Road to Urban Mobility Days 2025: perspectives from POLIS and Eurocities

As preparations continue for Urban Mobility Days 2025 in Vilnius, two of Europe’s leading city networks – POLIS and Eurocities – shared their perspectives on why this event is crucial for local governments, and how it can shape the future of sustainable mobility across Europe.

Q. Can you please introduce yourself and your role?

Ivo Cré (POLIS):

My name is Ivo, Director Policy & Projects at POLIS. In this capacity, I oversee the network’s participation in Research and Innovation projects. I also coordinate POLIS’ advocacy activities, engaging with European institutions and other stakeholders to promote sustainable urban mobility policies that meet the needs of our 120 member cities and regions.

Peter Staelens (Eurocities):

My name is Peter Staelens, and I am Head of Mobility at Eurocities. I lead our committed mobility team working with Eurocities members on a daily basis, coordinating our engagement in EU-funded mobility projects and following closely our advocacy work on relevant EU policies. My role is about connecting cities with each other, with EU institutions, and relevant project partners, to make sure local experiences help shaping Europe’s urban mobility agenda.

Q. Why is Urban Mobility Days 2025 a key event for your member cities?

Ivo Cré: 

Direct engagement with European institutions: Urban Mobility Days is one of the most important moments for cities to engage directly with the European Commission, Parliament, and other key stakeholders, ensuring their priorities are heard at EU level.

Debating the EU policy agenda: It is an opportunity to discuss current and upcoming European policies affecting cities, such as the TEN-T Regulation, the ITS Directive, AFIR, and the EU Cycling Strategy – all POLIS policy priorities.

Fostering a European perspective: The event brings city representatives together, reminding everyone that urban mobility challenges transcend national borders and require a truly European approach to find effective solutions.

Peter Staelens: 

For our cities, UMD is the moment where local political priorities meet the EU agenda. Like every year, Eurocities – together with ICLEI – organises the CIVITAS Politicians Exchange Forum which we will host on the opening day of Urban Mobility Days 2025. This year we will focus on how cities can drive both sustainability and competitiveness, looking at procurement rules, regulatory frameworks, and investment in clean and digital mobility. This is a crucial and timely discussion, giving cities direct access to European decision-makers and peers to share their return on experience on the matters and see how we can match innovation, competitiveness and sustainability. 

Beyond the political debate, the event is also a great occasion for deputy mayors and city practitioners to share their own policies, best practices and solutions. We have worked closely with the European Commission to make sure that cities are well represented in the programme and get the chance to participate in the important discussions that will take place in Vilnius. 

Q. What opportunities does UMD offer for cities to learn from each other and showcase their own best practices?

Ivo Cré: 

Policy-focused panels: These sessions enable cities to understand how their local challenges and solutions connect to the European policy framework, helping them anticipate regulatory developments and align their strategies accordingly.

Technical and innovation panels: Cities can explore emerging innovations and technologies that will shape urban mobility in the coming years, from digitalisation and automation to new mobility services, preparing them for future transitions.

Exhibition area: The exhibition offers a unique space to discover EU-funded projects under Horizon Europe and, for the first time, Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) initiatives. This provides cities with concrete examples of best practices and potential opportunities for participation.

Q. How does this year’s focus on urban nodes, cycling, and public transport align with the challenges and ambitions of your members?

Ivo Cré: 

Directly relevant to members’ priorities: The 2025 themes are closely aligned with the main challenges POLIS members face.

Urban nodes on the TEN-T: Both POLIS city and regional members are designated as urban nodes and therefore must address complex governance and funding challenges, as well as comply with TEN-T requirements such as Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs) and Urban Mobility Indicators (UMIs). Urban Mobility Days offers an opportunity to understand what the European Commission expects and how to meet these obligations.

Public transport leadership: Our members are responsible for planning, procuring, and managing public transport networks, including the decarbonisation of bus fleets and the integration of new mobility services. UMD will be a key occasion to exchange knowledge on the current EU state of play and future policy directions.

Peter Staelens: 

The focus of UMD 2025 couldn’t be more relevant for our members. The urban nodes day will highlight their strategic role in the TEN-T network, from enabling multimodal and interregional travel to managing freight flows. It will also give cities clarity on new legal obligations under the revised TEN-T Regulation and showcase cooperation models and good practices for multi-level governance and cross-border cooperation.

Cycling is gaining momentum across Europe as a key solution for cleaner, healthier, and more competitive cities. It reduces emissions, eases congestion, improves public health, and makes urban mobility more affordable and resilient. The cycling plenary will take stock of the EU Cycling Declaration, drawing on the work of the Expert Group on Urban Mobility sub-group on cycling, which Eurocities co-leads with the European Cyclists' Federation. Participants will hear how cycling is being mainstreamed across levels of governance, and why it is central not only to sustainable urban mobility but also to Europe’s sustainability goals. Our cities have also been significantly involved in collecting cycling data to help the European Commission better understand the current state of cycling across the EU, with the results of the Cycling Counts study to be presented during the Urban Mobility Days.

And public transport, the backbone of urban mobility, will be in the spotlight with our Secretary General André Sobczak presenting the findings of the Eurocities Pulse Mayors Survey on PT. The study “takes the pulse” of our mayors on the state of public transport in their cities, asking them questions about their top challenges, top priorities, and what actions they are working on. 

The event will also be a crucial occasion to discuss the new EU agenda for cities, the new EU strategy on urban affairs which we expect in the coming months. A crucial milestone for cities as EU decision-makers are discussing the future EU budget. Lars Strömgren, Stockholm Vice Mayor – Eurocities Shadow Commissioner for Mobility and Mobility Forum Chair –  will contribute to the discussion in the session Urban mobility and public transport at the core of the new EU agenda for cities (2 October, 11:30-12:45), a must for all the city representatives attending the event.

Overall, this year’s themes mirror the daily ambitions and challenges of city administrations across our network, making the focus of UMD 2025 especially relevant.

Q. In your view, how can UMD help cities strengthen collaboration with European institutions, industry, and other stakeholders?

Ivo Cré: 

Urban Mobility Days provides a rare and valuable opportunity for structured and informal interaction between cities, European institutions, industry representatives, and civil society:

Multi-stakeholder dialogue: The panel discussions are designed to bring together different perspectives, encouraging constructive debate and shared understanding.

Networking opportunities: Ample time is dedicated to informal networking, enabling participants to build new partnerships and strengthen existing collaborations.

Exhibition as a focal point: The exhibition space serves as a catalyst for exchange, connecting city representatives with innovative projects, solutions, and potential partners.

Peter Staelens: 

UMD stands out because it brings all the key actors together - cities, the European Commission, industry, and innovators - around the same table. It is a great opportunity for political representatives, EU officials, city practitioners and private partners to engage directly on the future of urban mobility. The Politicians Exchange Forum is a prime example: it creates a space where political leaders and the Commission can discuss competitiveness and regulation, while also connecting with start-ups, scale-ups and SMEs that are driving innovation on the ground.

Q. Looking ahead, what impact do you hope Urban Mobility Days 2025 will have on the future of sustainable urban mobility in Europe?

Ivo Cré: 

Urban Mobility Days 2025 comes at a crucial moment in shaping the EU’s urban mobility policy. The key legislative framework has now been adopted, and the focus must shift towards implementation:

From policy to practice: Cities need support to translate EU requirements into action, with access to knowledge, guidance, and practical tools.

Cooperation and capacity-building: The event will help define models for cooperation between cities, regions, Member States, and EU institutions, ensuring an integrated approach to implementation.

Securing funding: With the ongoing discussions on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), Urban Mobility Days is an opportunity to make the case for sustained EU investment in sustainable urban mobility, ensuring cities can deliver on European climate and mobility goals.

Peter Staelens: 

I hope UMD 2025 will provide cities with tangible tools to move from pilots to deployment, and from ambition to implementation. UMD is a key milestone to assess how EU initiatives for urban mobility are progressing and what real impact they are having in cities. If the discussions on procurement, funding frameworks, and EU competitiveness strategies translate into more enabling conditions for cities, then the impact will be lasting. On a more immediate level, I hope participants leave Vilnius inspired by what peers are doing, whether it’s new approaches to cycle logistics, inclusive public transport, or integrated land-use and mobility planning. If UMD can accelerate that peer learning and successfully provide a platform for cities to exchange with the EU institutions, it will have achieved its purpose.

Find out more about Urban Mobility Days here.

Author: Sara Mecatti

Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of the European Commission.