carlo ratti associati proposes reconfigurable waterfront and floating garden for lugano

carlo ratti associati (CRA) has revealed plans to transform the waterfront of lugano, a swiss city close to the italian border. developed alongside transport-planning firm mobility in chain (MIC), the design aims to increase the links between the city and the lake with a system of public spaces — from a floating garden island, to a new water navigation system and reconfigurable roads capable of responding to people in real-time.

all images by CRA-carlo ratti associati

as part of the plan, the congested waterfront would be partly pedestrianized, with a dynamic road system that can be configured with zero, one, or two lanes at different times of the day. shared surfaces with playgrounds and social gathering spaces could also be accommodated. at the same time, electric autonomous vehicles and micro-mobility solutions integrate private mobility. the waterfront also include a system of smart signage, responsive street furniture, infrastructure that produces clean energy from heat absorption, and a series of mobility hubs where people can select their preferred, shared mode of transport.

‘by analyzing mobile and traffic data and back-upping the mobility concept’s definition with a model-based scientific approach, we supported CRA’s urban vision of transforming the fracture of today’s lakefront vehicular axis into a responsive space, hosting new mobility solutions and enabling the waterfront to adjust dynamically to the vibrant ecosystem of lugano,’ explains federico parolotto, senior partner at MIC.

‘lugano’s distinctive waterfront, nestled between the swiss alps and the glacial lake, is an opportunity to create a responsive edge of the city, experimenting with novel ways of blending nature and urban space,’ adds carlo ratti, founding partner at CRA and director of the senseable city lab at MIT. marco borradori, the mayor of lugano, hopes that the next phase of the development will be an open competition to create a new masterplan for the ‘city of tomorrow’. ‘our wish is that the vision could soon take the form of a concrete project,’ says borradori.

project info:

name: a vision for the lugano lakefront
project by: CRA-carlo ratti associati with MIC-mobility in chain
creative consultancy: italo rota
CRA team: carlo ratti, andrea cassi (project manager), alberto benetti, chiara borghi, mario daudo, serena giardina, nicola scaramuzza, federico riches, galla vallée
CRA graphic team: pasquale milieri, gary di silvio, gianluca zimbardi
MIC team: federico parolotto (project supervisor), francesca arcuri (project manager), lucia bocchimuzzi, loris sciacchitano (planners and data analyst), federico cicu, anna vnukovskaya (transport modelling)
with the collaboration of: TIRESIA, the international research center of politecnico di milano’s school of management