Seven out of ten Czech inhabitants live there... cities offer prosperity, jobs, services, more opportunities, on the other hand, they struggle with ever-increasing traffic problems, emissions, and noise. Is there a way to improve quality of life through transport and mobility? In the framework of the Danube Cycle Plans, seven Czech personalities talk about their ideas regarding cycling and urban mobility in general.

You can watch how Czech towns and cities could be transformed according to the respected surgeon Pavel Pafko, courier service operator Erik Nálepka, professor Jaroslav Miller, transport minister Martin Kupka, head of Smart Cities team at the Ministry of Regional Development Marie Zezůlková,  author of mobile library Ilona Mach or Jihlava city councillor Jaroslav Vymazal. Several CityChangers personalities tell their stories about why they decided to shift to a different transport mode, or how they would use transport and mobility to improve citizens' lives. Be inspired by the stories of seven extraordinary people who care about the places where they live!

Jaroslav Vymazal, Councillor for Transport, City of Jihlava

“The more people use non-motorised and public transport, the better it is for those who need a car to get around. It makes it easier for them to get around town, easier to park,” says Jaroslav Vymazal, who has contributed significantly to further development of Jihlava, the metropolis of the Vysocina region.

Prof. Pavel Pafko, surgeon

“Modern society lives under a kind of stress. The work pace experienced by the current generations was not experienced by our parents, let alone our grandparents' generations. Cycling, as well as walking or running, are very cheap ways of doing sports. You're physically active in the moment you leave your apartment or your house, without travelling anywhere, changing clothes there and wasting a lot of time. In the end, you spend an hour in the fitness centre, but the whole thing takes three hours,” says Pavel Pafko, a surgeon and well-known promoter of an active lifestyle; the doctor who treated the Czech president used to commute by bike daily to the hospital in Motol, Prague.

Martin Kupka, Minister of Transport of the Czech Republic

“What needs to change is the way cities are built, the way public spaces are built. So that short-distance cities are created so that important places can be reached on foot by any possible route,” says Martin Kupka, minister of transport. The Ministry of Transport has also commissioned the preparation of the Urban and Active Mobility Concept, valid until 2030.

Erik Nálepka, operator of the courier services Švihé synku, Cargobikes Czechoslovakia

“Using just a battery and a single cyclist, cargo bikes can carry a large number of shipments and deliver in much less time than a car or a van,” says Erik Nálepka, operator of the courier services and a cargobike enthusiast.

Marie Zezůlková, Head of Urban Policy and Strategy Division, Ministry for Regional Development

"A city that declares itself to be smart must consider cycling and walking as part of its transport system," says Marie Zezůlková who regularly goes to work by bike. Ministry for Regional Development has approved its Smart City concept. It suggests how it should work in the area of the urban mobility.

Jaroslav Miller, Deputy Minister of Education of the Czech Republic, former Rector of Palacky University in Olomouc

“I am happy and proud that urban cycling in Olomouc is doing much better today. Better than five years ago, six, seven years,” says former Rector of Palacky University in Olomouc who established also the brand UP Bike.

Ilona Mach – author of the mobile library “Diva Baba”, City of Hradec Králové

“Diva baba is a project of the mobile library that aims to introduce people to old/classical literature. We organize neighbourhood meetings where the mobile library is available and where people on the bench can borrow a book. A bicycle is my partner for the whole day, without which I wouldn't give a damn.”

The interviews with cycling ambassadors in the Danube region were conducted by the Partnership for Urban Mobility within the Danube Cycle Plans project(Policies, plans and promotion for more people cycling in the Danube region), which is supported by the Interreg Danube Transnational Programme.