As a mobility laboratory, land.mobil:LAB pursues two goals: to learn more about the mobility behaviour of Waldviertel residents and to implement local projects with the people who came up with the ideas.

First projects have already been launched. In Rafings, for example, there is a neighbourhood car that is used for peer-to-peer car sharing – easily bookable by phone or online. In Langau, a former petrol station is being transformed into a multifunctional meeting place with space for leisure activities, co-working and workshops in collaboration with the local council and youth association. The focus is particularly on young people, with the aim of gaining a better understanding of their mobility behaviour and creating new long-term perspectives for everyday life in rural areas.

Supraregional projects and collaborations are also being supported: for example, land.mobil:LAB is working with students from the Vienna University of Technology on concepts for the sustainable use of transport and open spaces.

In the future, the range of services will be further expanded – for example, through new models for cultural mobility and regional on-demand transport. Close cooperation with local people remains important: since March, interested parties from the Waldviertel region have been able to submit their ideas to land.mobil:LAB and receive advice and scientific support.

The land.mobil:LAB is funded by the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure for a period of five years and is managed by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency. The aim is to make the knowledge and experience gained from the projects available to other communities in the long term – for sustainable mobility in rural areas.