Cities across Europe face urgent challenges: climate resilience, social inclusion, and sustainable mobility. The GOLIA project (Governing, Optimising and Leveraging Innovations proActively) is a new Horizon Europe initiative that seeks to transform urban mobility planning through data‑driven governance, social inclusion, and active citizen participation.
We are excited to announce that PAVE Europe is now a partner in GOLIA, bringing our expertise in public engagement, trust-building, and inclusive innovation into the heart of mobility governance.
What is GOLIA?
GOLIA will build a Smart Mobility Governance Model that balances technological innovation with social optimum outcomes. Key features include:
- Social Optimum Mobility Index (SOMI): A new metric that captures not only efficiency, but also health, equity, accessibility, and well‑being in mobility decisions.
- GO‑X modules (GO‑DATA, GO‑INFO, GO‑KNOW, GO‑WISDOM): digital tools for integrating data, insights, and governance decisions with social feedback loops.
- ENGAGEMOVE toolkit: Methods to involve citizens and stakeholders in mobility decision-making across cities.
- Living labs in Florence, Antwerp, and Plzeň (with follower cities Marseille, Glasgow, Riga) to test replication strategies.
- A Mobility Smart Governance Handbook to guide cities in aligning with EU climate, social, and mobility goals.
Through these instruments, GOLIA aims to shift mobility planning from purely economic models to governance that values equity, resilience, and public well-being.
How PAVE Europe Will Contribute
PAVE Europe’s mission—to educate, engage, and build public trust in automated mobility—aligns strongly with GOLIA’s focus on social inclusion and governance. In GOLIA, PAVE will:
- Design and run stakeholder engagement programs in the living labs, ensuring that citizens, local communities, and vulnerable groups are part of co‑creation, not afterthoughts
- Translate technical tools into public-friendly formats, such as explanatory content, infographics, workshops, and dialogues around SOMI, GO‑X modules, and governance choices
- Bridge trust and legitimacy by capturing public concerns, fostering critical reflection, and anchoring governance decisions in transparent processes
- Facilitate cross‑project synergies by connecting GOLIA outcomes with other projects PAVE is part of—amplifying the reach of socially attuned mobility governance
- Support replication and capacity building in follower cities, helping adapt GOLIA methods to local contexts and encouraging uptake with public legitimacy
Through these roles, PAVE Europe ensures that governance and social perspectives are not side notes but core to how mobility evolves.
Learn more about the project by following them
on LinkedIn.
The GOLIA project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 101201950. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA). Neither the European Union nor CINEA can be held responsible for them.
