The European cities where 70% of the EU population lives and which generate over 80% of the EU GDP are connected through one of the best transport systems. But mobility inside the cities is becoming increasingly difficult and less effective. The urban mobility still relies heavily on private cars using conventional fuels.
The most recent Eurobarometer survey has analysed the attitude towards urban mobility. A strong majority of citizens considers congestion, the cost, and the negative environmental impacts of urban mobility and transport patterns to be important problems. Most respondents were rather pessimistic about the prospects for improving the traffic situation in their cities.
The European Commission published a communication aimed at strengthening the support granted to the European cities in their attempt to solve the urban mobility problems. A radical change is necessary as regards the approach method of urban mobility to make sure that Europe’s urban areas develop on a more sustainable path and that the objectives for a European competitive and efficient transport system in terms of resource are met.
EU-wide action on urban mobility needs to involve Member States: Commission initiatives cannot reach out to each of the thousands of towns and cities across Europe, nor can they successfully identify and overcome the specific barriers to better and more sustainable urban mobility that might exist in different parts of the Union.
To be effectively and broadly deployed, concepts and tools developed at European level should be adapted to the particular circumstances of each Member State and then actively promoted at national and regional levels.
The Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan concept considers the functional urban area and proposes that action on urban mobility is embedded into a wider urban and territorial strategy. Therefore, these Plans should be developed in cooperation across different policy areas and sectors (transport, land-use and spatial planning or environment).
Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans can help cities make efficient use of existing transport infrastructure and services and deploy urban mobility measures in a cost-effective way.
Therefore, Member States should consider measures such as conducting a careful assessment of the present and future performance of urban mobility in their territory, also in view of key EU policy goals. The Commission, in turn, intends to set up, in 2014, a European Platform on Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans to coordinate EU cooperation on developing the concept and tools further.
Smarter urban access regulations
Making urban centres as accessible as possible requires making choices about the use of urban space. Loading and unloading spaces, bus lanes, cars, parking, pedestrian facilities, cycle lanes and parking all compete for urban road space and cities have to manage these competing demands according to local priorities and circumstances. Urban vehicle access regulations can help optimise urban access, improve air quality and contribute to the goal of phasing out conventionally fuelled cars in cities by 2050.
There is currently a wide diversity of schemes being implemented across Europe and a better understanding of these different types of access regulations, their costs and impacts is needed. These different rules and requirements, and the lack of information about how to comply with the various schemes, risk fragmenting the internal market and creating new barriers to the movement of people and goods. A fully harmonised European approach is not considered appropriate because it is crucial that the design and implementation of such schemes can be tailored to the specific situation in each urban area.
Photo: www.en.strasbourg.eu
[ by Elena Ilie ]Share on:
