Mobilidade urbana sustentável na Zona Sul de Natal: reestruturação da avenida Engenheiro Roberto Freire

Abstract

Within a few decades, most of the world's population will be living in cities. For the most part, this process has been characterized by an urban occupation that is moving further and further away from historical centers, leading to an increase in road infrastructure and the use of motor vehicles. Natal has not been unaware of this process and has seen intense urban growth in recent years, especially in the southern part of the city. In this context, the Engenheiro Roberto Freire Avenue has positioned itself as the main link with the south axis of the city, presenting a high daily flow of vehicles. At the same time, there is a high number of accidents and traffic deaths on this road. The reduction of these occurrences, allied to the incentive of sustainable urban mobility, which places the focus of transportation planning on active and collective modes, are principles addressed in the National Policy for Urban Mobility (PNMU). The objective of this work was to elaborate an engineering project proposal for Eng. Roberto Freire Avenue that is in accordance with the PNMU guidelines. The project also followed the concepts of the Safe Systems approach and the recommendations of reference transit manuals. At the end, it was observed that it is possible to rethink the distribution of road space, prioritizing active and collective modes, without the need for large interventions on the road. There were also hints for studies and complementary projects to be developed later.