Sistemi di trasporto pubblico urbano via mare. Un modo per rilanciare il waterfront di Palermo

New sea transport terminals can be major people movers and main centres for various urban activities and functions, determining strong social output. The city of Palermo qualifies as a prominent research territory, due to its densely urbanized and populated waterfront areas, associated with a lack of transport infrastructures and efficient transit systems to meet the mobility demand of residents and commuters. A new waterfront arrangement can improve the city image and opens the way to new urban public transport systems by sea, like ferries and hydrofoils, as an alternative to the conventional land transit systems already affected by unavoidable congestion. Plans to link by sea different destination on the coast, should first identify and locate the several historical docking points of the city, as they will be the connections between the land transit systems and the sea. Local cultural heritage, handicraft, architecture and natural aspects, can be attractions for the sea transit users, occasional visitors, tourists and passengers on a cruise. The basic idea is to create a sea lane independent from the usual land routes which are highly congested by the daily massive and repeated movements of residents, between the south-west and the north-west of Palermo.