What can be learned from urban mobility in Prague? | City Unboxed with George Liu

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Situated on the Vltava River, Prague is the capital and the largest city in the Czech Republic. It is home to 1.3 million residents and claiming to have one of the best public transportation systems in Europe. George Liu – Urban Mobility Researcher – was very curious to discover it for himself. In this video, part of the City Unboxed series produced in collaboration with the Urban Cycling Institute, George gives us a tour of Prague by walking, cycling and public transit to finally give the city a Human Mobility Score!

This video was produced in collaboration with the Urban Cycling Institute. Click here to discover the previous episode of the City Unboxed series, in Hamburg: https://bit.ly/3Ecrxr2

#UMX #cityunboxed #urbanmobility #urbanism
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This is Prague, Czechia. It is home to the world’s widest castle. Situated on the Vltava River, it is the historical capital of Bohemia. And it is home to 1.3 million residents. Today, I’m going to take you on a tour of Prague, Czechia by transit, by walking, and by cycling, and then we are going to give this city a Human Mobility Score. I love the effect of the stone paving along with the riverfront and the trees on this beautiful sidewalk. These tiny bricks give this city a unique charm. However, they’re slippery when wet, and very bumpy if you’re dragging something like a suitcase, or even if you’re on a wheelchair. Let’s go down and see what’s happening at the riverfront level. These stairs are a great way to connect the trams and traffic up top with a waterfront promenade down below. There are not many cars that come through this beautiful riverfront promenade, but the few that do come through have me looking over my shoulders. These two concrete tracks give a smooth space for scooters and bikes because the cobblestones get pretty bumpy. This huge sign says it’s a play street, but I don’t believe it. There’s two lanes of traffic across and no traffic calming. Just look at all the cars behind me. I would not let my kids play here. This left-turning bike box is great if you can survive the three lanes of car traffic you need to cross to get here. We have a brave soul coming this way right now. It’s rather difficult to bike in such a narrow bike lane surrounded by traffic and boxed in by a very high curb. A moment ago, I just saw three cyclists use the sidewalk so they don’t have to deal with this mess. We found this really a cool, tiny ferry to take you across this tiny river. It’s just a pontoon boat. This is so much fun, but it looks like I’m going to have to leave you behind. Hey, it’s great to have you guys back. That was a fun boat ride in this electric pontoon boat. Come up here and I’ll show you what’s up the hill. I think I see a tram line up here. Let’s take the tram and see where we can go. This is 1 of 34 tram lines in the city. Let’s take number 12 to the Old Town. This is an incredibly popular tram network and it has the second-highest ridership in Europe. You can get your 24-hour pass straight from this tiny machine, and you can pay with Mastercard or Visa. This is the largest screen I’ve seen so far in any tram. It’s humongous, and it’s so easy to find your way around. I’m making my way up from a tram stop just down the hill here, and that is an indication of a very strong desire line. People clearly want to go this way, but the city hasn’t built a path for them. We’re in Old Town, Prague, and now we’re going to check out the narrowest street in the entire city. This is the narrowest street in Prague, and there’s even a traffic light because people can’t fit in both ways. It’s funny. All that’s back here is a restaurant, and the tourists don’t even pay attention to the traffic light. This parking space is raised onto the sidewalk level, but it keeps the stone paving of the roadway. This way, when there is no cars here, it can be used as extra pedestrian area. By using the larger stones, this area is kept clearly delineated from the sidewalk area, and therefore, people know to watch out for cars. I’ve never seen lines like these on a crosswalk before. Perhaps you can let me know in the comments what they’re for. These sharrows give two-way traffic for bikes on a street with one-way for cars. However, they’re printed on these stone roads that are very unpleasant to ride on. Construction on the Charles Bridge started in 1357, and this bridge is half a kilometre long and 10 metres wide. Throughout the history of this bridge, this bridge has seen horses, buses, and later electric trolleys, to be later closed for structural reasons for pedestrians only. I associate bridges with loud automobile traffic, but this bridge in particular offers you a nice view, and you can enjoy the scenery in peace and quiet. These yellow arrow signs indicate where you can find your nearest metro station. Come on, let’s take the metro, and I’ll show you the deepest station in the EU. There are three lines in the Prague metro system. The deepest station is on the A line. Let’s go. This timer shows you how long before the next train leaves, and this timer shows you how long since the last train left. I think this is super clever. It uses the map format to show you which way to go on the stairs. Follow the lines to the A train. The map theme comes back once again, this time to show us whether to go to Track 1 or Track 2. We’re now 53 metres underground in the deepest station. Oh, wow. I’m getting a crazy sense of vertigo right now. This escalator is 87 metres long, and it takes 2 minutes and 15 seconds to get all the way up. You can’t spell funicular without the word fun. This Petřín funicular is one of three in Prague. The funicular has two cars, and they pass in the middle, offering 10-minute service. The top of the funicular brings you into a completely different world. There’s a beautiful garden up here and an observatory. This brings us to the end of this tour of Prague, Czechia. Now, it is time to give this city a Human Mobility Score. I really enjoyed riding transit in the city. It was well integrated, and the wayfinding on the metro with the maps and the lines were top notch. The ferry ride across the river was very intimate, and I especially enjoyed the fun funicular ride up to the top of this mountain. For all these reasons, I give transit in this city a five out of five. For cycling, all the cobblestones in the city make for a very bumpy ride, so you have to choose your route carefully. On the major arterials, there could be more dedicated cycling infrastructure so I would feel more safe riding along the large streets. Despite the bumpy ride, they did incorporate the smooth rails in the river path, making cycling pleasant along there. Bike share and scooter share was easy to find in the city. For all these reasons, I give cycling a two out of five. Walking throughout the city was a wonderful experience, especially with all the beautiful architecture and the broad vistas from the Charles Bridge. While beautiful, the paving stones are the one gripe I had about walking in the city. They pose a hazard when wet to people in wheelchairs and people with mobility impairments. I give walking a four out of five. For all these reasons, I give Prague, Czechia, a Human Mobility Score of 11 out of 15. Thank you for joining us on this episode. Subscribe, and I will see you in the next city.