Greening cities with a platform for clean transport credits

New software helps urban planners digitally test different transport options for carbon reduction

Spotted: The continued growth in global urbanisation is leading to increased demand for infrastructure and services, thereby driving resource shortages. In fact, the World Bank estimates that cities in developing countries will need $4.5-5.4 trillion (around €4.2-5 trillion) in annual infrastructure investments between now and 2050. 

Helping local governments find ways to meet that demand while also reducing the environmental burden is Japanese company Spatial Pleasure. The company is building Digital, Measurement, Reporting and Verification (DMRV) software to track urban transport decarbonisation efforts. The platform will measure and certify carbon credits for organisations working to clean up, strengthen, and improve urban public transport options. 

Spatial Pleasure worked closely with public transportation planners and operators, along with micromobility organisations that offer scooter and bike-sharing programmes, to develop its modelling software. The programme allows urban planners to digitally trial various changes to a city’s transport networks and evaluate the efficacy of the different options for reducing carbon emissions. Currently working in Jakarta, Indonesia, with Jakarta Smart City and Sinar Mas Land, the collaborators are testing the software application in one of Asia’s largest, and notoriously grid-locked, cities. 

Right now, the partnership is considering options for creating new parks and pedestrian walkways and encouraging citizens to use shuttle buses, rather than individual vehicles. As the model develops and carbon reductions are verified, Spatial Pleasure plans to expand into other cities and countries to measure the impact of transportation changes further.  

Other innovations in Springwise’s library that feature sustainable upgrades to public transport include a photovoltaic road surface used on bike paths and a new minibus commuter service.

Written By: Keely Khoury