How small and big cities aim for 'Zero-emission mobility for all'

Every year, EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK takes place in September, creating awareness on sustainable mobility and promoting behavioural change in favour of active mobility, public transport, and other clean, intelligent transport solutions.

Following this week full of activities, EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK distributes awards that recognise local authorities– cities and municipalities– believed to have done the most to raise awareness of sustainable mobility through various coordinated activities throughout the week.

Local actions taken during the week range from organising a car-free day, leading a walking tour through the city, to installing infrastructure enabling electric or shared mobility. The actions must be creative, diverse and well-communicated to the public, and there must also be a number of impactful permanent measures taken.

Last year’s EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK theme was ‘ Zero-emission mobility for all’. From 16-22 September 2020, big and small cities all over Europe took part in this campaign, turning the focus on how to reach the ambitious targets of a carbon neutral Europe by 2050, as laid out by the European Commission and the European Green Deal.

The EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK Awards are given out in two categories: one for municipalities larger than 100,000 inhabitants, and one for smaller municipalities under this threshold. In addition, the European Commission also selects the winners for the Sustainable Urban Mobility Planning (SUMP) Award, and the EU Urban Road Safety Award.

Winner in the category bigger municipalities: Mönchengladbach

This year’s winner is the town of Mönchengladbach in Germany! In 2020, this city implemented various permanent measures to promote climate-friendly mobility, such as the expansion of the cycle signposting system and the implementation of infrastructure for electric bike and car sharing. Also, the city organised a number of information and awareness-raising initiatives on sustainable mobility, including public participation meetings where local residents could voice their opinions. Finally, Mönchengladbach was praised on its creative approach to promote sustainable mobility through organising poetry recitals on urban car parking, and by turning 50 car parking spaces into areas where people could read, play mini golf, or park their bicycles.

The other finalists were Granada (Spain) and Sofia (Bulgaria).

Winner in the category smaller municipalities: Lilienthal

The German city of Lilienthal aimed for ‘Zero Emission for All’ through permanent measures such as the reallocation of road space, cycling adapted traffic lights, extra parking for bikes, and car-sharing stations. Activities during the week included walking and bicycle trips, information sessions with senior citizens, a rubbish collection event and an exhibition on the history of city transport. Also the city organised a Car-Free-School Day with the participation of 55 schools and over 60,000 students.

The other finalists were Bruck an der Leitha (Austria) and Nea Moudania (Greece).

Winner of the SUMP award: Greater Grenoble Area Mobility Authority (SMMAG) for Grenoble-Alpes (France)

This year’s winner of the SUMP award focused on making sustainable mobility accessible to all, prioritising active and shared travel options, and making city travel more interconnected. Furthermore, Grenoble’s integrated and structured approach aiming to meet the mobility needs of all public transport users including socially vulnerable groups, earned SMMAG the SUMP award.

The other finalists were Belgrade (Serbia) and Bilbao (Spain).

Winner of the EU Urban Road Safety Award: Bilbao, Spain

The city of Bilbao improved road safety in the city by reducing the speed limit to 30km/h on all city roads, following an initial reduction of 87% of speed limits on city roads in June 2018, a great achievement! In addition to the permanent measure, the jury was also impressed by Bilbao’s communication and awareness-raising activities to promote road safety, and its steps to include residents in discussions and decision-making.

The other finalists were Heraklion (Greece) and Quart de Poblet (Spain).

Want to know more about the winners and finalists? Check out videos on each participant here!