A New Approach of Smart Mobility for Heavy Goods Vehicles in Casablanca

Abstract

Managing mobility, both of people and goods, in cities is a thorny issue. The travel needs of urban populations are increasing and put pressure on transport infrastructure. The Moroccan cities are no exception and will struggle, in the short term, to respond to the challenges of the acceleration of the phenomenon of urbanization and the increase in demand for mobility. This will inevitably prevent them from turning into smart cities. The term smart certainly alludes to better use of technologies, but smart mobility is also defined as “a set of coordinated actions intended to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and environmental sustainability of cities” [1]. The term mobility highlights the preponderance of humans over infrastructure and vehicles. Faced with traffic congestion, the solutions currently adopted which consist of fitting out and widening the infrastructures, only encourage more trips and report the problem with more critical consequences. It is true that beyond a certain density of traffic, even Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) are not useful. The concept of dynamic lane management or Advanced Traffic Management (ATM) opens up new perspectives. Its objective is to manage and optimize road traffic in a variable manner, in space and in time. This article is a summary of the development of a road infrastructure dedicated to Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV), the first of its kind in Morocco. It aims to avoid the discomfort caused by trucks in the urban road network of the city of Casablanca. This research work is an opportunity to reflect on the introduction of ITS and ATM to ensure optimal use of existing infrastructure before embarking on heavy and irreversible infrastructure projects.