/ has elaborated in detail the functional designs of Batumi bicycle network and

related facilities and services like bike sharing, bike parking and bike service. For the further development

of the bike rental and promoting its usage among the majority of local residents the following steps are

needed:

Expand the network of points for the user registration (currently one can only register in a single



Page 50

Information Center on Ninoshvili St.)

Expand to a coherent bicycle network covering the whole area

Expand the network of bike rental stations to cover the whole territory of the city

Development and installation of navigation labels and signs

Develop resources to monitor the number of bicycles at stations and free columns (to provide the

data to mobile app and web site, so users get an overview of the station occupancy and

availability)

Provide more ways for travel payment (for example, banking cards, mobile phone – mobile

application is provided e.g. by company NextBike)

5.3.1 Improvement of the Bicycle Network

The main part of the city is located on flat territory that promotes the use of bicycles for traveling.

Today Batumi already has a bicycle track network with a total length of over 26 km. The existing bicycle

infrastructure characterizes the city, as the one that encourages the use of bicycles both for the purpose

of tourism and for the purpose of daily transport. The existing network has its advantages and

disadvantages. There are certain problems with the aspects of safety (most of the bike paths in Batumi

combined with pedestrian sidewalks, leading to non-compliance with the regulatory width of tracks in

certain cases), cohesion (since the cycle paths are currently formed only in certain parts of the city, it is

not possible to get to the certain places in the city using only bicycle paths), attractiveness (in general,

Batumi bike infrastructure does not look attractive for daily travel, but is well suited for short tourist trips)

and convenience which should be addressed by the further development and improvement of the bicycle

network.

The aforementioned study identifies a bicycle network as a set of interrelated, safe and straight parts

covering the entire city. Four types of routes were identified for Batumi: main, top local, local, recreation

(Figure 3). The implementation of the planned scheme should be done selectively, starting with the top

local routes in the areas with the highest bicycle potential, where people already ride bikes. These top local

routes should be put together and connected into the main routes. Then the network can consistently

connect other areas, developing and gradually compacting.

In addition, bicycle infrastructure development should be included into the major repairs and

constructions of new road sections.



Page 51

Figure 3 - Network concept sketch in Batumi

Every cycle terminal should have information posters with landmarks of the surrounding nearby

terminal and recognizable places, which helps the cyclists to navigate easily in the unknown places. The

cycling road should be marked clearly and its geometric parameters should be made according to the

standards.

Every bike trip starts and ends in a parking facility. This is the same as for car. It is necessary to

develop and improve existing parking facilities for bicycles. The installation of self-service stations (self-

service stations include all the tools necessary to perform basic bike repairs and maintenance, from

changing a flat to adjusting brakes and derailleurs) can contribute in a positive way to the acceptance of

bicycle as a common means of transport, as it has already happened in many European countries. Certain

proposals for bike parking and self-service stations are made in the aforementioned study.

5.3.2 Improvements for Pedestrians

Walking is the most ancient and universal form of travel. It is also an important form of exercise and

recreation. Every personal trip involves walking, alone or in combination with taking public transit, driving

or cycling. In order to travel safely, conveniently, directly and comfortably, pedestrians require an urban

environment and infrastructure designed to meet their travel needs. To ensure walking is a safe,



Page 52

comfortable and convenient mode of urban transport the principles of accessibility, equity, sustainability,

safety and cohesion should be followed.

A common problem for the whole country and not for only Batumi is pedestrian crossing. This

problem has two sides: one side is caused with the pedestrians, moving chaotically and crossing the streets

whenever and wherever they need, and the second side is caused with the drivers who do not give a way

to the pedestrians, crossing even on the zebra area. Both problems are caused with the mentality and lack

of education but impunity and enforcement problem is also very important. The city can build safety islands,

elevate zebras etc. but mentality will not change in such a small stretch of time if people will not have a

feeling that if they do not give a way to the pedestrian, they will be fined. It is also necessary to raise

awareness in pedestrian people too.

A very important thing for pedestrian movement is cobble stone pavement, especially for walking

women, to whom it is very uncomfortable to walk with the high shoes. It has to be reviewed to change the

cobblestone with some other materials what will be more attractive for walking.

Sidewalks are zones dedicated for pedestrian movement and they must be properly organized to

enable safe and accessible travel in public area. Sidewalks provide places for children to walk, run, skate

and play, and are often used by young bicyclists. Continuous and accessible sidewalk networks improve

mobility for all pedestrians and are particularly important for pedestrians with disabilities. Requirements of

vulnerable and disabled persons.

Tactile paving is a system of textured ground surface indicator found on footpaths, stairs and train

station platforms to assist pedestrians who are visually impaired. This kind of surface can be used on zebras

on the crossroads and in such places, where visually impaired people need to be informed about crossing

the street or about alike situations.

One important component of pedestrian movement is safety and infrastructure for vulnerable people.

There are many places in the city Batumi, where it is difficult for pedestrians to move safely and

comfortably, especially for vulnerable persons.

The city must take into consideration vulnerable people when planning the bike lines, pavements

and roads.

5.3.3 Improvement of Bike Sharing

The bicycle should be attractive and durable. The overall appearance of the bicycle is a key element

in the overall branding of a bicycle sharing system and should project a sleek, modern image. The design

can differentiate the cycle sharing fleet from regular cycles in the city through distinctive design, colors,

and graphics.



Page 53

For bike sharing all consisting components must be upgraded, developed, populated and

implemented /9/:

Station network

Payment and registration system

Safety

Mobile and web apps

Demand monitoring system

Bike renting system

Batumi city is willing to increase the number of bicycle rental stations, covering the entire city and

promoting the use of rental bicycles for daily trips by local residents. The goal is to promote bicycle transport

as a common day-to-day means of transport.

The public transport infrastructure and information system have to be integrated with bicycle

infrastructure. Such measures make cycling more attractive and popular. Bike rental stations are introduced

as parallel transport services, offloads the urban transport during peak hours or in an area where urban

transport cannot meet the mobility needs. It is very comfortable for bike users if:

The city integrates bicycle ticketing system with public transport ticketing system

If the payment system is combined with the PuT payment system

If on bus stops will be information posters, where both bicycle and bus stops,

terminals, routes will be placed

If public transport users sometimes have special benefits – e.g. one day or pay off -

when using the BSS system, or other means of transport

The process of user registration needs to be improved. User registration is required to prevent theft

of bicycles by the anonymous users and maintain proper payment. Registration should be extended to the

Internet and also on more than only one information point, as it is at the moment.

Fare system should be flexible enough to be competitive in comparison to other modes of transport

and could provide free of charge service during first 15 minutes.

The introduction of E-bikes can have a boost on the attractiveness and acceptance of bike sharing

and the bicycle as day-to-day means of transport. E-Bikes give an easy access to and entry to the mode of

bicycles to formerly maybe not interested and engaged people.

To be satisfied, users should have regular access to the bikes and avoid empty rental stations.

Therefore, the bicycle turnover, availability of bikes and free lots at the stations and the technical conditions



Page 54

have to be monitored to ensure system functionality and customer satisfaction. Information from the

monitoring system can be integrated into a common mobility platform (chapter 5.7.2).

City administration will develop and improve the bike sharing system to a modern and attractive

service that supports the shift to a sustainable mobility in Batumi.

5.3.4 Pedestrian and Bicycle Navigation and Information

Batumi is a popular tourist destination, so it is very important to help tourists spend their time in

comfort. Understanding of the city, its layout and potential destinations is an important improvement for

the tourist. For this reason, standardized city maps and other navigation items are to be located in the city,

mostly concentrated in the districts, attractive to the tourists.

As Georgian uses its unique characters, it is not readable for the foreigners, so the navigation has

be provided with all the key information duplicated in English. In addition, the names should be duplicated

in Latin characters to be readable by the tourists.

Bike sharing stations are good option for the tourist to switch his transport mode; however, people

should be confident that they would be able to leave the bicycle at their desired destination. This may be

a problem today, because the bicycle sharing stations are located mostly closer to the sea and not available

in the inner city. Another important part of the bike sharing system is registration: single place of

registration in the system is definitely not enough; this limits the usage of bicycle sharing. Batumi has a

will to promote sustainable transportation among the tourists and encourage them to use bicycle, therefore,

bicycle sharing station network has be extended into the inner city, and the registration should be available

throughout the city.

Attractive bus stops are a part of the overall public transport attractiveness, so in order to promote

public the city of Batumi is willing to develop bus stops in the way that they meet the same standards.

They should have common branding and common navigation items that may be helpful for residents and

tourists. In addition, bus stops should have displays with the information on expected arrival time with all

the information duplicated in Latin characters and English, where eligible.

Bus terminal a station located on or off a transit line that enables passengers to transfer to another

transit line or service, generally without leaving the physical boundaries of the station. It also may function

as an end-of-line facility for some routes. In the case of Batumi, two bus terminals serve as a place, where

people can interchange from general routes to a BRT-like bus #5 that goes into the inner city. Bus terminals

are essential for the route optimization, increasing convenience for transferring riders, allowing for creation

of a fare-paid zone that further eases transfers, and maximizing the interface of BRT-like operation and

local services. Thus, transfer terminals typically require much more space and a greater capital investment.

The key idea of the bus transfer terminals is improved accessibility to the all routes with the minimum

pedestrian connections and efficient navigation.



Page 55

All the navigation should be also adjusted to comply with the needs of vulnerable people. For

instance, city navigation, as well as navigation at the bus stop, should be duplicated placed in the way that

it can be read by the wheelchair users. In addition, the needs of the people with eyesight problems should

be met: navigation items should have basic information duplicated for them; the buses should be equipped

with both external and internal audio devices. The first announces the bus route, when it approaches the

stop, and the second announces the names of the stops and other useful information.

5.3.5 Development of Shared Space on Residential streets

Residential streets have to be livable. This mean that they are not only provide traffic with the access

to the destinations, but also provide residents with the access to their needs and public spaces. The city of

Batumi has an objective to switch the traffic priorities at the residential streets. They no more have to

provide opportunities for through traffic, but have to be safe and livable. This means that pedestrian and

bicycle traffic should have priority, while car traffic should be calmed and reduced. The speed limit on the

residential streets has to be limited to 20 km/h, which will strongly reduce the probability of traffic fatalities.

This is crucial, because residential streets have much pedestrian traffic with many children.

Calmed and restricted traffic allows moving the residential streets towards the shared space concept

with no barriers for the sustainable transportation modes, such as pedestrians and cyclists. This will also

improve the quality of life for the vulnerable persons.

Parking along the residential streets can be allowed for the residents, however, it should be well

structured and not consume public spaces.

5.3.6 Car free old City

Old Batumi has a strong tourist potential; however, the pedestrian traffic is mixed with the car traffic

on the narrow old streets. As more and more cities create car free zones, Batumi has a will to follow this

trend. It is not possible to totally ban cars in the old city; however, the access can be restricted and allowed

only for the residents and deliveries during defined hours. For example, in Leipzig, Germany, delivery access

to the old city is allowed from 20:00 to 11:00 of the next day.

As the old city access is restricted, on-street parking should be also restricted: only old city residents

can park their cars there.

Car access restrictions need proper control and enforcement. One of the possible ways to segregate,

who is eligible to enter the old city, and who is not, are bollards.

After the new access policies are implemented, pedestrians and cyclists will have a priority on the

streets of the old city. This will improve the attractiveness of the Old Batumi by giving more space for

pedestrians and improving traffic safety.



Page 56

5.4 E-Mobility

Electric mobility is today the key technology for the replacement of fossil energy sources in the long

term. Drive electrification represents the key to a sustainable mobility future, with battery and fuel cell

technologies representing mutually complementary paths to be pursued in tandem /10/.

Batumi already attempted to implement electro mobility in the city by introducing an electric taxi

fleet. The concept was developed in 2012 but still have not been implemented. There is now no public

infrastructure available for the operation of electric vehicles. Batumi is willing to develop the basic

infrastructure for e-mobility.

5.4.1 Setup of Loading Stations network

Today’s charging technology for e-vehicles divides into two categories – slow charging with AC and

fast charging with DC. Slow charging is most commonly installed at home (as private investment), because

the environment is cheaper and the charging power is low. That results in a slower process of charging –

enough to charge the battery of an e-vehicle overnight. Fast chargers are installed in public places to

provide a backbone for adhoc charging requirements and to be an entry for people to purchase an e-vehicle

without the primarily need to invest in a home charging environment.

The city of Batumi will support the setup of a base network of fast charging stations.

5.4.2 Introduction of E-Taxi fleet

The successful introduction of e-mobility technology in Batumi depends heavily on the availability of

certain charging infrastructure. However, the economical operation of this infrastructure is hardly possible

without vehicles using the charging capabilities.

A study has investigated in 2017 the introduction of an E-Taxi fleet in Batumi /11/. The characteristics

of the taxi service show optimal conditions to be operated by means of e-vehicles. Therefore, with the

introduction of an E-Taxi fleet the fast charging infrastructure has also to be built, which results in a basic

charging network available also for the public.

City of Batumi will support the introduction of E-Taxi fleet.

5.4.3 Special Offers for E-Cars’

To stimulate the development of e-mobility in Batumi the city administration will have to think about

certain incentives for owners of e-vehicles. This could be free parking in hourly-based paid parking zones,

unrestricted usage of future bus lanes or free charging on public fast charging stations.



Page 57

5.5 Freight Transport

Function of Georgia as of transport corridor was significantly increased (Europe, Caucasus, Asia)

since 90s. Along with development of close economic relations with neighboring countries and in general

deepening regional cooperation, the role and function of Batumi as of land and sea gate of Georgia, with

its marine and railway transport was increased naturally /12/.

Georgia’s main road transport corridor is the East–West Highway (EWH)—part of the Europe–Asia

corridor through the Caucasus, running north from the border with Turkey at Sarpi, serving the Black Sea

ports of Batumi and Poti, then east past Kutaisi (Georgia’s second largest city) to Tbilisi, and then

southeast to the border with Azerbaijan at Red Bridge, a total distance of more than 400 km. The highway

carries more than 60% of the international freight moved by road transport, and traffic on this road is

increasing at around 10% a year.

The Georgian railways represents an important transport artery for the Caucasus as they make up

the largest proportion of a route linking the Black and Caspian Seas, connecting the Georgian ports via

Tbilisi with Baku in Azerbaijan.

Improvements of the rail corridor are either under way or planned to increase speed and connectivity.

Investments include upgrading and rehabilitating track and rolling stock, which will permit operating speeds

to increase to 100 km per hour, especially on the line between Tbilisi and Batumi. Additional projects

include the construction of the economically important Kars–Tbilisi–Baku railway, which for the first time

will connect much of the Caucasus with Turkey by standard gauge railway.

There are a number of seaports along Georgia's Black Sea coast, among which Poti and Batumi are

the most important ones in terms of volume. Poti port is the main maritime gateway in Georgia, and a

spearhead of the corridors that transit the Caucasus region leading to the Black Sea, with direct rail access

and connections to the East-West Highway. Dry cargo turnover of Batumi Sea Port for 2013 totaled

1,717,303 tons, which is 9% higher than 2012 and makes 95% of the production plan for this period.

The establishment and strengthening of efficient transportation and logistics systems is a central

concern of the City of Batumi.

5.5.1 City Delivery Logistics

City logistics is a relatively new field of investigation brought by the challenges of moving growing

quantities of good within Batumi. Certain modern city logistics concepts in European cities allow delivery

only on those hours with a low demand on the network resources. That means in general in the morning

hours until 8:00 and in the low demand hours after midday. The midday low demand hours are typical for

European cities but not so in Batumi. In Batumi, we see a high demand all over the day. Batumi city



Page 58

administration will review the possibility to introduce restrictions for certain kind of delivery trucks to allow

delivery only in low demand hours.

New concepts of city logistics in Europe also comprise bicycle freight transport. The use of freight

bikes avoids noise and exhaust fumes; often enough, it also means cost benefits to businesses due to lower

purchase prices and maintenance expenses. Freight bikes can also be utilized in traffic-calmed areas barred

for delivery vans. Freight bikes may not be able to meet all the challenges of urban freight transport but

their potential is commonly underrated. Batumi city administration will consider and support the

introduction of freight bikes.

5.5.2 Trucks Parking

The port of Batumi is the second largest in the country. Hinterland access and freight distribution is

done by railways and by freight trucks. There are currently four special truck-parking areas in the city and

around the port. The motivation for these parking areas varies from reducing the burden trucks may cause

in surrounding neighborhoods, tackling illegal truck parking, reducing congestion on the surrounding road

network, lowering air emissions and streamlining port operations, particularly during disturbances, which

may result in capacity overload.

Further investigations have to show if it would be reasonable to bundle the existing parking areas to

one better-equipped central parking area with a shorter transport access to the port. It has to be

investigated if it will be feasible to enhance the parking areas with amenities like security (lighting, guards,

cameras, fencing, etc.), sanitation (toilets and showers), food and beverages (cafés) and electric plug-ins.

Modern ITS technology can be implemented to support an efficient access to the port.

5.5.3 Garbage Collection

The Batumi street network is primarily based on the planning decisions made in the second half of

the 19th century /12/. This results in a lot of narrow residential streets that are difficult to serve with bigger

trucks like garbage collection trucks. An often-mentioned problem during the stakeholder interviews in

preparation of the present document is traffic delay caused by garbage collection leading to congestion.

The city of Batumi will examine the reorganization of garbage collection to mitigate negative effects on the

transport.

5.6 ITS

Intelligent Traffic Systems (ITS) include traffic and congestion monitoring and management systems,

with an integration of traffic control centers. Such traffic management and control systems have significant

efficiency benefits for both public and private transport. Batumi city is eager to develop the transport

system and to introduce modern technology of traffic control and monitoring.



Page 59

Within this sustainable urban mobility plan, which form the strategic base for the development of

the mobility and transport for the next decade, the city will concentrate on six major topics in ITS:

1. Establishment of Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre

2. Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State

3. Traffic Data Collection

4. Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport

5. Dynamic Message Signs

6. Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization

These points have to be considered in an integrated concept for the development of the ITS system

in Batumi.

5.6.1 Establishment of Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre

Batumi has actually no central point, where all the necessary operational information about traffic

and the transport system in concentrated. This is one basic requirement for the integrated functioning of

a potential traffic control. Such a center should have the following functions:

Management of incidents – incidents on the street network not only cause unexpected delay

in journeys, but also can in themselves cause secondary accidents. Incidents can be

managed so that oncoming traffic is warned to slow down before the scene of the accident,

and so secondary accidents are less likely, and on a wider area, traffic can be encouraged

to find alternative routes, so lessening the congestion. Finally, if an incident is detected and

reported quickly, the emergency services can attend the location of the incident quickly, and

clear it as quickly as possible.

Management of congestion and traffic flow – where the road is reaching its maximum

capacity during certain times, and the traffic flow breaks down to ‘stop-start’ flow, this

reduces the capacity of the road, and makes accidents more likely.

Management of events – if there is an event (concerts, sport, etc.) that is likely to create

additional traffic, and so additional congestion, road users can be advised of this in advance,

and either find alternative routes, or elect to travel outside of the affected time.

Management of Road Maintenance – road maintenance is an integrated part of the traffic

control center functionality. In the first case, that Road Maintenance is an operational issue

that means that the road network should be kept in “Best Conditions” when e.g. the road is

to be cleaned from snow, or need to be repaired. In the functional case of “Fast Clearance”

Road Maintenance management is used for a fast clearance of any obstacles preventing



Page 60

from a free traffic flow (accident clearance, parts lying on the road). The tactical

management component of Road Maintenance is related to an optimal organization of

common road maintenance issues like road works, road marking, etc.

Any particular compliance issues or hazards, for example speeding, overweight vehicles,

particular weather hazards (e.g. fog)

Security

Figure 4 - Functions of a Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre

The management needs are supported by a variety of measures, as there are some of the most

important:

Connecting all the relevant stakeholders onto one platform for Fast Reaction and Fast

Clearance (Decision Making)

There should be foreseen systems for Decision support to secure Fast Reaction and

Fast Clearance

There should be developed certain strategies to support a Fast Clearance of incidents,

congestions and other obstacles to the traffic flow

There should be guaranteed an optimal provision of information to all the relevant

channels by means of mass media, internet and mobile devices

There should be investigated the need for strategies for automatic or semi-automatic

activation of emergency plans

Batumi needs a Traffic Control Centre to get the capability for an efficient management of the

transport system in a whole. The control center should include individual transport on the street network,

as well as public transport (for minimum at the monitoring level).



Page 61

5.6.2 Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State

To be able to control something, one has to measure what he wants to control. Without

measurement there is no base on which to take decision how to control. It is one of the basic features of

a traffic control center to be able to monitor the transport systems that are connected to it.

In the context of traffic and transport that means, that if we want to control the traffic we have to

first measure it. Measuring means monitoring. Monitoring of the traffic state, monitoring of the traffic

situation, and monitoring of congestion. The transport systems deliver raw detection data, which has to be

processed. Raw detection data will be automatically analyzed, aggregated and put in context. Data is

processed to get new information out of it and to be able to make decisions and control the road network.

There are the following components contemplated for data processing:

Traffic forecast – traffic flow, speed and density is forecasted from the current time

to a short-term time horizon of about 1 hour in the future by so-called dynamic

transport model. This is especially an effective measure to estimate the consequences

of incidents.

Traffic statistics – to identify bottlenecks, traffic hot spots and incident black spots

on base of statistical analysis methods and historical traffic data which is aggregated

from different sources and brought into a common context

Static Transport modelling – the existing Batumi transport model will be actively

integrated into the traffic control center software and data stack. It contains a lot of

already aggregated and calibrated information about the road network and the

expected demands and traffic load.

Network travel time – on base of e.g. Bluetooth detectors, which monitor the

Bluetooth devices the calculation of network travel time possible. This is not only a

valuable input for static transport model but also the main indicator of the network

quality of service. Such a system should be installed in the very first implementation

time to monitor the effectiveness of road construction measures and the influence of

ITS systems.

The output of the congestion and traffic state monitoring is a fundamental input not only for the

control system, but also for the adjustment of the Parking Management, where the level of congestion is

one parameter to determine the price level and the supply of parking spaces.

Batumi will force the introduction of a traffic monitoring system for the road network.



Page 62

5.6.3 Traffic Data Collection

Traffic Data Collection is essential for monitoring. No data means no monitoring. Without data, there

will be no picture about the real situation. In general, it needs some sort of detection that is able to give a

comprehensive picture about the current situation in the monitored network and region.

These are:

Real time traffic data from roadside detectors, for congestion and incident detection.

This could be point detection and journey time detection.

CCTV for incident and congestion confirmation

Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) for security purposes and for

measurement of travel times – as an alternative Bluetooth detection can be considered

GPS/GLONASS tracks from mobile Users or from On-board units for detection of

congestion and link speeds

Another important point related to the Parking Management is the continuous monitoring of the

parking spaces for their occupancy. This can be realized by special detectors on each parking space or by

parking patrol cars.

Batumi will setup a system for a comprehensive detection of the traffic conditions, incidents and

parking occupancy.

5.6.4 Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport

Providing priority for public transport at signalized intersections is an excellent way to reduce public

transport travel time and increase schedule reliability, helping to make public transport more attractive for

customers and less expensive to operate.

A major requirement for Transit Signal Priority (TSP) is the existence of separate bus lanes, when

the traffic congestion is too high to be able to calculate a precise arriving time at the intersection. Another

important requirement is the existence of an accurate public transport vehicle location system. That means

that buses have to be equipped at least with GPS (more precision can be achieved with European System

Galileo in the future) – another possibility is the installation of loops or infrared beacons for identifying and

locating the buses.

The major current problem in Batumi is that the traffic lights controllers are from different

manufacturers and that some of the controllers are out of administrative access due to difficulties and

controversy with one of the manufacturers.

It is possible to design TSP on a corridor with different traffic lights controllers. However, there have

to be access provided and the controller should be under full control by the responsible agency in Batumi.



Page 63

Batumi administration is willing to solve those problems and to provide transit signal priority to the public

transport in order to increase the attractiveness and to encourage people in the use of the backbone of a

sustainable transport system in Batumi.

5.6.5 Dynamic Message Signs

Dynamic Message Signs (or Variable-Message Signs) are electronic signs used on the roadway to

give travelers advanced notification and information about current and future conditions such as:

severe weather condition alerts

traffic congestion cause by incidents, unplanned road closures or high traffic volume

travel time – compared to public transport to use Park&Ride

planned road closures

safety messages

parking situation in the City and on Park&Ride facilities

Dynamic Message Signs are the basic mean for traffic information dissemination in a smart mobility

and smart city context. Information can reach most of the road users so to have a big influence to their

behavior. City of Batumi considers establishing Dynamic Message Signs within an integrated ITS concept.

5.6.6 Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization

Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization is a method to support a fluent traffic flow over

certain number of traffic lights. The “Green Wave” is one of the most common description and concept for

the functionality. It means to have traffic lights on a transport arterial configured in such a way, that a car

doesn’t have to stop at intersections and gets green time at that moment when he reaches the intersection.

The realization of such a concept needs a synchronization in time between the participating traffic lights

and integrated and harmonized traffic signal plans for them.

Batumi suffers actually from one big issue that makes the implementation of a traffic lights

coordination impossible. After an innovation project several time ago, where the majority of traffic lights

was updated with controllers from Belgium company Vialis, these controllers are not accessible anymore

for control. At the moment, this does not allow to use them for coordinated and synchronized traffic control.

Batumi administration is eager to find a solution for this problem.

Traffic signal plans have to be reviewed and reconfigured regarding traffic counts and transport

model calculations, which were already conducted. Traffic signal plans have to be adjusted to reflect the

different demands in summer and winter season. Traffic lights should be configured on base of fixed time

programs, which is much cheaper to realize than fully automatic adaptive traffic lights control. Adaptive



Page 64

traffic control systems are usually introduced in cities, where a big amount of traffic lights has to be

integrated into one control system and a redesign of each individual traffic controller would need too much

time for the engineering services.

5.7 Mobility Management

Mobility Management, or Transport Mobility Management, Smart Mobility, means the setup of

strategies and technologies to manage the mobility as a whole in the city encourage mode shift to more

sustainable forms of transport. In comparison to ITS, it involves all means of transport – individual

transport, public transport, bicycle and pedestrian – as well as mobility options like bike/car sharing and

taxi. It aims to give the user the whole picture about all the possible mobility options and a comfortable

way to get access to them and to compare between them.

Central non-technical component is public opinion building and public relations.

Central technical component is an integrated mobility platform, where all information is collected,

reworked, aggregated and disseminated to all the available information channels.

5.7.1 Information Campaigns and Public Relations

The introduction and changes in transport policies, strategies and concepts have to be accompanied

by an efficient and target-oriented communication strategy. Public relations and public opinion building are

central instruments for working with the public. New concepts, policies and strategies have to be explained

to get the necessary public and political support. The two following examples will elaborate for parking and

pedestrian/bicycle concept, what this means practically:

Information Campaign for New Parking Strategy:

o The introduction of a new parking strategy can cause public incomprehension

due to a stronger enforcement, hourly-based paid parking and new parking

rules for residents. The explanation of the main concepts behind these

measures is essential to gain political and public support. To say, for which

purposes the parking fee is used – e.g. the improvement of the bike sharing,

reconstruction of pavements – is one possibility to achieve public support.

Public awareness for the necessary measures has to be achieved by explaining

the benefit that the city will get.

o New transport offers like Park&Ride for public transport and tourists, off-

street parking facilities and parking guidance system have to be publicly

promoted.



Page 65

Information campaign for new Pedestrian and Bicycle concepts:

o The introduction of new concepts/facilities for pedestrian and bicycles needs

an appropriated support from an information campaign. For the target group

of pedestrian and bicyclists to advertise the new possibilities and for the group

of car drivers to enhance the awareness regarding the needs of pedestrian

and bicyclists (to pay special attention on intersections, zebra crossings, etc.).

Special Attention has to be paid to vulnerable and disabled transport users.

o New concepts like “Shared Space” have to be introduced and explained

o Improve the awareness of citizens, that bicycle and walking are means of

transport and that cycling is not only for recreation

o Public relations can be supported e.g. by bike events and festivals, car free

streets on the weekend, allowed only for bikes and pedestrians

o Campaigns for Cycling can be executed at schools and universities

Batumi Administration will examine the establishment of a task force group to coordinate the

communication and public relations regarding the introduction of new transport concepts, new parking

strategy, new pedestrian and bicycle concepts, public transport improvements, etc. The task force is

considered to be formed of members of transport specialists, administration employees and public

relation/marketing specialists.

5.7.2 Integrated Mobility Platform and Information Services

An effective online mobility management needs a modern technical software platform that support

the requirements and functionality. Primarily that means the provision of a central information platform for

transport and mobility services to collect, to aggregate and to disseminate all relevant transport and

mobility data. Mobility data is e.g. data about the traffic situation, congestion state, availability of parking

spaces, information about incidents or accidents, events, Park&Ride occupancy, Public Transport travel

times, Public Transport arrival times at bus stops, Bike Sharing occupancy – number of free bikes/number

of free return slots, number of free parking lots in Off-Street parking facilities, etc.

The task for such a system is to have all necessary information available to give the operator the

possibility to take decisions and to give the end-user the necessary information to plan his trip and to have

a real “Mobility Option”, which means to have a side-by-side look on all the mobility options offered by the

city.

The integrated mobility platform aggregates data from its different sources and provides it to

downstream systems that will further work on the data or present the information to the final user in an

appropriated way. Such downstream systems are mobile applications, websites, information tables,



Page 66

dynamic message signs, the Parking Guidance System, etc. Information should also be provided by a

technical application-programming interface (API) from the mobility platform to crowd sourced services.

The free of charge provision of data per API is one current tendency in Europe to support the development

of commercial and non-commercial applications beside city official ones. This kind of concurrency stimulates

the market and leads to better applications and products.



Page 67

5.8 Summary of Actions

Table 2 shows an overview and evaluation of the measures that were presented in this chapter. Each

measure is rated from 0 to 6, which shows how it contributes to the sustainability indicators presented in

chapter 3.2.

A rating of 0 means that the measure does not contribute to the sustainability indicator. For example,

the Setup of Charging Stations for E-Mobility unlikely contributes to a reduction of congestion. It is also not

to explain on how “Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport” will contribute the Health & Attractiveness,

which means a more active lifestyle of the people.

A rating of 6 means that the measure fully contributes to the sustainability indicator. For example,

the “Bus Route Network Optimization” fully contributes to enhance the Efficiency. The “Replacement of the

Minibus Network” also fully contributes to more Eco-Friendliness.

The column “Importance” indicated the importance of each measure and in which order it should be

implemented. An importance of “H” means high importance; “L” means low importance.

The last column contains the sum of ratings for each measure, with the average value above. The

average values show that “Walking and Cycling” (value of 25.17) mostly contributes to reaching sustainable

mobility in Batumi. Followed by “Mobility Management and PR” (21.00), “Parking” (17.00), “Public Transport

and Taxi” (17.00), “ITS” (16.83), “Freight Transport” (12.67) and “E-Mobility” (11.33). This gives an

indication about, on which measures and topics to focus during the implementation of sustainable transport

and mobility in Batumi. This gives the following ranking:

1. Walking and Cycling

2. Mobility Management and PR

3. Parking

4. Public Transport and Taxi

5. ITS

6. Freight Transport

7. E-Mobility



Page 68

Table 2 - Overview and Evaluation of Actions

Group Importance Measure Efficiency Congestion

Health and

Attractiveness Eco- Friendly Safety&Security Fairness

Parking 17.00

H Reorganisation of On-Road Parking - Parking Zones 6 6 2 4 0 5 23

H Enforcement 6 5 2 4 0 5 22

H Tourist Park&Ride 4 4 3 3 0 3 17

L Organizaton of Off-road parking 4 3 1 1 0 5 14

L Parking Guidance System 2 3 1 4 0 3 13

L Public Transport Park&Ride 3 2 1 4 0 3 13

Public Transport and Taxi 17.00

H Bus Route Network Optimization 6 5 1 6 0 4 22

H Replacement of Minibus Network 6 4 1 6 4 1 22

H BRT-like Corridor CA 6 4 1 4 0 3 18

H Improvements for the Taxi Sector 4 3 1 3 4 4 19

L Renewal of Bus Fleet 4 0 1 5 4 4 18

L Improvement of Bus Stops 2 1 1 1 6 4 15

L Improvement of Travel Comfort 2 2 1 1 4 4 14

L BRT-like Corridor CBG 2 1 1 3 0 1 8

Walking and Cycling 25.17

H Improvement of Bicycle Network 6 2 6 6 6 6 32

H Improvements for Pedestrians 4 1 6 6 4 6 27

H Improvement of Bike Sharing 6 2 6 6 2 4 26

H Pedestrian and Bicycle Navigation and Information 6 1 6 4 5 3 25

L Development of Shared Space on Residential Streets 4 1 4 4 3 6 22

L Car free old city 2 1 4 6 2 4 19

E-Mobility 11.33

H Setup of Charging Stations network 2 0 2 6 0 2 12

L Introduction of E-Taxi fleet 2 0 2 6 0 2 12

L Special offer for E-cars parking 2 0 2 6 0 0 10

Freight Transport 12.67

H City Delivery Logistics 4 3 1 3 0 3 14

L Trucks Parking 4 1 1 2 0 4 12

L Garbage Collection 4 2 1 2 0 3 12

ITS 16.83

H Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre 6 6 2 4 4 3 25

H Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State 6 6 2 4 0 3 21

H Traffic Data Collection 6 5 2 2 0 0 15

L Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport 4 2 0 3 0 5 14

L Dynamic Message Signs 3 3 2 2 2 0 12

L Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization 4 4 1 2 2 1 14

Mobility Management and PR 21.00

H Information Campaigns and Public Relations 6 3 4 4 4 3 24

H Integrated Mobility Platform and Information Service 6 3 2 2 2 3 18



Page 69

6 URBAN MOBILITY SCENARIOS

6.1 Baseline Scenario – No actions

6.1.1 5%-8% Growth in car ownership

Calculation of the scenario with an estimated 5-8% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership is based

on the mobility survey of Batumi population, namely 4.3.2 Modes to number of cars owned.

When the growth rate of vehicle use/ownership 5% expected annual change of the distribution by

means of transportation (Modal Split) as follows: + 3.6% PrT, -2,45% PuT and -1,25% Ped.

Given the linear relationship, the level of car ownership will increase by 5 cars per year and may

reach 188 cars / 1000 inhabitants in 2026 to Batumi. The Modal Split is expected to shift to PrT ≈47,2%,

PuT≈25,6%, Ped≈27,2.(Table 3).

Years Growth rate of

vehicle

use/ownership 5%

Automobile provision

level

Modal split

PrT PuT Ped

2016 1,0 138 34,7% 33,9% 31,1%

2017 1,036 143 35,949% 33,069% 30,711%

2018 1,072 148 37,198% 32,239% 30,323%

2019 1,108 153 38,448% 31,408% 29,934%

2020 1,144 158 39,697% 30,578% 29,545%

2021 1,180 163 40,946% 29,747% 29,156%

2022 1,216 168 42,195% 28,917% 28,768%

2023 1,252 173 43,444% 28,086% 28,379%

2024 1,288 178 44,694% 27,256% 27,990%

2025 1,324 183 45,943% 26,425% 27,601%

2026 1,360 188 47,192% 25,595% 27,213%

Table 3 - Modal Split values for the 5% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership



Page 70

At 5% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership growth until 2026, the main issues with the transport

network can be seen on Figure 5. The most problematic are the intersections of Chavchavadze – Tsereteli

(Baratashvili), Chavchavadze – Gogebashvili, Shavsheti – Mayakovsky (Tsereteli) and the area around the

Batumi bus station.

Figure 5 - Problem areas with the transport network (5% growth rate of ownership)

When the growth rate of vehicle use/ownership is assumed as 8%, the annual expected change in

the distribution by means of transportation (Modal Split) is as follows: + 5.72% at PrT, - 3,96% on PuT

and -2,0% Ped.

Given the linear relationship, the level of car ownership will increase by 5 cars per year and may

reach 217 cars / 1000 inhabitants in 2026 to Batumi. The Modal Split is ecpected to shift to PrT ≈54,5%,

PuT≈20,5%, Ped≈24,93), (Table 4).



Page 71

Years

Growth rate of vehicle

use/ownership 8%

Automobile provision

level

Modal split

PrT PuT Ped

2016 1,0 138 34,7% 33,9% 31,1%

2017 1,057 146 36,685% 32,558% 30,478%

2018 1,114 154 38,670% 31,215% 29,856%

2019 1,172 162 40,655% 29,873% 29,234%

2020 1,229 170 42,639% 28,530% 28,612%

2021 1,286 177 44,624% 27,188% 27,990%

2022 1,343 185 46,609% 25,845% 27,368%

2023 1,400 193 48,594% 24,503% 26,746%

2024 1,458 201 50,579% 23,160% 26,124%

2025 1,515 209 52,564% 21,818% 25,502%

2026 1,572 217 54,548% 20,476% 24,880%

Table 4 – Modal Split values assuming 8% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership

For the case when the 8% growth rate of vehicle use/ownership until 2026 is assumed, Figure 6

illustrates the main problem areas with the transport network. For this case, the most problematic are

intersections of Chavchavadze – Tsereteli (Baratashvili), Chavchavadze – Gogebashvili, Shavsheti –

Mayakovsky (Tsereteli) and the area around the Batumi bus station.



Page 72

Figure 6 - Problem areas within the transport network (8% growth rate of ownership)

6.1.2 Summer tourist season

The calculation of the summer tourist season scenario, is based on the assumption that the number

of private vehicles allocated to downtown hotel locations will raise by 80% with no network modifications.

The calculation is based on the fact that the basic movement of tourists are conducted within the

demand layers Home-Other (increasing the number of traffic from the central areas to all deistricts), Other-

Home (increasing the number of movements from all parts of the central), Other - Other (of all areas in all

areas).

Scenario calculation results can be seen inTable 5.



Page 73

Base (Off-

Season)

Base (On-

Season)

Modal split

Bicycle 0.4% 0.4%

Private transport 34.7% 35.8%

Pedestrian 31.1% 30.1%

Public transport 33.9% 33.7%

Private transport (PrT)

Vehicle-km traveled 749956.2 788690.9

Vehicle-hours traveled 70615h 34min 75529h 26min

Number of trips 147 044 156 480

Average travel time, min 28.8 29.0

Public transport (PuT)

Average travel time 35,0min 35,0min

Daily public transport

patronage, pax 155 553 158 494

Bus 56 177 56 985

Minibus 99 375 101509

Pessenger kilomiters 436192.3 km 441008.7

Bus 224757.7 km 226462.7

Minibus 211434.6 km 214546.0

Pessenger hours 26378h 39 min 26942h 57min

Bus 13346h 20min 13545h 45min

Minibus 13032h 19min 13397h 11min

Table 5 – Summer tourist season scenario indicators.

The main network critical areas during the summer tourist season are shown in Figure 7. The most

problematic are the intersections of Chavchavadze – Tsereteli (Baratashvili), Chavchavadze – Gogebashvili,

Shavsheti – Mayakovsky (Tsereteli) and the area around the Batumi bus station.



Page 74

Figure 7 - Critical areas during the summer tourist season

Figure 8 shows the difference in the PrT volumes between the basic scenario and during the summer

tourist season. Blue shows the increase in PrT volume, red shows the reduce.

Visual analysis of this image leads to the conclusion that PrT volumes rise almost across the entire

network of the city.



Page 75

Figure 8 – PrT volume difference - base scenario and summer tourist season scenario

6.2 Moderate Sustainable Scenario

6.2.1 Definition of measures and packages to implement

The calculation is based on the measures that have the most influence on the development of

sustainable transport usage an lifestyle within the moderate sustainable scenario.

Parking: reorganisation of on-street parking – parking zones, improvement of parking

enforcement and tourist park&ride.

Public transport: bus route network optimization, replacement of minibus network,

implementation of the BRT-like CA corridor.

Walking and cycling: first stage improvement of bicycle network, improvement for

pedestrians, improvement of bike sharing, bicycle navigation and information system.

This scenario was calculated for both on-season (summer) and off-season.

On-season (summer) scenario was calculated basing on the off-season with the adjustments,

described in 6.1.2.



Page 76

Table 6 illustrates the results of this scenario calculation.

Off-Season On-Season

Modal split

Bicycle 0.8% 1.1%





Vehicle-km traveled 710841,6 739892,6


Number of trips 138 291 145 551

Average travel time, min 28,4 28,5


Average travel time 34min 30s 34min 19s



Bus 105 845 109 354

Minibus 62 639 63 305

Pessenger kilomiters 474199,4 km 480976,4 km

Bus 257096,8 km 262422,3 km

Minibus 217102,6 km 218554,1 km

Pessenger hours 23692h 49min 24205h 47min

Bus 13229h 46min 13569h 19min


Table 6 - Moderate sustainable scenario indicators

6.3 Full Sustainable Scenario

6.3.1 Definition of measures and packages

The calculation is based on the measures that have the most influence on the development of

sustainable transport usage an lifestyle within the moderate sustainable scenario.

These measures are:

Parking: reorganisation of on-street parking – parking zones, improvement of parking

enforcement and tourist park&ride, introduction of off-road parking, introduction of public

transport park&ride.

Public transport: bus route network optimization, replacement of minibus network,

implementation of the BRT-like CA corridor.

Walking and cycling: second stage improvement of bicycle network, improvement for

pedestrians, improvement of bike sharing, bicycle navigation and information system.

This scenario was calculated for both on-season (summer) and off-season.

On-season (summer) scenario was calculated basing on the off-season with the adjustments,

described in 6.1.2.



Page 77

Table 7 illustrates the results of this scenario calculation.

Off-Season On-Season

Modal split

Bicycle 1.2% 1.6%





Vehicle-km traveled 707502,8 728643,7


Number of trips 137 628 142867

Average travel time, min 28,4 28,5


Average travel time 34min 30s 34min 13s



Bus 105 410 110 101

Minibus 62 329 63273

Pessenger kilomiters 471880,3 km 481511,2 km

Bus 255896,4 km 263300,7

Minibus 215983,9 km 218210,5

Pessenger hours 23590h 4min 24181h 35min

Bus 13172h 11min 13585h 23min


Table 7 - Full sustainable scenario indicators



Page 78

6.4 Scenarios Comparison

6.4.1 Scenario summary

Base

Base On-

Season

Mod Off-

Season

Mod On-

Season

Full Off-

Season

Full On-

Season

Modal split

Bicycle 0.4% 0.4% 0.8% 1.1% 1.2% 1.6%

Private transport 34.7% 35.8% 32.6% 33.3% 32.4% 32.7%

Pedestrian 31.1% 30.1% 28.9% 28.1% 28.9% 28.0%

Public transport 33.9% 33.7% 37.7% 37.6% 37.5% 37.8%

Private transport (PrT) - daily

Vehicle-km traveled 749956,2 788690,9 710841,6 739892,6 707502,8 728643,7

Vehicle-hours traveled 70615h 34min 75529h 26min 65547h 11min 69140h 22min 65243h 57min 67821h 1min

Number of trips 147 044 156 480 138 291 145 551 137 628 142867

Average travel time, min 28.8 29.0 28,4 28.5 28.4 28.5

Daily emissions CO2, kg* 0 +4956,5 -5084,9 -1308,3 -5518,9 -2770,6

Public transport (PuT) - daily

Average travel time 35min 0s 35,0min 34min 30s 34min 19s 34min 30s 34min 13s


patronage, pax 155 553 158 494 168 484 172 659 167 739 173 374

Bus 56 177 56 985 105 845 109 354 105 410 110 101

Minibus 99 375 101509 62 639 63 305 62 329 63273

Passenger kilomiters 436192,3 km 441008,7 km 474199,4 km 480976,4 km 471880,3 km 481511,2 km

Bus 224757,7 km 226462,7 km 257096,8 km 262422,3 km 255896,4 km 263300,7

Minibus 211434,6 km 214546,0 km 217102,6 km 218554,1 km 215983,9 km 218210,5

Passenger hours 26378h 39

min 26942h 57min

23692h 49min 24205h 47min

23590h 4min 24181h 35min

Bus 13346h 20min 13545h 45min 13229h 46min 13569h 19min 13172h 11min 13585h 23min

Minibus 13032h 19min 13397h 11min 10463h 2min 10636h 27min 10417h 53min 10596h 11min

Daily emissions, kg

CO 0 -81 903,1 -116 947,4

THC 0 -23 818,5 -33 875,7



Page 79

NOx 0 -164 403,5 -234 622,1

PM 0 -3 250,8 -4 716,0

CO2 0 -24 566,5 -24 566,5

Table 8 - Scenario modelling summary

* - To calculate the CO2 emissions on PrT, the data of the EU countries will be taken. In average, modern passenger car emits about 130 grams of CO2 per

1 km.



Page 80

7 IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

The following chapters will examine implementation action plans in short-term, mid-term and long-

term perspectives, the appropriated budgets for the implementation, the responsibilities, the financing and

the evaluation plan.

Some of the implementation measures are expected to not be able to implement within one of the

time periods. For example, the “Replacement of Minibus Network” is a task, that will not be finished in the

short-term within the next three years. That task will last longer, so it is splitted into two stages, where the

first stage is assigned to the short-term and the second stage to the mid-term action plan. A stage in that

context is an abstract partition and does only show that the measure is implemented over more than one

time period. Actions, that are expected to be implemented within one time period do not have any stages.

7.1 Action Plan - Short-Term 2017-2020

The proposed short-term action plan includes 25 actions, which provide measurable results and a

fast improvement of the current situation in Batumi in terms of a development to sustainable means of

transport usage and lifestyle. These measures are foundations for mid- and long-term actions, as described

below.

Topic Name Stage

Parking Reorganization of On-Street Parking – Parking Zones

Improvement of Parking Enforcement

Implementation of Tourist Park&Ride

Introduction of Off-Road Parking First Stage

Public Transport and

Taxi

Bus Route Network Optimization First Stage

Replacement of Minibus Network First Stage

Improvements for the Taxi Sector

Increasing the Travel Comfort for Public Transport

Travelers

Walking and Cycling

Improvement of Bicycle Network First Stage

Improvements for Pedestrians First Stage

Improvement of Bike Sharing First Stage



Page 81

Implementation of Bicycle Navigation and Information

System

Car Free Old City

E-Mobility

Setup of Loading Stations Network for E-Vehicles First Stage

Introduction of E-Taxi Fleet

Special offers for E-Vehicles parking

Freight Transport

Improvements of City Delivery Logistics

Improvements for Trucks Parking First Stage

Improvements for Garbage Collection

ITS

Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre First Stage

Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State

Traffic Data Collection

Dynamic Message Signs

Mobility Management

and PR

Setup of a team for Information Campaign and Public

Relations

Implementation of an integrated Mobility Platform and

Information Service

Table 9 - Action Plan Measures for Short-Term Period 2017-2020

7.2 Action Plan - Mid-Term 2021-2024

The Mid-term action plan includes 18 measures. The action plan includes measures, which are still

not started to implement and such measures that are already were started but still not have been finished.

Topic Name Stage

Parking Introduction of Off-Road Parking Second Stage

Introduction of Parking Guidance System

Introduction of Public Transport Park&Ride



Page 82


Taxi

Bus Route Network Optimization Second Stage

Replacement of Minibus Network Second Stage

Implementation of the BRT-like CA Corridor

Renewal of the Public Transport Bus Fleet First Stage

Improvement of Bus Stops First Stage

Increasing the Travel Comfort for Public Transport Travelers

Walking and Cycling

Improvement of Bicycle Network Second Stage

Improvements for Pedestrians Second Stage

Improvement of Bike Sharing Second Stage

Development of Shared Space on Residential Streets First Stage

E-Mobility Setup of Loading Stations Network for E-Vehicles Second Stage

Freight Transport Improvements for Trucks Parking Second Stage

ITS

Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre Second Stage

Implementation of Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport

Mobility Management

and PR

Continuation of Information Campaign and Public Relations

Table 10 - Action Plan Measures for Mid-Term Period 2021-2024

7.3 Action Plan - Long-Term 2025-2030

The long-term action plan includes 7 measures and should finalize the turn of Batumi to a sustainable

urban mobility city. The action plan includes measures which are new at this stage and measures, which

were started in the past and will be finished within this stage.

Topic Name Stage

Parking Introduction of Off-Road Parking Third Stage


Taxi

Renewal of the Public Transport Bus Fleet Second Stage

Improvement of Bus Stops Second Stage



Page 83

Increasing the Travel Comfort for Public Transport Travelers

Walking and Cycling Development of Shared Space on Residential Streets Second Stage

ITS Implementation of Traffic Lights Coordination and

Synchronization

Mobility Management

and PR

Continuation of Information Campaign and Public Relations

Table 11 - Action Plan Measures for Long-Term Period 2025-2030

7.4 Budget

Table 12 gives an overview about the estimated budget for the implementation of the proposed

measures. The costs do not include any operational costs, but only investment. The total budget is

estimated in between 47.7 Mio – 91.8 Mio Euro. The most expensive positions are in that order:

1. The renewal of the bus fleet – 18.9 to 26.2 million Euro

2. Improvement of bike sharing – 8.8 to 12.7 million Euro

3. Construction of tourist Park&Ride – 6.0 to 10.5 million Euro

4. Organization of off-road parking – 3.5 to 12.5 million Euro

5. Improvement of bicycle network – 1.1 to 7.1 million Euro

6. Improvement of bus stops – 1.8 to 5.5 million Euro

7. Construction of bus terminals – 0.7 to 4.4 million Euro



Page 84

Group Importance Measure Costs from Costs to

number of

items item

costs per item

from

costs per item

to

TOTAL 47,741,000.80€ 91,849,760.00€

Parking 13,028,000.00€ 28,917,200.00€

H Reorganisation of On-Road Parking - Parking Zones 120,000.00€ 223,200.00€

20,000.00€ 37,200.00€ 1 project

80,000.00€ 150,000.00€ 1000 markings 80.00€ 150.00€

20,000.00€ 36,000.00€ 200 signage 100.00€ 180.00€

H Enforcement 258,000.00€ 354,000.00€

43,000.00€ 59,000.00€ 1 project

40,000.00€ 60,000.00€ 2 Patrol Car 20,000.00€ 30,000.00€

120,000.00€ 150,000.00€ 2 TowTrucks 60,000.00€ 75,000.00€

30,000.00€ 50,000.00€ 1 Video based control system 30,000.00€ 50,000.00€

25,000.00€ 35,000.00€ 1 IT integration works 25,000.00€ 35,000.00€

H Tourist Park&Ride 6,000,000.00€ 10,500,000.00€ 3000 parking places 2,000.00€ 3,500.00€

L Organizaton of Off-road parking 3,500,000.00€ 12,500,000.00€ 500 parking places 7,000.00€ 25,000.00€

L Parking Guidance System 1,950,000.00€ 3,240,000.00€

125,000.00€ 190,000.00€ 1 project

200,000.00€ 300,000.00€ 1000 parking detectors 200.00€ 300.00€

390,000.00€ 600,000.00€ 30 message signs 13,000.00€ 20,000.00€

35,000.00€ 50,000.00€ 1 server infrastructure 35,000.00€ 50,000.00€

L Public Transport Park&Ride 1,200,000.00€ 2,100,000.00€ 600 parking places 2,000.00€ 3,500.00€

Public Transport and Taxi 22,193,720.80€ 38,068,376.00€

H Bus Route Network Optimization 700,000.00€ 4,400,000.00€

700,000.00€ 4,400,000.00€ 2 Bus Terminals 350,000.00€ 2,200,000.00€

H Replacement of Minibus Network -€ -€

H BRT-like Corridor CA 412,636.80€ 1,032,396.00€

68,772.80€ 172,066.00€ 1 project

216,000.00€ 648,000.00€ 24 Bus Stops 9,000.00€ 27,000.00€

70,000.00€ 140,000.00€ 7 Traffic lights priority 10,000.00€ 20,000.00€

57,864.00€ 72,330.00€ 4822 m buslane 12.00€ 15.00€

H Improvements for the Taxi Sector -€ -€

L Renewal of Bus Fleet 18,900,000.00€ 26,250,000.00€ 105 Buses 180,000.00€ 250,000.00€

L Improvement of Bus Stops 1,849,500.00€ 5,548,500.00€ 411 Stops 4,500.00€ 13,500.00€ 311 basic bus stops, 100 sheltered

L Improvement of Travel Comfort -€ -€

L BRT-like Corridor CBG 331,584.00€ 837,480.00€

55,264.00€ 139,580.00€ 1 project

180,000.00€ 540,000.00€ 20 Bus Stops 9,000.00€ 27,000.00€

50,000.00€ 100,000.00€ 5 Traffic lights priority 10,000.00€ 20,000.00€

46,320.00€ 57,900.00€ 3860 m buslane 12.00€ 15.00€

Walking and Cycling 10,493,280.00€ 20,710,184.00€

H Improvement of Bicycle Network 1,090,000.00€ 7,085,000.00€ 109 km bicycle lane 10,000.00€ 65,000.00€

H Improvements for Pedestrians -€ -€

H Improvement of Bike Sharing 8,817,600.00€ 12,745,440.00€

1,469,600.00€ 2,124,240.00€ 1 project

4,676,000.00€ 6,346,000.00€ 167 stations 28,000.00€ 38,000.00€ 19km2 * 10 stations - 23 existing stations (16 parking pos)

2,672,000.00€ 4,275,200.00€ 2672 bikes 1,000.00€ 1,600.00€ 16 bikes per station

H Pedestrian and Bicycle Navigation and Information 500,000.00€ 750,000.00€ 250 info tables 2,000.00€ 3,000.00€ on every bike sharing stations + on certain intersections

L Development of Shared Space on Residential Streets -€ -€

L Car free old city 85,680.00€ 129,744.00€

14,280.00€ 21,624.00€ 1 project

68,000.00€ 102,000.00€ 17 bollards 4,000.00€ 6,000.00€ two bollards per access street

3,400.00€ 6,120.00€ 34 signage 100.00€ 180.00€ two signages per access street



Page 85

E-Mobility 300,000.00€ 450,000.00€

H Setup of Charging Stations network 300,000.00€ 450,000.00€ 15 stations 20,000.00€ 30,000.00€ 50kw DC Fast Charger

L Introduction of E-Taxi fleet -€ -€

L Special offer for E-cars parking -€ -€

Freight Transport

H City Delivery Logistics -€ -€

L Trucks Parking -€ -€

L Garbage Collection -€ -€

ITS 1,726,000.00€ 3,704,000.00€

H Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre 350,000.00€ 450,000.00€ 1 center 350,000.00€ 450,000.00€

H Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State 456,000.00€ 810,000.00€

76,000.00€ 135,000.00€ 1 project

200,000.00€ 360,000.00€ 80 detectors 2,500.00€ 4,500.00€ Traffic Count detectors

20,000.00€ 35,000.00€ 1 FCD data integration 20,000.00€ 35,000.00€

160,000.00€ 280,000.00€ 1 dynamic transport model 160,000.00€ 280,000.00€

H Traffic Data Collection 144,000.00€ 234,000.00€

24,000.00€ 39,000.00€ 1 project

45,000.00€ 75,000.00€ 15 data interface development 3,000.00€ 5,000.00€

75,000.00€ 120,000.00€ 15 integration works 5,000.00€ 8,000.00€

L Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport 320,000.00€ 640,000.00€ 32 traffic light controllers 10,000.00€ 20,000.00€

L Dynamic Message Signs 200,000.00€ 450,000.00€ 10 dynamic message signs 20,000.00€ 45,000.00€

L Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization 256,000.00€ 1,120,000.00€ 32 traffic light controllers 8,000.00€ 35,000.00€ fixed time - adaptive

Mobility Management and PR

H Information Campaigns and Public Relations -€ -€

H Integrated Mobility Platform and Information Service -€ -€

Table 12 - Estimated budget for the proposed measures



Page 86

7.5 Responsibilities

The following stakeholders groups were interviewed in the beginning of the preparation of the

present SUMP and are selected in certain responsibilities for participating in the implementation of the

proposed measures:

Batumi City Hall

Transport Infrastructure Management Agency

Batumi Public Bus Company

Batumi City Council

Academic Institutions

Tourism and Resorts Department of Ajara

Government of Adjara

NGO’s and CSO’s

Additionally we added the National Government to the list of responsibilities.

Table 13 shows the matrix of responsibilities for each measure.



Page 87

Table 13 - Responsibilities for measures implementation

Group Measure Batumi City Hall

Transport

Infrastructure

Management

Agency

Batumi Public

Bus Company

Batumi City

Council Academia

Tourism and

Resorts

Department of

Ajara

Government of

Adjara

National

Government NGO and CSO

Parking

Reorganisation of On-Road Parking - Parking Zones x x x x x x x

Enforcement x x x x x x

Tourist Park&Ride x x x x x x x x

Organizaton of Off-road parking x x x x

Parking Guidance System x x x

Public Transport Park&Ride x x x x x x

Public Transport and Taxi

Bus Route Network Optimization x x x x x x x

Replacement of Minibus Network x x x x x x x

BRT-like Corridor CA x x x x x x

Improvements for the Taxi Sector x x x x x x x

Renewal of Bus Fleet x x x

Improvement of Bus Stops x x x x x x

Improvement of Travel Comfort x x x x x x x

BRT-like Corridor CBG x x x x x x

Walking and Cycling

Improvement of Bicycle Network x x x x x x x x x

Improvements for Pedestrians x x x x x x x x

Improvement of Bike Sharing x x x x x x x x

Pedestrian and Bicycle Navigation and Information x x x x x

Development of Shared Space on Residential Streets x x x x x x x

Car free old city x x x x x x x x

E-Mobility

Setup of Charging Stations network x x x x x x x

Introduction of E-Taxi fleet x x x x x x x x

Special offer for E-cars parking x x x x

Freight Transport

City Delivery Logistics x x x

Trucks Parking x x x x x

Garbage Collection x x x

ITS

Central Traffic Control and Coordination Centre x x x x x x x x x

Monitoring of Congestion Level/Traffic State x x x x x

Traffic Data Collection x x x x x

Traffic Lights Priority for Public Transport x x x

Dynamic Message Signs x x x x

Traffic Lights Coordination and Synchronization x x x

Mobility Management and PR

Information Campaigns and Public Relations x x x x x x x x

Integrated Mobility Platform and Information Service x x x x x x



Page 88

7.6 Financing

The total investment cost of all the measures is approximately between 47.7 million and 91.8 million

Euro, which justifies reviewing as many financing options as possible. The financing option chosen and the

way the project is run are interrelated.

Possible financing options include EU co-financing, which requires support on a national level.

Government support of the project is in the public interest, as it would be first implementation of strongly

sustainable oriented mobility measures on base of a strategic plan in Georgia. EU projects require return

on investment calculations and cost-benefit analyses. It should be noted that in case of EU co-financing

the Municipality of Batumi needs to provide a certain amount of funding as its own contribution. This can

be provided from an EIB loan as in previous EU-backed infrastructure development projects.

Other possibilities in the European context are bank loans from European Investment Bank (EIB)

and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). In order to be able to start implementing

the project with EIB or EBRD financing, but keep open the option of converting it into an EU project later,

the methodology for the calculation of return on investment should be cleared with the banks. With a view

to the goal of EU co-financing, EU public procurement principles must be fully respected from the very

beginning, irrespective of the financing used in the initial phase. Financing the project from a loan from a

commercial bank should only be considered if EU co-financing and EIB and EBRD loans are not available.

7.7 Evaluation Plan

An evaluation plan should enable the measurement and monitoring of the level of achievement of

the targets and the action plan. The main focus should be set on the regular description of the progress of

implementation of the measures. The global progress should be recorded and the concrete steps and

accomplishments of selected and important measures should be measured or described. An assessment of

the success of the implemented measures in terms of sustainable effects should be described as well. The

achievement of the goals should be evaluated based on data that is as objectively and quantitatively

measurable as possible, concretely specified and empirical. For the assessment of qualitative criteria or

indicators, expert evaluations and/or behavior observation will be carried out.

Every two years a progress report should be prepared. The report should be constructed as follows:

Description of the general conditions and trends, insofar as they affect mobility

development and interpretation of their impact

Presentation of the indicators for the global evaluation and interpretation of their

development

Presentation of the individual measures and projects that have been completed or are

in progress together with the relevant data for evaluation



Page 89

Based on this presentation, a statement should be made on:

What implementation steps were taken

When and why changes or delays arose

What sustainable effects can be observed

Whether there were discrepancies from the desired and expected effects and if there

is a need for change in the action plan or an update of the ISUMP



Page 90

8 CONCLUSION

The present document is the final output and accumulation of knowledge and experience of a 8-

month lasting project which included the following works:

The execution of the first mobility household survey in Batumi

The establishment of a fully featured static transport model for Batumi

The development of a feasibility study for low carbon sustainable urban transport

corridor and optimization of the bus network

The development of a feasibility study on overall parking strategy and pilot measures

in the old city

The development of a functional plan for low carbon sustainable transport corridors

The development of a functional plan for integrated, safe and expanded bicycled

network in old city area

As we can see, the present documents was not developed in a vacuum. This ISUMP is a document

that summarizes and integrates the details of the aforementioned main topics – the most important once

in the sustainable mobility context (Parking, Public Transport, Cycling) – into a composite concept, together

with the additional topics Walking, E-Mobility, Freight Transport, ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems) and

Mobility Management and PR.

The most effective measures to move towards sustainable mobility are Walking&Cycling. The

improvement and further development of the bicycle network, the extension of bike sharing, and the

improvements for pedestrians promise the best effects on the sustainable mobility in Batumi. Parking and

Public Transport optimizations will show great effects for the organization of private and public

transport in the city. Secondary effects are expected from ITS, as it can support the organization and free

flow of the private transport. Mobility Management and PR is the key to the people – without information

and explanation the transformation of transport system and mobility will hardly be successful.

The scenario calculations and comparisions between – “leave it as it is” and “develop a moderate/full

sustainable mobility” show, that there is an immediate need to act. If the growth of 5-8% of car-ownership

keeps up in the next year, a dramatic growth of private transport will take place and will congest

the street network even more than it is now. The quality of life will constantly decrease; for a tourist city

like Batumi a really bad scenario.

The development and improvement of Walking&Cycling, Public Transport and Parking has to be

urgently forced from now. ITS can effectively support the optimal functioning of the transport and

mobility system as a whole and can be developed in parallel, to get the necessary monitoring and control

infrastructure for private transport, parking and public transport.



Page 91

9 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. European Commission. SUMP Guidelines [Internet]. 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.eltis.org/sites/eltis/files/guidelines-developing-and-implementing-a-

sump_final_web_jan2014b.pdf

2. GIZ. Urban Mobility Plans - National Approaches and Local Practice [Internet]. 2014. Retrieved from:

http://www.sutp.org/files/contents/documents/resources/B_Technical-

Documents/GIZ_SUTP_TD13_Urban-Mobility-Plans_EN.pdf

3. Vienna. STEP 2025 - Urban Mobility Plan Vienna [Internet]. 2014. Retrieved from:

https://www.wien.gv.at/stadtentwicklung/studien/pdf/b008443.pdf

4. Wikipedia. Batumi [Internet]. 2017. Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batumi

5. William Harris. How Urban Planning Works [Internet]. 2017. Retrieved from: http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/urban-planning3.htm

6. ITDP. Europe’s Parking U-Turn: From Accommodation to Regulation [Internet]. 2011. Retrieved

from: https://www.itdp.org/europes-parking-u-turn-from-accommodation-to-regulation/

7. UNDP. Feasibility Studies for Pilot Low-Carbon Urban Transport Corridor and Integrated Sustainable

Urban Mobility Plan for the City of Batumi (ISUMP) Output 3: Feasibility Study on Overall Parking Strategy and Pilot Measures in the Old City. A+S Consult GmbH; 2017.

8. US Federal Highway Administration. A Resident’s Guide for Creating Safer Communities for Walking

and Biking - Section One [Internet]. 2013. Retrieved from: https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ped_bike/ped_cmnity/ped_walkguide/sec1.cfm

9. UNDP. Feasibility Studies for Pilot Low-Carbon Urban Transport Corridor and Integrated Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan for the City of Batumi (ISUMP) Output 5: Functional Plan for Integrated, Safe

and Expanded Bicycled Network in Old City Area. A+S Consult GmbH; 2017.

10. William MacDougall. Electromobility in Germany: Vision 2020 and Beyond [Internet]. Germany Trade

& Invest; 2015. Retrieved from:

https://www.gtai.de/GTAI/Content/EN/Invest/_SharedDocs/Downloads/GTAI/Brochures/Industries/electromobility-in-germany-vision-2020-and-beyond-en.pdf?v=3

11. Tato Aroshidze Daniel Wolf. Feasibility Study for Introduction of Electric Vehicles for Taxi Sector in Batumi. UNDP; 2017.

12. Batumi City Hall. Batumi Sustainable Energy Action Plan. Batumi; 2014.
