Car-free days

"It’s time to start moving in the right direction. Moving towards a sustainable and efficient transport system will help enhance mobility and at the same time reduce pollution and improve the quality of life in cities". With this message Environment Commissioner Janez Potocnik announced the eleventh European Mobility Week, scheduled to take place September 16-22 across EU27.In the right direction. Approximately 1.500 European cities will take part in the initiative (over half of which in Austria and Spain), with a great number of citizens involved in activities for the promotion and the adoption of alternative solutions to private car use. With the motto "Moving in the right direction" organizers principally aim to boost public awareness of sustainable urban mobility plans whilst involving a greater number of citizens and enterprises to improve the quality of life at local level. The consequences of motorised traffic are increasingly being felt in urban areas. ambitious strategies must respond to more congestion, emissions and road accidents… As well as introducing and promoting measures to encourage cycling, walking and collective transport, European Mobility Week is a chance – say the promoters – "to develop and improve sustainable transport strategies through public consultations, and debates, to introduce and promote sustainable transport measures that may become a short-term goal".Towards a sustainable mobility. The European Week provides the opportunity for cities and municipality to present alternative and sustainable proposals for citizens and obtain useful feedback from them. In particular, in this edition the objective is to highlight the role of integral planning for the implementation of an efficient sustainable mobility system at urban level. Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMP) is the tool to describe a system of interrelated measures to meet the needs of citizens, families and enterprises, whilst improving environmental quality. To this regard in 2009 the European Commission adopted an Urban Mobility Action Plan in support of local authorities in order to develop these projects. Guidelines released by the Commission can be found on the website of the Mobility Week, www.mobilityweek.eu, with examples of European cities which have already adopted these measures. Constructive examples. For example, the program of the city of Gibraltar envisages a full week of cycling events, conferences, exhibitions and public consultations, with the aim of involving all age groups. Children, adults, and old people will be involved in a set of initiatives to experiment sustainability in the city, culminating with a car free area in Place Convent, on Saturday 22. London’s state-of-the art initiatives include the ‘route’ application launched during the 2012 Olympic Games. Those who decide to go on foot or to take their bicycles will receive a set of "points" on their mobile phones that enable access to discounts. The shops participating in the initiative are Marks and Spencer, Haven holidays and Cineworld. The project is supported by Transport for London (TfL) and by the mayor. Less noise, more smog. The Week has been taken seriously also in France. On September 15-16 and 22-23, for example, in various places "green ways" will be promoted for pedestrians, cyclists, roller-skaters who wish to enjoy nature when moving around town. On September 18 students will be invited to go to school by bike. The following day will be dedicated to public transport while on the 20th the minister for sustainable development invited citizens to adopt car-sharing solutions. Commissioner Potocnik said: "Better planning can help cities benefit from greater mobility as well as better air quality, reduced emissions, less noise and a healthier urban environment. So, what are we waiting for? Let’s start moving!" Reiterating his support to the project, the Slovenian Commissioner will officially launch the campaign to the media on 18 September 2012 as part of the ‘Sustainable Two-Wheels’ event at the European Parliament.