European cities have expanded rail and bike paths for commuters, but are hesitant to push back on cars. This is the result of a report by European Court of Auditorswhich was released on Wednesday. The Court of Auditors examined how attractive switching from cars to alternative means of transport is for commuters in European metropolitan areas. The bottom line: Cities are not doing enough, especially at the local level, to encourage commuters to switch from cars to bikes, regional trains or trams.
The Court of Auditors examined the EU Commission’s sustainable mobility plans with samples in the six metropolitan areas of Budapest, Katowice, Lisbon, Prague, Seville and Lille. The result is mixed. On the one hand, be Switching between bike, train and rental car has become easierdie CO2emissions would have been reduced. However, the authors criticize the local authorities. They would have to be more ambitious in curbing car traffic in cities and making information about alternatives more accessible.
From 2014 to 2027, the European Union is promoting the switch from cars to alternative means of commuting. The money will flow into better regional trains, the expansion of the tram network, the construction of cycle paths between the surrounding area and the center and the installation of transport hubs where commuters can seamlessly switch from one means of transport to the other. In 2024, the EU Commission will require 431 cities to have plans for sustainable mobility. „Sustainable urban mobility planning and monitoring“ she calls it.
“Many EU citizens use cars every day in urban areas, often because there are no attractive alternatives,” says Carlo Alberto Manfredi Selvaggi, responsible for audits at the European Court of Auditors. “Only then can we hope for less congestion, better air quality and an overall better quality of life.”
Car is the fastest means of transport
In suburbs where it takes three quarters of an hour to get to the center by car, there are commuters even at peak times still reach your destination faster than with the alternativessays the Court of Auditors’ report. The authors complain that responsibilities often end at municipal boundaries or that authorities do not do enough to make cars less attractive, for example by creating car-free zones or making parking more expensive.
In this country, too, cars still play a large part in commuting. “In Germany, six out of ten people drive to work by car,” says Philipp Kosok from the think tank Now Verkehrswende. The topic of commuting is now receiving more attention. “However, a consistent policy in favor of alternatives to cars is missing in most regions.”
Like the Court of Auditors, Ann-Kathrin Schneider, managing director of the German Platform for Mobility Management Association (Depomm), a holistic approach. Both the promotion of sustainable local public transport (ÖPNV) and the stricter regulation of cars in metropolitan areas are needed, for example through higher, socially acceptable parking fees. “We criticize transport policy for thinking in terms of individual means of transport, vehicles and measures. We should think about mobility from a people perspective.” One question, for example: What means of transport, tariff systems and apps do people need so that they use alternatives to cars?
Unlike the report, Schneider sees the problem somewhere other than the authorities: “We see that the administrations of German cities are very willing to adopt alternative mobility. But unfortunately we are currently experiencing political headwinds, with some funding being canceled again.”