European Mobility Week: Safe and Healthy with Sustainable mobility

122 German towns and cities to participate in action week from 20 to 22 September

EMW-figures on zebra crossing — **122 German towns, cities and districts to participate in action week 20-22 September**
Source: Umweltbundesamt

Sustainable mobility can promote health and safety. Walking, cycling or using public transport improves mental and physical health and keeps people fit. Low speeds and a traffic system which is geared towards pedestrians and cyclists are all part of greater safety in transportation. European Mobility Week which takes place from 16 to 22 September features citizen actions in towns and cities across Europe where sustainable, and therefore healthier and safer, mobility is practiced.

Dirk Messner, President of the German Environment Agency (UBA), said: “Sustainable mobility is a key to more health, traffic safety and climate protection. Many municipalities present specific approaches during European Mobility Week which are tried and tested together with citizens at the local level. It’s a way for everyone to shape more liveable cities.”

More than 120 cities and districts in Germany are participating in European Mobility Week 2021, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Together with their citizens they are launching a variety of actions putting alternative forms of mobility to the test. Leipzig’s six-lane Promenaden Ring will be car-free for a day and many other activities invite citizens to take a walk or cycle. The city is also looking to set a world record: the world’s largest walking machine parade with people who strap on car-size models made of wood to draw attention to the amount of space taken by private motorized vehicle traffic. The town of St. Ingbert will hold a mass devoted to cycling and cyclists. Wiesbaden will have a car-free block of streets for a day, and Karlstadt is coding bicycles. Bremen will turn a car park into an attractive meeting point, while the city of Erkelenz is calling upon staff in public administration to leave their cars at home during EMW. Participating towns and cities developed a diverse programme of activities which can also be carried out despite strict pandemic-related restrictions. The activities all over Germany will draw attention to sustainable mobility and demonstrate to citizens what is already being done in their hometowns.

Further information

European Mobility Week (EMW) is a European campaign which gives local authorities from all over Europe a chance to raise their residents’ awareness of the topic of sustainable mobility. Measures will be established in the week of 16-22 September 2021 and beyond which will lastingly make local transport more climate and environmentally friendly. Campaigns will be launched in more than 2700 towns and cities across Europe. UBA has been coordinator of EMW since 2016.

European Mobility Week: Safe and Healthy with Sustainable mobility | Umweltbundesamt