The first-ever Pan-European Master Plan for Cycling Promotion was adopted at the Fifth High-Level Meeting on Transport, Health and Environment (THE PEP) in May 2021. The key document, which is to become the basic guide for the development of non-motorized transport throughout Europe, was created under the heading of United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and World Health Organization (WHO). One of the key tasks is to create Trans-European cycling network and minimum infrastructure quality standards, for which the collective designation “infrastructure module” is used. Lukasz Wyrowski works at UNECE, where he, amongst other, is in charge of development of sustainable urban transport with focus on cycling. What goals does he sees ahead, and how he evaluates the cooperation with the Danube Cycle Plans project consortium?

Lukasz, lately you have put a lot of effort into the development of cycling. Do you have a bike yourself and how do you use it?
I use my bicycles mostly for recreational cycling around Geneva in Switzerland, where I currently live.

In your work, you focus mainly on topics of intermodal transport and logistics, sustainable urban transport with focus on cycling and adaptation to climate change. What do you see as the main challenges shown by the Pan-European Master Plan for Cycling Promotion (PEMP)?
The plan recognizes challenges associated with infrastructure development for cycling. Insufficient or lack of harmonized design standards and deficient coordination across various administrative levels makes the development of cycling infrastructure difficult. For this reason, the Master Plan formulates important recommendations for overcoming these difficulties. The Master Plan calls for development of trans-European cycling network, elaboration of minimum infrastructure quality standards, and coordination amongst various stakeholders within and across countries.

What does the adoption of the PEMP document mean for cyclists - transport and bicycle touring throughout Europe?
The development and future implementation of the network and availability of the agreed minimum standards will provide greater safety, convenience, and satisfaction for cyclists. This should then help to attract more people to cycling whether for daily commuting or cycling tourism.  
With such a Trans-European network put in place, cyclists will feel safe and comfortable on any of its routes or sections. They will fully understand the signs and so will not be confused as to the traffic rules in force or regarding the directions or difficulty of any route. They will be more attracted to cycling abroad and so become cycling tourists.

The plan has several goals, one of which is to double the share of cycling in the region and to increase it in every country by 2030. Another goal is to halve the number of fatalities and serious injuries of cyclists per kilometer cycled. What do you think is the priority to fulfill the PEMP recommendations?
It is expected that the implementation of these recommendations will result in a Trans-European cycling network, the backbone of which will be the already existing (or currently being developed or planned) national, regional, and urban cycling routes. Such a network will of course have to adhere to minimum infrastructure quality standards through which its coherence, directness, safety, comfort, and attractiveness for cyclists need to be ensured.
It is further expected that the inclusion of these recommendations in the adopted Master Plan will accelerate the work on Trans-European cycling network and minimum infrastructure quality standards – also referred to as infrastructure module for the pan-European Master Plan for Cycling – initiated within the framework of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Working Party on Transport Trends and Economics (WP.5).

The road network, railways and waterways are part of the Trans-European Transport Networks. So far, cycling is the only transport mode that remains aside. Which organization (s) will guarantee these corridors and include cycling as a topic?
Relevant UNECE working parties supported by UNECE Transport manage road, rail, waterways, or intermodal transport networks through dedicated agreements. If so, decided by the UNECE member States, the cycling network as being elaborated, can be managed in a way like for the other modes..
Establishment of the cycling network adhering to the minimum standards and consisting of routes as defined in the infrastructure module and signposted in a harmonized way across the whole pan-European region is the goal towards which UNECE Transport and partners are working.  

What is the role of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in this context?
UNECE Transport and partners will continue develop the infrastructure module. The efforts will focus on the following actions:
1)     Strengthen the process of data collection on designated and planned national routes.
2)     Analyse the routes together with the Euro-Velo network to designate the Trans-European cycling network; and
3)     Further accompany the development of the common methodology and framework and agree on the definitions for various types of cycling infrastructure and new road signs thereby contributing to the user-friendliness and safety of the network.
In this regard, UNECE Transport supported by the European Cyclist`s Federation (ECF), the Confederation of the European Bicycle Industry (CONEBI) and World Bicycle Industry Association (WBIA) developed a draft infrastructure module in 2020. It encompasses a proposal for common definitions for various types of cycling infrastructure and specific road signs as well as collates data on national cycling networks (designated or planned routes) from a number of UNECE member countries as well as the EuroVelo routes.

What specific steps do you see in front of you?
UNECE Transport and partners are collecting data in shapefile format (file extension .SHP) or ESRI ArcMap format (geodatabase) on existing and planned – mainly national -- cycling routes in UNECE member countries. These are collated with data on EuroVelo routes in GIS for analysis. Following the analysis done in consultation with representatives of UNECE member countries, a Trans-European cycling network will be proposed.
UNECE Transport is establishing a process involving representatives of UNECE member countries to discuss the draft definitions for various types of cycling infrastructure and road signs as included in the draft infrastructure module. In this process also minimum design standards are to be elaborated linked with the definitions. Finally, the proposed cycling network should be endorsed.

When the outputs will be published?
UNECE Transport designed a process to elaborate the infrastructure module fully (Trans-European network and harmonized design standards) in time for the sixth High-level conference. Whether this can be achieved, will however depend on the willingness of member states to engage in this process and deliver the necessary data and inputs.

Thank you very much for the interview.