Wuppertal Institute scores 13 cities: Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Oslo rank highest

In a recent report, the Wuppertal Institute compared 13 European cities, based on their performance in urban mobility.

Based on 21 indicators, the Institute assessed the cities on public transport, active mobility, road safety, air quality and mobility management.

The report ‘Living. Moving. Breathing’ covers Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels, Budapest, Copenhagen, London, Madrid, Moscow, Oslo, Paris, Rome, Vienna and Zurich. The Danish capital Copenhagen came out on top. 

As a starting point, the researchers state that efficient transport systems make urban areas competitive and that 'they provided access to jobs, education and health care'. The increasing demand for motorised transport creates a situation that is not sustainable, including congestion, increased travel times, air pollution, noise and road accidents.

According to the Wuppertal Institute, the report confirms that sustainable urban mobility requires strong political will, a change in political mindset about motorisation and ‘the complete buy-in from policy-makers'.

The report also concluded that:

• many European cities struggle to provide reasonable air quality;
• public transport can be made attractive by incorporating technology for scheduling trips and purchasing tickets;
• safer conditions for cycling will encourage cycling in cities;
• a strong parking policy and the right parking pricing can act as a deterrent for car use;
• to increase walking and cycling shares in cities, active mobility must be integrated with public transport;
• all cities in the ranking were making efforts and so they should share their good practices with other, less advanced and less ambitious counterparts.

The report is available here.