METREX Members Braga (Portugal) and Metropolia GZM (Poland) were revealed as the winners of the EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK award 2022 and the first-ever MOBILITYACTION award, respectively. The awards were presented at a ceremony hosted by the European Commission at the Castle of the Counts in Ghent.
Braga (Portugal) – winner of the EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK Award 2022
The city of Braga recently joined METREX as part of CIM Coimbra, the regional representation. The city impressed the jury with its commitment to raise awareness on sustainable mobility with many stakeholders, including universities, local businesses and residents. During the campaign’s main event week, from 16 – 22 September, the Portuguese city worked with over one hundred companies to open streets for pedestrian use and construct interactive green spaces. A “Mobility Safari” involving 30 companies was also held to illustrate the importance of decarbonisation and the impact of sustainable mobility in advancing this goal. Active mobility activities for all ages – such as gymnastics and cycling – were organised to spread awareness on the benefits of sustainable mobility. The city also launched the first phase of implementation for its bike-share service.
Metropolia GZM (Poland) – winner of the first MOBILITYACTION Award
The jury selected the Polish metropolis for its comprehensive approach to transforming a local university car park into a green, pedestrian-friendly space. Engaging professionals from the public transport, cycling, social development, sustainable mobility and urban policy sectors, Metropolia GZM co-created a car-park transformation that would not only benefit the university, but would also decrease related traffic and encourage locals to use the space. Urban furniture and greenery were installed, as well as traffic calming measures. The first reports show more people from on- and off-campus frequenting the area. Urban designers are currently conducting interviews to better understand how to remove all ground-level parking spots and implement accessible public transport solutions across the campus.
METREX secretary general Henk Bouwman said: “I am delighted to hear that our METREX members Braga (CIM Cavado) and GZM Metropolia have been awarded within the European Mobility Week. Again it shows their relentless efforts of being ahead of the game, this time in very hands-on mobility solutions for their citizens. Congratulations!”
EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK runs from 16 – 22 September every year, providing towns and cities with an opportunity to try out innovative traffic and transport planning, promote new use of infrastructure and raise awareness on sustainable mobility within their communities.
Alongside the winners of the EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK award 2022 and the MOBILITYACTION award, the European Commission awarded a special mention to the five Ukrainian cities that participated in the 2022 campaign. In spite of Russia’s continued aggression against Ukraine, Chernihiv, Kamianets-Podilskiy, Lviv, Poltava and Uzhhorod organised sustainable mobility awareness raising activities during the week of 16 – 22 September.
For more information on the campaign, visit www.mobilityweek.eu.
Photo by Alex Person on Unsplash
