Strasbourg Gathers Citizen Feedback and Needs in Two Projects
What were the objectives of this project?
The Eurométropole de Strasbourg deployed Citizen Dialog Kit in two concurrent participation projects with great results. The two projects are very distinct and demonstrate the versatility of the approach:
- Oberhausbergen street redevelopment.
In this project, feedback and mobility profiles are gathered to understand needs and priorities along a major street (8.000 vehicles per day!) connecting to the city centre. - Selecting urban furniture to better meet user needs.
The City of Strasbourg maintains around 6.000 benches. To better meet the diversity of user needs with a range of bench types, this project aimed to evaluate different bench designs. Various bench types for different uses were set up to try, review and rate on-site.
Continues below the photo.
How was the deployment carried out?
We co-created the survey design for both deployments together with the related city teams and in close collaboration with the Strasbourg citizen participation team. Our valued colleagues at Dreamocracy helped outline the survey logic and fine-tune the phrasing for greater inclusivity.
The deployments took place between October 1st and November 25th. The Oberhausbergen mobility survey ran for 24 days with 3 devices, while the street bench survey ran for 43 days with 1 device.
On Oberhausbergen street, we registered an amazing 773 started surveys and 463 completed submission. On average, each participant answered 11 questions. The information gathered with Citizen Dialog Kit will later be supplemented with two participation workshops.
Even more people started the urban benches survey, with 952 started participations. The somewhat complex setup where people had to relate the survey questions to specific benches (see photo below) made this one more challenging for people to complete. This is reflected in the lower completion rate, but still finished with a total of 266 completed submissions.
Continues with insights below the map and photos.
This figure shows the number of participants who answered between 1 and 24 questions in Section 3 of Oberhausbergen street.
This survey was setup with three different topics. Completing one topic and the demographic questions results in 11 or 12 answers per participant. Those with more answers chose to continue and also tackle the two other topics.
What were the insights from the deployment?
Here we will focus on the Oberhausbergen street results. Are you interested in details about the urban furniture and bench survey? Get in touch!
Oberhausbergen street
1. Demographics
Section 1 has the highest percentage of cyclists (46%) and also sees the most car usage (29%). Notably, public transport is completely absent, meaning that people rely on either personal vehicles, cycling, or walking to navigate these areas. It should however also be noted that devices in section 2 and 3 were located closer to public transport facilities, of which there are fewer in section 1.
2. Priorities across the sections of the street
We can again see an evolution, going from Section 1 to Section 3: there are more and more people on foot and they also prioritise improvements for walking and cycling.
Road safety is the top priority in Section 1. Proposed safety measures include changes such as improved lighting, traffic slowing measures, or making signage more visible.
In Section 2, security remains the top concern, but priorities are more evenly distributed, with improved facilities to encourage biking and walking ranking nearly as high. This suggests that while safety is still a key issue, there is also a strong demand for infrastructure that supports active transportation, such as dedicated bike lanes and pedestrian-friendly paths.
By Section 3, biking and walking become the highest priority, indicating a shift toward making the area more accessible and enjoyable for non-motorized movement. This trend suggests that residents and passers-by in this section see the potential for a more walkable and bike-friendly environment, perhaps due to existing paths, or shifts in housing types and density.
Greenery and social meeting spaces, however, rank as the lowest priority across all sections, with only 24% to 29% of respondents considering them important. While these elements may not be immediate concerns, they still contribute to the overall livability and long-term urban appeal, meaning they shouldn’t be overlooked in future city planning efforts.
These insights highlight the need for tailored urban improvements in each part of a city, ensuring that safety, mobility, and accessibility align with the preferences of the people who use these spaces daily.
Concludes with reflections below the photo and chart.
Reflections
This was the very first Citizen Dialog Kit survey in France!
In the Oberhausbergen street project, we found the differences between sections of the same street fascinating and worth further exploration.
For the survey in the inclusive street furniture project, a poster design that more clearly communicates which bench is referred to in the survey could have helped reduce complexity.
Partners
- Municipality: Eurométropole de Strasbourg
- Additional facilitation by Dreamocracy
