UNECE Working Party on Transport Trends and Economics (WP.5) has the pleasure to invite you to participate in and contribute to  the 

“Workshop on Green Urban Transport” 

which will be held in conjunction with the WP.5 thirty-fourth annual session, in Geneva, on 17 September 2021 from 10 – 11.30 a.m. CEST.  It will take place both in-person as well as virtually.

The workshop will draw upon policy recommendations put forward in the UNECE Nexus publication entitled “People-Smart Sustainable Cities – Sustainable and Smart Cities for All Ages” (April 2021). Furthermore, the workshop will build on the momentum generated by the adoption at the fifth Transport, Health and Environment Pan-European Programme (THE PEP) High-Level Meeting (Vienna, May 2021) of the first-ever Pan European Master Plan for Cycling Promotion.

Inter alia, the workshop will discuss the applicability of the Master Plan in an urban context and identify opportunities to further strengthen the infrastructure component of the Master Plan through the development of internationally agreed standards and harmonized traffic signs. The workshop is expected to gather urban mobility experts from Ministries of Transport or related agencies, city authorities and urban planners, academia, research institutions and independent experts engaged in this field from across the UNECE region and beyond.  Deliberations will be expected to provide further guidance to the work of the WP.5 in this field.

Further to the important role of bicycling in an urban mobility context, the workshop will also shed light on several related aspects, including:

    A.The importance of redesigning existing urban transport infrastructure and services including through:

• Maximizing the availability of safe and spacious sidewalks for pedestrians as well
• Maximizing public transport networks that are accessible, affordable, and easy to use.
• Accommodating new modes of urban mobility, including electric scooters and steps, car ridesharing, bike-sharing with well-planned parking spaces and charging stations.

    B.The important role of developing a sound regulatory framework surrounding urban mobility and its impact on health and the environment as well as the need for effective enforcement, including through:

• Putting in place and enforcing a set of coherent road safety rules, including speed limitations.
• Actively deterring and enforcing limitations related to GHG and noise emissions (e.g. through banning older cars from urban centres).

    C.The importance of adopting a holistic approach to urban mobility including paying due attention to both passenger as well as freight mobility challenges. Thereby recognizing that urban freight transport plays an essential role in cities economic development and prosperity but also acknowledging the negative effects in terms of health, safety, and livability that urban freight transport in its current form all too often creates.

 Please refer to the official web page of the workshop for the draft agenda and concept note.  For any additional information please contact Mr. Roel Janssens, WP.5 secretary at roel.janssens@un.org.
 
For participation in the WP.5 34th Session please use the following link to register. Should you face any issues with the registration process please contact Mrs. Maria Mostovets from the WP.5 secretariat at maria.mostovets@un.org.

Text: Lukasz Wyrowski, UNECE. Photo: Depositphoto