Advocating for public transport in the European Union

Having worked at a European level throughout my career, I know the importance of sharing knowledge and information in order to advance an important agenda. At UITP Europe, we bring together more than 450 urban, suburban and regional public transport operators and authorities from all member states and work with figures from across the EU on a number of issues to advance sustainable urban mobility in our cities.

We’re continually working to advocate for public transport and urban mobility in all EU member states. Significantly, 72 per cent of Europeans live in urban areas, and research tells us that this number will continue to grow. As millions of people use public transport in our cities every day, UITP works to bring together almost 500 public transport operators and authorities across Europe to move urban mobility forward. Through that dedication, we’re consequently recognised as a key interlocutor for the European institutions and other bodies.

The last 12 months have probably been our most active. At the beginning of 2019, with the May European Parliament elections approaching, we decided to encourage the incoming decision makers, whether that be returning MEPs or new names joining the chamber, to place urban mobility at the very heart of their political agendas. More than 200 million European citizens voted in the elections and all of them should have the very best mobility options on their doorstep: only when our cities are as connected as possible can urban living truly be at its best. With that vision in mind, our Mobility On Top campaign was born. The campaign was built around our Mobility Manifesto and the four pillars we believe must become a top priority for the European institutions. Based around policy, financing, multimodality and better regulations, we set out to show that our four pillars can ensure, prioritise, secure and guarantee more sustainable cities.

We can improve mobility and the quality of daily life for all European citizens by achieving a modal shift to sustainable public transport. I think those who call our cities home will know the importance of great public transport – it’s about more than getting from A to B. Public transport should be the most obvious choice when deciding how to go about your daily life. Public transport is, in fact, one of the largest employers at local level. That’s how important it is to see our policy recommendations implemented by those who can bring about lasting change.

A year of action

Over the months that followed, the Mobility On Top campaign was endorsed by more than 300 signatories, including almost 40 MEPs. From these positive results, we created a list of concrete actions based on the four priorities identified in our manifesto, and asked the newly elected European institutions to implement them to advance urban mobility across Europe. We’re continuing to advance these priorities each day.

We were then ready to present our actions to implement the Mobility Manifesto and achieve a modal shift to sustainable public transport by unveiling our priorities for EU policy 2019-2024. This list of actions should help EU decision makers improve mobility and the quality of daily life for all European citizens.

This modal shift towards public transport has the power to reduce CO2 emissions, prevent climate change, make mobility safer and provide more local jobs, all of which lead to greater economic well-being, cleaner air, social cohesion and healthier citizens. Climate change is a serious concern. With the new President and Executive Vice President of the European Commission in charge of the EU Green Deal taking their positions, we used this opportunity to address the new EU Green Deal and the role public transport plays towards a climate-neutral Europe.

Climate action with public transport

Transport currently represents almost a quarter of Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions and is one of the main causes of air pollution in cities. Therefore, by encouraging more people to leave their cars at home and use public transport, we can put less vehicles on the road and reduce emissions at the local level. In our open letter to President Ursula von der Leyen and Vice President Frans Timmermans (the new European Commission took office on 1 December 2019) we welcomed the new EU Green Deal announcement and highlighted the key role that the urban, suburban and regional public transport sector can play in making Europe and its citizens net carbon neutral by 2050.

UITP Europe members know that the fastest and most cost-efficient way to decarbonise people’s daily mobility – and reduce the carbon footprint of their mobility choices – is to promote the use of public transport, walking and cycling. It’s a bold commitment from the new Commission to propose a European Green Deal in the first 100 days of office, and we welcome that aim. We are ready to fully contribute to the objectives of the Green Deal and with that support, the public transport sector can achieve its 2050 goal in a cost-efficient manner.

Public transport is a natural ally for policymakers in achieving a large number of European policy goals. The best way to achieve a modal shift to sustainable public transport is to ensure mobility is on top of all relevant EU policy. It’s vitally important to make use of Europe’s strong public transport sector and promote the use of public transport whenever possible.

Our objective in 2020 is to continue to pledge for sustainable urban mobility and make sure public transport is included in the EU Green Deal. We will remind EU decision-makers that providing EU citizens with attractive clean transport options – such as public transport – is key to achieving net carbon neutrality while contributing to other EU objectives in terms of employment, social and territorial cohesion, economy, accessibility, and air quality.

By representing the perspectives of short distance passenger transport services by all sustainable modes – bus, regional and suburban rail, metro, light rail and tram and waterborne – UITP can bring the relevant voices around the table to push the urban mobility agenda forward. We can achieve public transport friendly legislation that can improve all of our lives. 

Biography 

Thomas Avanzata is Senior Director of the UITP European Department within the International Association for Public Transport. He is in charge of the interest representation towards the European institutions. He is specialised in European law applicable to the transport sector and has an extensive background and vast experience on the Public Service Obligations’ dossier. From 2004 to 2008, as national seconded expert at DG TREN (TRansport & ENergy) – European Commission, Avanzata was one of the responsible agents in charge of delivering a revised proposal for a Regulation on Public Service Obligations (2005) and follow-up on the legislative process until the final adoption of Regulation 1370/2007.