PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The idea for such an undertaking arose from a supposition: Europeans are very worried about pollution and urban mobility. In towns many people complain of the poor quality of life: air pollution, noise pollution, overcrowding, etc. And yet, the number of cars is increasing... The overall aim of the "In town without my car!" campaign was to encourage public awareness of the need to act against pollution caused by the increase in motorised traffic in the urban environment. In fact, it was not just about fighting atmospheric pollution or noise but also improving the quality of urban life. Following on from the success of an "In town without my car!" operation launched in France in 1998, and capitalising on the experience of other European cities, the target of the project was to create a Europe-wide day on the theme "In town, without my car !" in 2000, financed by national authorities and local communities. This initiative would contribute to the integration of environmental considerations into transport policies, in keeping with EU policies in this area, in particular the Air Quality and Noise Directives. A pilot project was carried out in 1999 in a small number of volunteer cities, primarily in the project partner countries. This initial operation was a test, providing feedback for the main operation in 2000. A number of indicators were defined to evaluate the pilot project, e.g. city residents' level of satisfaction, air pollution levels, measurement of traffic and noise levels. On the basis of this assessment, the theme day for 2000 was launched at a major European seminar. The project partners undertook consultation with the EU member countries with a view to organising the European-wide day for 22 September 2000.
OBJECTIVES
The objective of the project was to organise a European day "In town without my car" on 22 September 2000. The initiative was centred on three types of measures, designed to: - encourage the use of alternative forms of transport and travel other than private cars; - raise awareness and inform city-dwellers of what is at stake so far as concerns long-term mobility in towns and the risks connected with pollution, and; - show the town in another light thanks in particular to reduced motorised traffic within restricted areas. A European charter was drawn up presenting the " terms of reference ". A register of initiatives listed the main voluntary actions to be undertaken. These documents could then be deployed country by country, and then city by city. The "In town, without my car !" day would oblige the participating cities to establish a time slot, set aside a zone for two-wheeled vehicles, clean cars and above all public transport, and make the required adjustments to traffic patterns. A generic set of European communication tools were to be developed and made available to cities in 1999.
RESULTS
The "In town without my car!" European day on the 22nd September 2000 was a success. It involved average sized towns but also regional and national capitals, thus enabling millions of people (estimated 70 million) to be reached. In around ten countries more than a quarter of the national population was invited to take part in the event: the 215 Spanish towns hold the record, representing over 45% of the national population and the Irish day, with only five participating towns, nevertheless involved 40% of the country's inhabitants. An opinion survey conducted in 6 European towns showed that 81% of the participants thought that the operation was a good idea and that 82% would like to see it repeated. It was therefore an initiative which corresponded to citizens' expectations and which accordingly showed their concerns over issues of pollution and the quality of urban life. New themes such as car sharing were promoted. This mode of travel - which consists of several people joining together to make the same journey, for example between home and work - was still not very widespread and sometimes appears to be difficult to put into practice. So, in several towns, special car parks were made available, often free of charge, to encourage the use of car sharing and at the same time information was given out and new measures put forward such as specific car parks serving as a meeting point for drivers and passengers. Almost everywhere, the day provided an opportunity to announce and introduce sometimes important permanent measures: new bus routes, dedicated lanes, cycle lanes, pedestrian zones, bicycle parks or car parks for car sharing, a programme for accessibility by people with reduced mobility, etc. "In town without my car!" was a time like no other to allow the inhabitants to rediscover their town and reclaim their streets. The majority of districts organised cultural, sporting or business events to make the day a convivial and special occasion encouraging inhabitants to rediscover their towns and their heritage. Several towns put on special commercial events so as to ensure that the restricted area was busy and there were plenty of customers, thereby getting more support from tradesmen who are often the most hostile to the operation. Generally speaking, the towns that involved the shopkeeping community very early on in organising the day were also those that gained the most support from them. Public transport undoubtedly holds the trump cards for creating new behaviour: the infrastructures and routes vary considerably between towns and countries; habits too, even if they sometimes derive from occasional practices. The "In town without my car!" operation was therefore an excellent opportunity to put public transport back in the news. On the 22nd September 2000, several types of actions took place almost everywhere centred on public transport, which showed how important it is when one can envisage travelling around a city that is not so dominated by private cars. Moreover their success was undeniable, as was walking or cycling. Over the last few years atmospheric pollution has become one of the main environmental concerns of Europeans whilst motor traffic is seen as the number one disturbance to their living conditions. It causes an overall deterioration in their quality of life whether from noise, air pollution and more stress connected with too much traffic, the risk of accidents, etc. Taking part in the "In town without my car!" day meant making arrangements to measure the air quality within the restricted area, if possible in several places, but also in the immediate periphery and the major trunk roads outside. On that day, within the restricted areas some types of emissions (CO, NOx) were considerably reduced although such an assertion hides great disparities. In fact, the built-up areas were the most difficult for proving the impact of the day as the traffic remained heavy on the periphery. Moreover, an area that is heavily polluted cannot disappear in a single day. Limiting or indeed abolishing road traffic in the town centre has a strong impact on noise: it is a phenomenon that is confirmed everywhere where measures have been recorded. The traffic creates a background of noise that drowns out other noises in the town. Thus, although the measurements showed a reduction of around only 3 dB (A) in the restricted area, this was festive hustle and bustle and it was the passers-by who were responsible for the noise and not the cars! The inhabitants were very often aware of the "absence" of noise and the long intervals of silence broken only by urban public transport passing by. The average reduction recorded is around 5 dB (A), which represents a reduction of almost half the noise level and is therefore sufficient enough to give the inhabitants a feeling of unaccustomed ease. The "In town without my car!" day offered the population a genuine educational dimension. It was designed to be an important time for getting across information about the town environment and long-term mobility. The majority of towns set up information stands around the restricted area or various documents on the matter were available or they organised exhibitions and round tables to draw attention to the issues connected with travel and mobility. Several exhibitions also took as their theme the least polluting vehicles, with demonstrations of electric cars whilst pamphlets and leaflets to encourage the use of public transport were handed out in great numbers. The idea behind the "In town without my car" event has proved to be very popular and it's fame has spread quickly. The project has prompted repeat performances involving more countries and locations each time. A car free day is now an integral part of a European Mobility Week, which was organised for the first time from 16 to 22 September 2002 in Brussels and in 320 other towns throughout Europe. The mobility week was repeated on the same dates in 2003, and the theme chosen was accessibility, as a contribution to the European Year of Persons with Disabilities. Dedicated to sustainable mobility, a wide range of initiatives tackling different aspects of urban mobility and accessibility were carried out on each day of the week in partnership with local organisations and associations. According to a report featured in the LIFE Focus publication, "The air we breathe" (2005), the success of the EU Day "In town, without my car!" led to the launch of the European Mobility Week, with the support of the European Commission's DG Environment on 19 April 2002 in Brussels (during Green Week) by the then Commissioner for the Environment Mrs. Margot Wallström and other stakeholders. The event was also supported by large companies such as the EU railroad companies, EU associations for the handicapped, for road safety, just to name a few. In 2002, the European Mobility Week succeeded in establishing itself as a truly European initiative with 320 cities from 21 countries participating. Following this, a second edition was organised in September 2003. Held from 16 to 22 September 2003, this consisted of a week-long series of awareness-raising events focusing on various aspects of sustainable mobility. The 2004 European Mobility Week was organised on the same dates (16 to 22 September), taking the 2004 theme of: "Safe streets for Children". To summarise, this LIFE-initiated EU day continues not only in Europe, but the rest of the world is catching up: the United Nations is now participating and the initiative is spreading worldwide, with Colombia and Argentina taking the lead.
