NightScapes

NightScapes combines objective data and lived experience in four pilot areas: Cluj-Napoca (Romania), Coimbra (Portugal), Hamburg (Germany) and Kadıköy/Istanbul (Turkey). Participatory night-time audits, perception surveys and travel diaries will be integrated with data on land use, street-network continuity, lighting, pedestrian flows, night public transport, service accessibility, travel times, incidents and socio-demographic conditions. A common core dataset will ensure cross-city comparison, while extended local datasets will add higher-resolution evidence where available. This evidence will support the Nighttime 15mC Index, structured around accessibility, walkability, safety and inclusiveness and validated through expert consultation, local focus groups and cross-city application. Scenario testing will examine changes to routes, lighting, transport availability and first/last-mile conditions. Best practices and governance models will inform two/ three co-design workshops in each pilot, producing local roadmaps, night-time street-design standards, policy recommendations and guidance for integrating the night-time dimension into Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans.

NightScapes will deliver four connected sets of results: comparative city profiles and night-time mobility datasets; the validated Nighttime 15mC Index, spatio-temporal mapping and scenario-testing support; co-designed local roadmaps, street-design standards and policy recommendations; and a best-practice catalogue with technical guidance for scaling and transfer. Municipalities will be able to benchmark districts, identify spatial and temporal gaps, prioritise investments and assess potential interventions before implementation. For residents, especially groups whose mobility is constrained after dark, the project seeks to support safer routes, better first/last-mile connections, more welcoming interchanges and improved access to employment, education, healthcare, culture and leisure. Context-sensitive lighting guidance will balance safety and comfort with energy efficiency and reduced light pollution. Testing across four different urban and governance contexts will strengthen transferability to other European cities and support the integration of night-time accessibility into mobility planning and Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans.