The Parking Ambassadors of La Rochelle

La Rochelle (France) has a slow-town mobility strategy and wants to maintain the attractiveness of the commercial areas. The municipality tries to offer people the experience of life without the car. By showing parking solutions and the different purposes public space can have, the city aims to realize a sustainable behavioural change.

La Rochelle is currently improving the communication strategy about the Park4SUMP project in an eye-catching way. Parking Ambassadors, dressed in purple caps and jackets, are advising people on the benefits of the different types of parking places. The objective is to reduce search traffic and to support local trade in the commercial city centre. Besides promoting sustainable alternatives, people are encouraged to use the parking spots properly and they are informed about free parking spots located outside the centre.

The municipality wants to improve the legibility and recognisability of the parking offer. Young drivers get in touch with the parking supply in their city through a campaign via the local driving schools. The Parking Ambassadors are presenting 3 modules: an informative session about the parking policy, an educational session via a small video and they are conducting a survey on “Mobility and Commerce”. Every participant gets a blue parking disk, that can be used in La Rochelle, as a reward. Driving schools can further disseminate parking information through brochures.