Urban leaders throughout Europe have issued a united call for urban mobility to be tackled holistically, and for every city to create a Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan in line with pan-European guidelines that it wants the European Commission to draft.

The Committee of the Regions (CoR), which represents regional and local representatives from all 28 Member States to the European Commission, believes that urban mobility problems cannot be solved with a sectorial approach only. Account has to be taken in particular of the link between the urban dimension of transport policy and spatial planning, not only to improve urban transport and infrastructure but to combat urban sprawl and rethink the relationship between cities and their surrounding (urban/rural) environment.

Traffic is a major burden on cities due to the increasing number of vehicles. Car-sharing services developed in some cities of Europe can ease this situation considerably but this has so far been developing very unevenly in European countries even though the European MOMO project has shown great potential. The CoR is calling on the Commission to expressly take up the sharing model (such as bike sharing, car sharing, car pooling) in its Urban Mobility Package, adopted on 25 June.

It is also urging that these mobility plans need to be closely integrated with land use policies and criticises the EC for not requiring that the mobility plans take into account the need to tackle and adapt to climate change and reduce noise and air pollution.

In a statement, Albert Bore, Leader of Birmingham City Council, added that poorly planned development which is not effectively integrated with the transport network results in higher levels of transport demand and leads to over-reliance on the private car for many journeys.

Local and regional authorities are in charge of designing and implementing urban mobility policies but their decisions often relate to a framework set by national policy and within a new EU Urban Agenda. The definition of a common Integrated Urban Agenda is an open issue for the EU since 1997 but the announced launch of a public consultation by the European Commission in July has recently raised some expectation that such agenda could be adopted under the new mandate. The Mayor of Delft, Bas Verkerk, has led calls for the Commission to present a White Paper aimed at structurally anchoring the urban dimension in EU policies and legislation.

Some cities have already introduced sustainable urban mobility plans, but the CoR is concerned that a common Europe-wide definition of the concept of sustainable urban mobility plans does not exist.

The European Commission has agreed to set up a European Platform on SUMPs and has said it will support national, regional and local authorities developing and implementing these plans, but the CoR wants it to issue more non-binding guidance on how its various funding mechanisms can support their creation.

It argues that European governments should create a legal framework that will allow local and regional authorities to create and successfully implement local urban mobility strategies, including urban access regulations and road user charging schemes.

It adds that in the interests of promoting freedom and ease of travel across the EU, the regulation of access in urban areas should be based on universal, clear rules which uphold the principles of safety, traffic reduction, improving air quality and incentives to use more sustainable forms of transport.

This harmonisation would include common technical standards for Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) to ensure interoperability.