A new study by a coalition of non-governmental organizations called the Clean Cities Campaign analyzed 36 European cities to see if they are on track to achieving pollution-free mobility before 2030. The coalition looked at factors such as road safety for pedestrians, access to climate-friendly transportation, and air quality.
While the progress needed to reach this goal is still lacking, there are a few cities that have risen above the rest. The research has named Oslo the most progressive in terms of getting rid of mobility emissions, followed by Amsterdam and Helsinki. On the other side of the spectrum, Naples and Krakow had the lowest rankings, partly due to congestion.
“Cities are where emissions are mostly concentrated,” explained the director of the Clean Cities Campaign Barbara Stoll. “If we want to do something about climate change, we have to tackle it through the city lens.”
According to the European Commission, urban spaces are responsible for over a fifth of all transport greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union. Hopefully, the release of this new study will be a wake-up call for the 424 major cities that are, under the Urban Mobility Framework that the European Commission laid out in December, required to adopt sustainability plans that promote cleaner transport in order to cut greenhouse emissions and meet climate neutrality by the middle of the century.
