The Deputy Mayors from nine major European cities and a group of public transport organisations have signed a new European Declaration committing to sustainable and attractive public transport.
Recognising the sector’s critical role in addressing social, economic and environmental challenges, the signatories – including UITP and Eurocities – gathered in Barcelona to commit to strengthening collaboration, supporting multi-modal integration, ensuring affordability and enhancing climate resilience.
The signatories include Laia Bonet, First Deputy Mayor for Urban Planning, Ecological Transition, Urban Services and Housing from the City of Barcelona; Arianna Censi, Deputy Mayor for Mobility from the City of Milan; and Kristjan Järvan, Deputy Mayor for Transport from the City of Tallinn.
Each city is aiming for seamless integration of public transport with cycling, walking and shared mobility, while making transport affordable and accessible for vulnerable communities. All signatories have pledged to strengthen the sector’s resilience against climate change disruptions, improve its attractiveness to address staff shortages, and invest in skills development, with a strong emphasis on achieving gender balance.
The Declaration proposes several actions including advocating for new funding mechanisms based on beneficiary-payer and polluter-payer schemes, and encouraging social climate plans that improves accessibility for vulnerable communities.
Thomas Lymes, Head of Advocacy at Eurocities, told Zag Daily: “The signing of this Declaration takes place at a crucial moment as a new policy cycle starts at the EU level. Over the past few years, the public transport sector has been challenged with drops in ridership due to COVID-19 and increased operational costs stemming from the energy crisis.
“With the start of the new political cycle, this is a key moment to ask for further support from EU and national policymakers to support sustainable transport that is an attractive, competitive mode for citizens.
“In the hearing on November 4th, the Commissioner-designate for Transport committed to continue improving urban mobility. We hope this Declaration will inspire his action to improve the backbone of urban mobility in cities.”
