by InTrieste
Over 425 thousand people were part of the 55th edition of the Barcolana presented by Generali as protagonists, on land, at sea and in the Karst. 388 thousand participated in the events between 5 and 8 October, and 140 thousand people from the region and over 240 thousand from outside Trieste were the protagonists of Barcolana.
The data for 5-8 October is certified by JustOnEarth (JOE), the company that BAT Trieste and its Digital Hub have “brought as a gift” to the Barcolana: used by the multinational to analyze the presence of cigarette butts and littering in cities, JOE has apply its own Artificial Intelligence (which in turn uses satellite images and big data as a source) to support the organizers in a scientifically based analysis of the numbers linked to attendance at sea and on land.
The figure of 388 thousand in 4 days thus arises from the analysis of Big Data, while the total of 425 thousand is a prudent estimate of the organizers, as the president Mitja Gialuz explains: “The 55th edition of the Barcolana was a great success for everyone, on land and at sea, and the day after every major event an estimate of the results is required: we waited to make them known in order to be able to use innovative technology and therefore have a reliable estimate”. Hence the request to JOE to apply its own systems: “I thank JOE and the president, Daniela Filipaz, who provided data supported by maps. 388 thousand people, of which 62% from outside Trieste in four days in the city for Barcolana is a figure that has great value for us: it definitively closes the Covid parenthesis and allows us to reflect on how to innovate and develop further in terms of quality and sustainability of the event”.
“The analysis we have developed – commented Daniela Filipaz, president of JustOneHeart – aims to give the organizers of an event a credible estimate of attendance on the days analysed, thus starting a process of managing choices and decisions that are increasingly data-driven”.
The attendance data during the event are confirmed by further parameters, which arrive at Barcolana from the event’s partners: Trenitalia in particular certifies over 50 thousand tickets sold in 4 days, of which 28 thousand on Barcolana Sunday alone. The positive and already published data for the categories also concern the occupancy of hotels and holiday homes, with a full house on Saturday night and an occupancy of over 80% in the days immediately preceding.
“Over the last ten years – commented Gialuz again – we have worked a lot with the aim of extending the period of stay in Barcolana for the benefit of the territory and the system, the average stay is increasing and we will focus on the growth of related events, in particular Barcolana Nuota and Barcolana SUP which have significant potential and will be able to contribute to increasing – together with the opening concert, which brought over 10 thousand people to Piazza Ponterosso – attendance in the first weekend”.
Further data concerns the organizational machine of the Barcolana, which in ten days involved a total of 693 people including employees, consultants, staff and volunteers: this is just the organizational team, to which is added an estimate of around 1800 people involved in the various stands of the Barcolana Village. “To these people – concluded Gialuz – there is also the reinforcement staff acquired by the hospitality system to cope with the increase in work during the long weekend of the event”.
