A new pedestrian counting post begins to monitor active mobility on the Laida-Kanala path in Urdaibai
17/09/2025
The information provided will help estimate the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions connected to the expected lower number of car trips.
In July 2025, a pedestrian counting post was installed on the section of the footpath developed within the framework of the LIFE IP Urban Klima 2050 project in the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve, specifically between Laida beach and the Kanala neighbourhood, in the municipality of Ibarrangelu. This infrastructure, which is added to the other six counters that the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve already has, enables the collection of data regarding the flow of people and the analysis of the path’s impact on pedestrian mobility.
The counter helps to monitor the Urban Klima 2050 strategy to promote sustainable mobility in Urdaibai and reduce the use of motor vehicles in the reserve. The information provided will help estimate the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions connected to the expected lower number of car trips thanks to the creation of the footpath.
This path was designed as an example of sustainable mobility, improving accessibility and connectivity to places of cultural and natural interest, and promoting active transport. It also helps to preserve the landscape of the Biosphere Reserve and reduce the fragmentation of the territory generated by roads and other grey infrastructure, reinforcing the cultural and environmental services of local ecosystems.
24 km of pedestrian routes
In recent years, around 24 kilometres of pedestrian routes have been created in the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve which, along with other existing routes, aim to mitigate climate change by reducing emissions, fostering slow mobility and providing pedestrian or cycling accessibility to all the urban areas that make up this space.
With this action, Urban Klima 2050 is working towards its objective of mitigating climate change and promoting the adaptation of the territory through active mobility measures, combining environmental conservation and improvement of the experience of visitors and neighbourhoods. The initiative is part of the Sustainable Mobility Strategy of the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve, in line with the objectives that led to its designation as a Biosphere Reserve in 1984. It therefore helps to achieve the principles of UNESCO’s MaB programme, promoting the reduction of emissions, slow mobility and improved pedestrian and cycle accessibility to the surrounding areas, as well as the connection between the eastern and western sides of the reserve.
