Locally by bicycle
Basic information
Project Title
Full project title
Category
Project Description
Locally by bicycle is a website with embedded interactive map of circular cycling route around Sorsko polje with its farms, locally grown food offer and other local activities of Sorsko polje. The website is intended for cyclists, as it helps them to find locations of farms and agricultural offer according to the type of produce, and for all visitors who are generally interested in the local offer and sights of the Sorsko polje.
Project Region
EU Programme or fund
Description of the project
Summary
The theme of the project is the creation of a circular cycling trail with a purpose to protect Sorsko polje and the sustainability of its spatial development. The area is known for its best agricultural land and the dominant agricultural activity, and it is also a popular destination for cyclists. In the project we address the problem of non-compliance of existing cycling routes and the preservation of the rural character of the Sorsko polje, which was addressed in an interdisciplinary way by combining field data capturing, urban planning and the use of geographical information system (GIS). By planning a circular cycling route around Sorsko polje and unifying the profile of the route, we inncluded existing cycling routes and tried to achieve the connection of the Sorsko polje into a comprehensive system. At the same time, we have connected local agricultural activities and natural and cultural sites. In doing so, we have helped to protect rural identity and natural and cultural heritage of the area. The research gave us a three-part result. The first part shows the plan of a circular cycling trail with a unified road profile, the second presents conceptual urban plans of three chosen typical farms attached to the refurbished road profile of the cyclig trail, and the third part is a website with an interactive map of cycling route that connects local activities and local agricultural offer. The purpose of the project is to raise the awareness of sustainable mobility, sustainable development and sustainable tourism of the Sorsko polje in a digital form and in a form of urban plan. Since cycling mobility and outdoor recreation are very important for sustainable mobility and tourism of the Sorsko polje, we believe that safe and connected cycling trail should be created. At the same time, the website aesthetically promotes agricultural offer of Sorsko polje with inclusion of sustainable mobility – cycling.
Key objectives for sustainability
In Slovenian sustainable tourism ecological and tourist farms in particular are becoming increasingly important and popular as they are giving a special character, identity and profit to rural areas, and, on the other hand, food and local experience to all visitors. By creating a website we try to rise awareness of food self-supply and to create a paradigm to promote the local tourism industry. Our intention was to create a simple platform for visitors of the area so that they could gather informations about the route and local activities before making the trip, and check the farm offer in advance or on the location. The production and use of interactive map is a sustainable accessory for cyclists and local food buyers. Today, promotion is one of the more common ways of raising awareness. By including local farms in the newly planned cycling trail and by promoting it through an interactive map and website we will try to increase the number of visitors and buyers of local produce. This would help to increase the sale of agricultural products and increase local food production over time, which in turn could lead to the need for new jobs on farms. On the other hand, it would increase the need and desire to promote sustainable mobility, reducing air pollution levels, adverse climate impacts and long food transports.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
In order to encourage people to bike other factors of human perception should also be taken into account. When planning cycling trails it is necessary to take into account and ensure the safety, legibility and coherence of the route, its functionality, proximity and usability as well as homogeneity, comfort and attractiveness of cycling trails. Cycling surfaces must have their own character, structure and importance, and they must allow good orientation and easy mobility to cyclists. The intention of urban plan with renewed road profile with cycling trails and connecting farms to the road was to make a trail that enables cyclists and other visitors to experience the rural area and get insight of the local culture of Sorsko polje. With urban plan of connected cycling trail and local farms we wish to accomplish coherence and unity of the area as well as the attractivness of the place for visitors. At the same time we have created better passages for agricultural vehicles from the farms to the road. The trail around Sorsko polje offers various views on natural and urban landscape and it contains various sections leading through forests, fields, through villages and smaller towns. With the proposal of connection of the renewed road profile to the typical farms, we have showed we need to plan space uniformly. On the other hand we have created the website where the cycling route is presented in a form of an interactive map, and other web apps embedded into the website that present other parts of the result of the project. The website and embedded apps were created with ArcGIS Online Apps, as the graphics and the ilustrations are author's.
Key objectives for inclusion
The Sorsko polje offers various forms of sustainable tourism in terms of the connection of ecological farms, regular market programmes in major settlements, natural and cultural attractions, and in terms of the network of cycling and hiking trails. Most of the cycling and hiking routes start around the area, and contact occurs on the way or within the trail that leads around the Sorsko polje. Other cycling routes coming from larger towns or settlements also join or intersect the circular trail around Sorsko polje at various points. Although some farms along the route are successfully involved in the promotion of food self-supply and cooperate with local markets, there is no perceived interaction between existing tourism aspects. In the proposal we take the view that farms could be integrated into the cycling and hiking trail system in a way that is addressed and developed at the same time as route planning. Along the renewed road with added cycling trail we selected three typical farms to arrange and connect their land to refurbished road profiles. First we produced an analysis of the use of agricultural land and facilities, and an analysis of agricultural land ownership. In the form of conceptual design we connected farm yards to the new road profile and placed new urban equipment for visitors. On the other hand we achieve inclusion of farms to the buyers throught promoting on the website in a form of interactive map that can also be educational platform. Map connects the existing cycling trails and renewed circular trail with culture, nature, local farms and other local activities of Sorsko polje. At the same time we encourage buying of locally grown food.
Innovative character
We believe that the urban planning approach to specific rural areas must be addressed depending on local characteristics and identity of the area. We found that Sorsko polje is an area with extremely fertile soil and the best agricultural land where the production areas owned by farms located on the edge of the field are spread. The predominant local activity is agriculture which has been declining in recent years due to the accelerated expansion of nearby urban centers. The once rural landscape is being transformed into a typical suburban environment that is losing its former ecological and cultural quality. Some farms are engaged in mass production and production and export of crops, others operate more at the local level and sell crops in the backyard, and at the local or Ljubljana market. These are farms with complementary activity. On Sorsko polje we also recognized cycling as the predominant form of outdoor recreation and as a form of sustainable mobility. Our proposal covers connectivity of these two activities in three parts: urban plan of the circle cycling trail that connects the local farms, renewed road profiles with added cycling trail and the website with interactive map. The inovation of the project is the connection between these two activities for the purpose of promoting sustainable tourism and mobility. The website with the interactive map is simple to use on the desktop or on mobile phone.
