TMF names Venice winners in global cities challenge

The Toyota Mobility Foundation (TMF) and City of Venice have named the winners of Toyota Mobility Foundation’s Sustainable Cities Challenge (SCC) in Venice.

BetterPoints and Factual Consulting, in partnership with OpenMove, will receive $500,000 in implementation funding to scale their solutions in Venice.

Sustainable urban mobility solutions

The announcement marks the conclusion of the Venice section of TMF’s three-year global competition to support sustainable urban mobility solutions. In addition to Venice, Challenges were held simultaneously in Detroit, Michigan, and Varanasi, India.

While Venice is globally renowned for its historic canals, it is also a major transportation hub powered by a vast network of roads, rail links, and an international airport. The city has invested heavily in sustainable infrastructure, establishing almost 200km of bike lanes and launching Italy’s first integrated hybrid car, bike, and e-scooter-sharing services.

Venice is also rapidly improving the sustainability of its public transit system, deploying 30 new electric buses (with 44 more on the way), planning 90 fuel-cell buses by the end of 2026, and introducing more than 32 hybrid waterbuses to its canals by 2029.

Yet, according to TMF and the City of Venice, these low- and zero-carbon options remain underutilised as residents habitually rely on car-based, long-standing transit routines. To bridge this gap, the challenge called on innovators to create solutions tailored to the mainland and motorised islands, where the vast majority of citizens live and work.

Ultimately, the goal was to inspire a shift toward sustainable travel, whether through public transit, active mobility – particularly through cycling and walking – or shared transit.

“The challenge carried forward through SCC has provided the city with a unique opportunity to research and pilot new solutions capable of supporting residents, workers, students and visitors over time in adopting more sustainable mobility habits”

The challenge winners are working to move local residents towards more sustainable mobility alternatives through smart, intuitive innovations that make travel more accessible and rewarding.

Alongside helping riders plan and book seamless journeys on their phones, these innovators are using games, quizzes, incentives, and rewards to nudge users towards long-term use of the city’s sustainable mobility network. They also attended in-person community events to understand Venice residents’ needs, allowing those to be reflected in their solutions.

By facilitating residents’ and visitors’ access to Venice’s historic and modern transit links, ranging from waterbuses to land-based buses to scooter-sharing tools, the challenge’s winning innovators are helping to build a less congested, sustainable city where transit systems are used to their full potential.