SMARTA-NET: Rural Proofing Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs)

The SMARTA-NET project has developed a guidance document to help embed rural mobility considerations within Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs). This approach, known as “rural proofing,” ensures mobility planning systematically reflects the needs and travel realities of people living, working or visiting both urban and rural areas. By adapting the established four-phase, twelve-step SUMP framework, SMARTA-NET provides a practical toolkit for integrating rural needs into local, regional and national mobility planning. Supported by extensive European training and consultation, the guidance document helps bridge longstanding gaps between urban and rural mobility planning, promoting greater territorial cohesion and equitable access to services.

Context

Rural mobility challenges in Europe

Across Europe, rural and peri-urban areas continue to face persistent accessibility challenges due to limited mobility options, declining public transport services and a high dependency on private cars. Rural territories cover 80% of the EU’s area and are home to around 30% of its citizens. However, most SUMPs have traditionally focused on dense urban centres. As a result, the needs of rural and peri-urban communities, often dependent on services located in cities, have been consistently underrepresented in mobility planning.

A shift in EU policy priorities

Recognising this imbalance, EU policy has placed stronger emphasis on improving connections between urban areas and the wider territories that rely on them. The Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, the Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas, and the revised TEN-T Regulation all encourage planning approached that extend beyond city boundaries. These policies reflect a growing consensus that sustainable mobility must address real-life travel patterns, economic interdependencies and social inclusion objectives across the broader territory. In other words, rural areas should be considered as an extension of the sub-urban transport network.

The SMARTA-NET project

In this policy environment, the SMARTA-NET project (Sustainable Rural Mobility for Resilience in Support of Ecotourism) created targeted guidance titled “Integrating Rural Mobility Aspects in SUMP Design – Rural Proofing SUMPs.” The guidance document defines rural proofing as a systematic process for evaluating the impacts of urban mobility measures on rural territories and ensuring that the contribution of rural areas to overall mobility objectives is recognised and harnessed.

The development of the guidance document was highly participatory. Local and regional authorities, national SUMP experts, transport practitioners and members of the European Rural Mobility Network (ERMN) contributed through interviews, public consultations and thematic focus groups. These inputs helped identify common barriers to rural inclusion, such as weak governance coordination, limited funding capacity, and insufficient rural data.

SMARTA-NET’s guidance document translates this knowledge into a practical, adaptable toolkit aimed at transport practitioners. It proposes tools for rural-oriented data collection, participatory planning processes, and monitoring mechanisms that reflect rural realities. The guidance document does not offer a one-size-fits-all model; instead, it provides flexible recommendations suited to varied territorial contexts and institutional capacities. The approach responds to a growing European need for mobility systems that reduce inequalities and promote sustainable development throughout Europe’s diverse regions.

In action

The SMARTA-NET guidance document proposes a more inclusive sustainable urban mobility planning approach that recognises the interdependence between urban and rural areas. Its central concept, rural proofing, allows planners to systematically assess how proposed mobility policies and measures affect rural and peri-urban communities throughout the SUMP cycle. 

The approach adapts each of the four SUMP phases into twelve steps, tailored to the specific characteristics of rural areas.

Phase 1: Preparation & Analysis

During the preparation phase, planners are encouraged to map travel patterns that cross municipal boundaries, understand the needs of major trip-generating sectors relevant for rural areas, and engage hard-to-reach stakeholders such as rural citizens, schools, healthcare providers and tourism operators. Practical tools are suggested to assess accessibility, such as rural-sensitive indicators developed for the Irish Rural Town Mobility Index (see Figure 1), rural mobility surveys, and the use of mobile or open data to capture travel demand beyond city centres.

Figure 1. Rural-sensitive indicators used in the Rural Town Mobility Index. Ireland, 2022

Phase 2: Strategy Development

In the strategy development phase, the guidance document suggests discussing the future vision considering the urban-rural interactions in a participatory way. Rural stakeholders and community representatives play a crucial role in shaping a shared vision, helping to prevent unintended negative impacts on rural communities. A co-design process also fosters inclusivity and sense of ownership. 

The guidance document emphasises the importance of acknowledging megatrends, such as teleworking, demographic change and climate adaptation, to understand how future societal shifts may influence mobility behaviour. A small set of rural-oriented indicators and targets is recommended, focusing on proxies that measure liveability, accessibility and territorial cohesion.

Phase 3: Measure Planning

During the measure planning phase, the guidance document underscores the need to select and design mobility measures that reflect the distinct needs and limited resources of rural and peri-urban areas. Rural proofing requires rethinking traditional prioritisation criteria to recognise social value, accessibility, territorial cohesion and reductions in transport poverty alongside economic feasibility. This may include developing multimodal pathways, expanding shared mobility and demand-responsive transport, or enhancing cycling networks by reusing rural paths. The guidance document stresses that measures implemented within cities can have significant regional effects, underscoring the need for planners to assess how urban-led interventions influence rural access and mobility behaviour.

Phase 4: Implementation and Monitoring

During the implementation and monitoring phase, the guidance document focuses on ensuring that measures benefiting rural areas are not sidelined. Involving rural stakeholders in coordination structures helps to encourage collaboration across municipalities to align local projects with objectives beyond the city boundary. 

Procurement may also need to be adapted, for example through longer lead times, local sourcing or joint tenders between rural municipalities, as promoted by the European Rural Mobility Network, particularly in cross-border regions. Monitoring approaches must move beyond urban-centric indicators, drawing instead on rural-sensitive data sets and participatory methods such as citizen science initiatives. Continuous evaluation ensures that lessons feed into subsequent SUMP cycles.

The guidance document was tested and disseminated through the SMARTA-NET training programme in 2024, which provided theoretical instruction and practical exercises in 11 locations across 10 countries. The training programme engaged 169 participants from 13 Member States and 94 organisations among municipalities, counties, provincial councils, mobility area authorities, regions, NGOs and other organisations. Participants applied rural proofing methods to real local contexts and tested scenario planning approaches that reflect megatrends. The participatory structure of the training encouraged peer-to-peer learning and built long-term networks among rural and urban mobility planners.

By the end of 2024, the guidance document had been validated by the European Rural Mobility Network (ERMN) and incorporated into the discussions of the Expert Group on Urban Mobility’s (EGUM), confirming its policy relevance and applicability. It is now recognised as a practical reference for planners seeking to embed rural dimensions into sustainable mobility strategies.

Results

The guidance document has achieved measurable impact through its validation, adoption and early adoption across Europe. Over 90% of the participants in the training programme reported that the material directly improved their understanding of different realities and challenges in mobility as well as rural mobility integration and would inform their future planning activities (see Figure 2).  

Figure 2. Evaluation of added value of the training session

The guidance document has been recognised as a flexible tool adaptable to varied governance systems, supporting municipalities and regions with different institutional capacities. Its structured checklist aligned with the SUMP cycle helps planners identify, evaluate and monitor rural-related actions systematically. Involvement of the European Rural Mobility Network (ERMN) has also strengthened the role of rural stakeholders, and their readiness to participate in mobility planning processes. 

Best practice examples are illustrated in the guidance document. In France, neighbouring municipalities collaborate within regional mobility ‘bassins’, allowing for coordinated planning even where administrative boundaries do not align with mobility patterns. These bassins are designed around functional travel patterns, meaning rural and peri-urban areas often belong to multiple bassins, reflecting their real interconnections with urban centres. When cities develop SUMPs, they must coordinate with their rural hinterlands, integrating transport planning with other sectors (e.g. spatial planning, energy, and tourism), while respecting land use restrictions. The French model also emphasises coordination with regional and national authorities to align local plans with broader infrastructure investments. Finally, it recognises that rural citizens are harder to reach, requiring targeted engagement strategies and careful planning of timing and resources. This approach ensures that SUMPs are operational, inclusive, and aligned with functional mobility patterns and real travel flows rather than strictly administrative boundaries.

Figure 3 French mobility 'bassins'

Similarly, Slovenia’s applies a dual-layer regional framework to ensure that SUMPs properly integrate rural areas and overcome administrative limitations. Firstly, it defines transport regions, which are based on actual traffic flows and represent the commuting zone around one or more central settlements. These regions capture how people really move and form a cohesive functional area for mobility planning. Secondly, Slovenia defines problem-based regions, which cover a wider territory that shares common social or development challenges, often extending well beyond the urban core into rural areas. When preparing regional SUMPs, planners work across both layers: the transport region ensures that core mobility flows are addressed, while the problem-based region makes sure that rural communities facing similar mobility or social issues are included. 

Together, these examples demonstrate how rural proofing can strengthen connectivity, inclusivity and resilience. The guidance document represents an essential step towards a balanced and territorially cohesive mobility system across Europe.

Challenges, opportunities and transferability

Several recurring challenges emerged from the SMARTA-NET research. Administrative fragmentation often limits collaboration between rural and urban authorities, with planning boundaries rarely matching real mobility patterns. Smaller municipalities often face financial and human resource constraints, restricting their ability to engage in complex planning processes. Limited availability of rural data complicates evidence-based decision-making, while cultural reliance on private cars is difficult to shift without credible alternatives.

Despite these issues, the project identified multiple opportunities to overcome these barriers. Scenario planning that accounts for emerging megatrends helps planners anticipate shifts in rural mobility demand. Flexible planning boundaries, as seen in France and Slovenia, enable mobility planning to reflect functional connections rather than administrative limits and encourage collaboration. 

Participatory governance is fundamental. Involving rural residents, businesses, schools, healthcare providers and other local actors enhances SUMPs with local insights and ensures solutions address real mobility needs. Some regions, such as Wallonia (Belgium), have institutionalised rural participation through formal advisory bodies.

Transferability is one of the guidance document’s key strengths. The four-phase, twelve-step framework can be adapted, providing a systematic mechanism for screening SUMPs for rural inclusivity. The successful rollout of the training programme demonstrates that the methodology is both conceptually robust and practically feasible. It offers a replicable pathway toward mobility systems that are more equitable and resilient.

In depth

• SMARTA-NET (2024), Guidance on Integrating Rural Mobility Aspects in SUMP Design – Rural Proofing SUMPs.
  European Commission: https://op.europa.eu/fr/publication-detail/-/publication/b1c858f6-6dc4-11f0-bf4e-01aa75ed71a1/language-en
• SMARTA-NET in-country training - Summary Report on the third module “Sustainable Mobility Planning”: https://www.smarta-net.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SMARTA-NET_3rd-Training-module-Summary-Report-final-version-v2.pdf
• SMARTA-NET project website: https://www.smarta-net.eu/guidance_documents/

Authors: André Freitas, Carla Giaume & Sofia Pechin

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

Photo credits © - SMARTA-NET, lzf, WR7