Roadmap towards a new European culture of mobility

Abstract

Everyday mobility differs from place to place, but it can have certain commonalities. It is influenced or even characterised by an array of spatial, social, economic and even cultural conditions. We have, therefore, started from the assumption that mobility itself can be considered as a 'culture' and that in Europe the culture of mobility is currently evolving. In this context, REBALANCE, a Horizon 2020 project, was carried out by 6 participants from 6 European countries until the end of 2022. It aimed to identify the values and culture of future mobility. The project included a foresight exercise aiming at a paradigm shift in transport policy, leading to greater consideration of societal values, which are not fully taken into account in the development of transport policies, and greater alignment with the SDGs.
The project initiated a discussion on the foundations of current transport policy paradigms. By reviewing the present, it mobilised a broad network of experts and stakeholders around new cultures and policies to discuss and converge on a common, more sustainable vision and to design a roadmap for a new transport paradigm. What made REBALANCE original was the massive mobilisation of high-level, multidisciplinary thinkers. The project has drawn on contributions from philosophers, sociologists, social psychologists, geographers and lawyers who have not necessarily been involved in past and current debates on transport research. Their role has been to challenge the precepts of current thinking and the cultural and political decision-making process. REBALANCE also brought together a team of a dozen thinkers and visionaries and 14 high-level transport experts. One of the main outcomes was the creation of a "Manifesto for a New Culture of Mobility".
The aim of REBALANCE was to provide strong support for European public policies on mobility and transport. It began by analysing the evolution of the culture of mobility and then identifying the trends highlighted by the experts. REBALANCE then translated these trends into scenarios and highlighted desired and likely trends. In this way, European decision-makers are better informed about the expectations and hopes of their citizens.  By involving citizens through a survey distributed in several European countries and taking into account the opinions of experts and thinkers, a vision of future mobility has been formulated. This vision is reflected in a manifesto addressed to European decision-makers to be taken into account in their future public policies. The manifesto is supported by a roadmap with concrete actions and deadlines, as well as a guide for the design of infrastructure policies to realise the vision of future mobility that breaks with current and past paradigms. It also highlights the role of communication in shaping the culture of mobility, discusses the concept of public interest and analyses the methods used to evaluate mobility projects in order to suggest ways to better respond to the recommended changes.
The presentation will focus on the roadmap and the guidelines for future European mobility policies. We will describe the methodology used to translate the vision of future mobility identified by REBALANCE and the Manifesto into a roadmap and guide for future European mobility policies. A workshop was organised to bring together a wide range of experts (academics, associations, industry, etc.). We used the Delphi method to validate each stage and to reach a high level of consensus.