New mobility strategies for the development of tourism in Sicily

Abstract

Tourism and Transport is a well established and inseparable pair. An areas can increase the tourism in potentially own economy. This requires suitable accommodation and adequate transportation system. A positive synergy effects are induced to increase of the site. Transport is an important growth area for tourism and as a result. A better functioning of transport facilitates access to sites, decreases the cost of transport and increases tourist flows. In Sicily there are a wealth of artistic, archaeological and natural sites, generating a tourist flows during the year. Despite this, the network of connections and services is precarious. Residents and visitors are inaccessible to certain geographical areas. Often airport nodes are isolated for tourist as residents and connections to main destinations are by road transport, because rail is not competitive. Congestion of the main arteries increase negative externalities related to road transport and for tourists increases the negative perception of the journey. In this paper we propose guidelines for sustainable tourism, by analyzing the supply of mobility. The case study examines the reality of the stretch of waterfront in Western Sicily (Palermo to Trapani), introducing a faster shipping service to facilitate accessibility to tourist sites along the coast, with a network of connections that includes airports nodes.