This work aims to analyze the impact of technological eco-innovation on the modernization and development of a local area. The role of eco-innovation would be to stimulate an innovative environment and spur a development of the territory and economic districts, and the diffusion of said particularities among wider geographic contexts, hence allowing a globalization model more observant of local specificities, and thus an open system able to develop economic and cultural exchange respecting local particularities. In recent years, smart city has asserted itself as a general model for the city of tomorrow, and sustainability has become a focal point in urban development policies. In this paper, we investigate how an integrated and intermodal methodology for the development of smart mobility systems—the European project “Life for Silver Coast”—is impacting the modernization and development of an Italian coastal area in Tuscany. The main focus of our paper is to understand how an integrated mobility network allows a transition toward a sustainable form of social relationship and a new economic pattern and could represent the starting point for a spatial, relational and institutional reorganization process that would lead to a change in the production and management dynamics of the local ecosystem concerning cultural, social and economic issues.

This study investigates how integrated zero-emission mobility systems can support environmental preservation and sustainable transport transitions, in tourism-intensive coastal areas. Using the European LIFE for Silver Coast project as a real-world case study, the research addresses the limited empirical evidence concerning the implementation and governance of a multimodal electric mobility ecosystem in environmentally fragile territories. The study adopts a mixed qualitative–quantitative methodology combining environmental monitoring data, mobility simulations, avoided-emission scenarios, and lifecycle-based environmental assessment to evaluate the impacts of a multimodal and intermodal electric mobility system integrating electric land vehicles, experimental photovoltaic-powered e-boats, and a digital Integrated Mobility Platform (IMP). Results demonstrate that the coordinated deployment of zero-emission transport modes contributes to measurable reductions in pollutant emissions and private vehicle dependency, while improving territorial accessibility and sustainable tourism mobility. The findings further highlight the role of platform-based coordination in facilitating the diffusion and social acceptance of sustainable mobility innovations. From a theoretical perspective, the study contributes to innovation management and sustainability transition research by conceptualizing LFSC place-based systemic eco-innovation model paradigm aligned with the Society 5.0 paradigm, where technological innovation, environmental governance, and user-centered mobility services converge within a collaborative regional ecosystem.