Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-01-12-Speech-1-139"
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"en.20090112.15.1-139"2
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"Madam President, first of all I would like to convey the regrets of Vice-President Tajani for not being with us. He is on a very important mission to Japan.
But my colleague Vice-President Tajani would like to reassure you that he remains committed to working towards the adoption of the Action Plan and to develop an EU policy in the field of urban transport in full respect of the subsidiarity and proportionality principles. To this purpose, it is not the intention of the Commission to propose a one-size-fits-all solution; on the contrary, we would like to develop a toolbox, including short- and medium-term practical actions, in order to provide cities with the tools to address, in an integrated way, specific issues related to urban mobility. Then, it will be up to local authorities to decide what is more suitable for them, according to their own objectives and needs.
In order to address the concerns that might still exist regarding the strategic role of the EU in urban mobility, Vice-President Tajani’s intention is to demonstrate with concrete actions how the EU can add value and quality to urban mobility in Europe. On the basis of the responses to the Green Paper and many discussions with stakeholders, a number of actions have been identified and will be launched later this year.
To promote innovative solutions and new technologies, we have already opened a call for proposals, closing at the end of March, which will provide up to 50% funding to the projects selected. Once the Directive on the promotion of clean and energy efficient road transport vehicles comes into force, around March, we will initiate the development of an internet site to facilitate joint clean vehicle procurement.
On information and exchange of approaches, we intend to start up, around April, a website providing information on urban mobility legislation and funding in Europe, as well as on good practice. We will also reflect with stakeholders on the future of our CIVITAS programme and how to build on the vast knowledge and experience generated in the CIVITAS-funded actions.
Finally, to help increasing knowledge on sustainable mobility policies, we will launch a study on aspects related to green zones and a study on the opportunities for making public transport systems more interoperable. We intend also to establish an expert network for considering aspects of urban road pricing and internalisation of external costs.
I am convinced that this package of actions, which will be soon undertaken at EU level, provides an important basis for moving forward in the field of urban mobility.
Let me go straight to the point. The Commission remains fully committed to developing an EU policy in the field of urban mobility because it is convinced that, although responsibilities for urban mobility lie primarily with local, regional and national authorities, in some specific areas there is an added value of action at European level.
As a matter of fact, although cities are all different, they face common challenges. The problems in urban mobility are significant and growing and affect many citizens and businesses, which are confronted with traffic safety problems, with limited accessibility of public transport, with congestion and health problems caused by pollution. To illustrate the importance of urban mobility, let me provide you with some figures: 60% of the population lives in urban areas and 85% of the EU GDP is created there. However, cities also generate 40% of CO
emissions, and two out of three road accidents take place in urban areas. Finally, congestion, which is one of the main problems that citizens have to face everyday, is responsible for the loss of about 1% of the EU’s GDP every year.
Sustainable urban mobility is therefore a key element to achieve our goals with respect to climate change, economic growth and road safety. This is why the Commission has been launching actions in this field since 1995, in order to promote the exchange of best practices. The highlight has been the extremely successful CIVITAS programme that started in 2000.
The 2007 Green Paper ‘Towards a new culture in urban mobility’ then identified broad areas for potential complementary action at EU level to promote greener and safer cities and smarter and accessible urban transport.
But what can be done concretely at EU level? We can help local authorities to implement related EU policies and to make best use of EU funding. EU-wide dissemination and replication of innovative approaches can give authorities the possibility to achieve more and better results at lower cost.
We can help foster markets for new technologies, for example clean and energy-efficient vehicles, and facilitate harmonised standards for broad market introduction of new technologies. Finally, the EU can guide authorities towards solutions that are interoperable and facilitate smoother functioning of the single market.
The Commission will therefore continue to act, because we think, as a large majority of stakeholders do, that there is much to be gained from working at EU level to support initiatives at the local, regional and national levels.
Now let me answer your question: why the adoption of the Action Plan on Urban Mobility has been delayed. Unfortunately, the conditions were not appropriate for the adoption of a comprehensive action plan by the Commission before the end of 2008."@en1
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