UITP is the International Public Transport Union. Within the European Union, UITP brings together over 400 operators of urban, suburban, and regional public transport, as well as authorities from all Member States. It represents the views of all modes of short-distance passenger transport services, including buses, regional and suburban rail, metro, light rail, tram, and waterborne transport systems.
How do you see the EU transport market?
The EU market is governed by the Regulation on Public Passenger Transport Services by Rail and by Road, known as the PSO (‘Public Service Obligation’) Regulation. Adopted in 2007, the PSO Regulation sets out the conditions in which the competent Organising Authorities can organise the provision of high-quality public passenger transport services by defining the corresponding public service obligations. As such, it is the cornerstone of the EU terrestrial public transport market for all modes of transportation.
As a result, I would say that the EU market is well-equipped. The PSO Regulation provides a framework within which Organising Authorities have real freedom as to how they define and perform public service obligations and in terms of how they structure services and award public transport contracts.
The Regulation has made it possible to establish common principles right across the EU market, and in doing so has genuinely led to the emergence of a single terrestrial transport market throughout the European Union. At the same time, a crucial aspect of this to my mind is that these common principles have been determined in such a way as to take into account local particularities. Geography, topography, environmental and social legislation, workpackages, and all the other characteristic components at local level are fully taken into consideration in the EU market. As the saying has it, ‘think global, act local’; we’re proud to be able to count on a regulation that allows us to do just that.
After the adoption of the PSO Regulation, the use of public transport continued to increase throughout Europe right up until Covid. On the eve of the pandemic, public transport had never been so attractive in Europe; many of our cities genuinely experienced modal shift.
Inevitably, Covid put the brakes on this trend. However, it also revealed that the EU market had a great many other assets.
First and foremost, the market proved to be resilient. Purely commercial services couldn’t have continued without state aid; the flexible nature of public-service contracts meant that despite the difficulties, a highly successful offer that was close to normal continued to be available for key workers, even though passenger numbers collapsed overnight. The economic equilibrium of these contracts was disrupted by the crisis, but it proved possible to adapt in order to ensure continuity of public service and come up with new funding models for public transport.
The pandemic has also revealed the central role of a good public transport network in Europe’s cities. These networks deliver economic vibrancy, more innovation, and local jobs whilst cutting air pollution, bringing down the number of personal accidents, and have less impact on the environment.
The EU market is clearly an attractive one. Its model is unlike any other, and it works. It demonstrated as much under pressure from a global pandemic, is continuing to do so today under the pressure of an energy crisis and a war on the same continent, and will continue to do so in the face of the multiple climate disruptions that we can routinely expect in the future. An organisational framework providing such a high degree of legal clarity and flexibility can only be a good thing; we’re very much in favour of it.
What’s more, this framework has allowed European champions to emerge onto the world stage. As we’re well aware here in France, four out of the five largest public transport operators in the world are European, and three of those are French. The stability and coherence of the European market allow European operators to win new contracts elsewhere and strengthen their expertise.
Is Europe leading the way in sustainable mobility?
It’s impossible to ignore the most recent warnings from the IPCC experts: failing a major change in direction, our planet will continue to get warmer, well beyond the limits set by the Paris Climate Agreement.
In Europe, we’re on the right track: the European Commission has adopted the Green Deal, its flagship climate strategy, aiming to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, and of course, this includes measures to promote sustainable mobility. That said, much still remains to be done, in particular in the sector of transport, the only sector not to have reduced its emissions since 1990; road transport alone is responsible for 25% of emissions within the EU. It should be noted that private cars account for 50% of these emissions, and 70% occur in urban environments. These figures give some idea of what is at stake.
I must emphasise that there’s always room for improvement, even in modes of transport that are already sustainable, including public transport. Over and above existing electric metros and trams, operators and authorities are striving to adopt low- and zero-emission vehicles in their bus fleets, and we’ll be seeing this trend accelerate in the wake of the recent EU Clean Vehicles Directive. This Directive is further evidence of the fact that the European Commission is laying particular emphasis on technological improvements such as electric cars and digitalisation to reduce emissions from the sector. However, to achieve our climate goals, we need to implement the entirety of the ‘avoid, shift, improve’ principle, not just the aspect devoted to improving technology. In other words, if I may say so, simply ‘greening’ a ‘business as usual’ approach to make it a little more ecological won’t be enough. I think this is one of the strongest messages from UITP at present. At UITP we’re constantly emphasising the importance of prioritising public transport, and we’ve seen some promising indications that our message has been heard. In its proposal for a new Urban Mobility Framework published at the end of last year, the Commission acknowledges the importance of public transport as a pillar of sustainable urban mobility, and that’s an encouraging sign.
While technological progress is making it possible to bring down vehicle emissions, it’s still vital that we redefine the complementary relationships between different modes of transport and increase modal shift in favour of public transport. The EU needs to encourage these changes of behaviour, too.
Which European cities offer inspiration when it comes to sustainable mobility?
UITP has the advantage of having a good overview of European mobility. From our vantage point, we can see a wide variety of approaches being implemented. Innovations in sustainable mobility are many and varied: in Vienna, for instance, they’ve developed an annual fare corresponding to one euro per day for all network services. In Warsaw, vehicles’ energy efficiency has been targeted by the city implementing a major electrification plan for all its buses. New modes of transport and the automation of more traditional modes are also emerging, such as in Lyon, which has rolled out self-driving shuttles; Saint-Etienne has introduced an MaaS solution that includes micro-mobility. The introduction of tramways in Tampere has increased the market share of public transport and boosted modal shift. I could go on – it’s not easy to single out one city as being the most inspiring. All of them are taking action at their level in favour of sustainable mobility, with the goal of seeing more modal shift.
The Guest of Honour at the Exhibition, the City of Milan, has combined a policy restricting individual cars in the city centre with the prioritisation of public and active mode transport; it’s a perfect illustration of the ‘shift’ principle referred to previously.
I could also point to Barcelona, a city I’ve got to know better in the run-up to the forthcoming UITP summit, which the city will be hosting in June 2023. Many people will already be familiar with its Superblock initiative: the idea is to calm streets within a group of adjacent city blocks, and in doing so make room for green spaces, leisure, and sustainable mobility. I see this as a daring and inspiring initiative; if it comes to fruition, it could radically change the city and make it greener still.
Barcelona is just one of the 100 cities to have been shortlisted recently for the EU Mission for 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030. These cities will be invited to develop an overall plan for climate neutrality in every sector, including transport. Our hope at UITP is that cities will seize this opportunity to strengthen the role of public transport.
Indeed, with the Green Deal and Europeans as a whole becoming more aware of the issue, sustainable mobility is emerging as a key priority for all UITP members. As a result, our members are driving change through a broad range of initiatives and innovations.
Which innovation do you think is revolutionising the sector the most?
One answer might be automation. Electrification could be another contender, as could digitalisation. Then again, there’s the emergence of new individual modes of transport, decarbonising the notorious ‘last mile’ and linking individuals to their nearest mass transit solution. We’re facing an opportunity that’s also a formidable challenge: building a sector in which a number of revolutions are underway simultaneously, all of them placing passengers at the heart of our concerns.
Over and above technological innovation, I think that one of the innovations we’re looking forward to – and that’s starting to emerge – is massive investment in physical infrastructure in which public transport is a priority. We need to ensure that the required physical infrastructure is in place if modal shift is to become a reality.
Is carbon neutrality by 2050 achievable, or is it a pipe dream?
That question has now become obsolete; it’s too late to have that discussion now. Simply put, carbon neutrality is now an obligation, and we all have to do everything within our power to achieve this goal. The transport sector still has a long way to go, and public transport has a key, structural role to play in that. We must continue to make public transport even more sustainable, with clean vehicles and the use of renewable energy, even as we expand our offering. I can assure you that UITP and its members are fully committed to achieving that. However, the change we really need cannot be achieved without a modal shift from cars to sustainable modes of transport: walking, cycling, and public transport. This modal shift calls for changes in behaviour alongside transport policies that facilitate the adoption of more sustainable modes wherever possible, encouraging the use of public and active mode transport. We’ll never achieve carbon neutrality unless we restrict the use or even the possession of private cars. Carbon neutrality only makes sense if it’s accompanied by better road safety, social inclusion, public health, and cities becoming more accessible and attractive.
