Researchers from Austria, Czech Republic, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden collaborate in the EU sponsored project »Asses implementations in the frame of the Cities of Tomorrow« (ASI). ASI is centered on quality of life issues and the way they are dealt with in projects aiming to pro-mote sustainable transport. In general, these issues tend to be overlooked by researchers, as they are difficult to measure or quantify. The main objective of this project is to examine whether and how policy makers take into account quality of life effects when designing and implementing transport policies, by reviewing policy implementations in ci-ties that participated in the Cities of Tomorrow programme. Based on this, development of an instrument that will enable decision-makers to better address quality of life issues in mobility projects is prepared, in order to secure public acceptance and promote user behaviour changes.

The project follows holistic approach to sustainability; special emphasis is given to issues of sustainable transport. This reflects the facts that the urban structure directly pre-determines the transport system and that the mobility of people and goods has a central impact on the quality of urban environment. Therefore the project clamours for compact, space-saving settlement structure interrelated with an environmentally compatible transport system. Its scientific orientation is determined by the objectives of the EU policies and its inspiration sources could be found also in eco-logical and architectural movements. Similarly to their typical approach, the project Ecocity intends to realise its vision of sustainable city through planning of an ideal physical structure within a spatially limited model area.