"you study, you travel free": When mobility management strategies meet social objectives

This paper presents the case of Catania, a medium-sized city (300,000 inhabitants) located in southern Italy, where University students are experiencing Fare-Free Public Transport (FFPT) since October 2018. This strategy is one of the main results of a strict collaboration between the Mobility Management office of the University of Catania, and two local PT operators, providing bus and metro transport services in the city. Traffic congestion, limited PT use, little cycling and walking for systematic trips, are among the main critical issues of mobility in Catania. FFPT for students goes beyond the mobility issues, and can be regarded as a social policy of the University of Catania aimed at improving the welfare and the quality of life of its students. First results based on a survey show the big impact of this policy on students' behavior, and pave the way for future steps, where a constant monitoring of PT level of service, together with students' experience, will be fundamental to improve PT and promote a paradigm change in transport.