Mapping green spaces and slow mobility connections in the city of Turin. Analysis and design strategies in the field of proximity tourism

In the period of Covid-19, the current research aims at exploring the proximity to essential services in the city, but also evaluating the spatial quality of slow mobility connections, in relation to daily movements, such as home – school, university - parks, or school - museum for leisure. Particularly, the actual pandemic situation forces us to reconsider the importance of the open spaces in our cities (i.e. parks, gardens, agricultural fringe areas) but also sports facilities and cultural polarities, as final destinations for proximity tourism and recreational activities. A better quality of slow connections can be a key factor in the field of urban mobility, but it can also influence environmental, social and safety aspects in a positive way. The research considers the city of Turin as a case study for the analysis, especially, the relationships between schools/universities and parks, museums and sports facilities. The research exploits the big amount of open-access geospatial data and the potential of GIS tools for mapping and spatial analysis, in order to analyze the availability of green spaces in the city and, at the same time, find out the slow mobility connections (shortest and fastest routes) between universities and parks. By analyzing the existing urban fabric, the research points out some indicators that can support urban design strategies for promoting more sustainable tourism. A series of thematic maps, at the urban and neighbourhood level, have been drawn to visualize the main outcomes of the research.