How Mobility Management SUITS the promotion of sustainable transport
Changing the organisational attitude and behaviour of local authorities is a vital part of CIVITAS SUITS's work to promote sustainable transport.
Mobility Management (MM) is a concept that promotes sustainable transport and reduces single occupancy car use by changing travellers' attitudes and behaviour.
For CIVITAS SUITS, MM lies at the core of its aims. If cities are to meet the ambitious carbon reduction, accessibility, sustainability and health targets they have been set, they need strong leadership and commitment from a wide range of internal and external stakeholders. This includes both technology providers and designers and users of transport and transport-related services.
Small- and medium-sized cities, which are often working with low budgets and ageing infrastructure, need to be able to judge the compatibility of different transport measures against their city’s current and future needs and understand procurement procedures and financing methods.
SUITS is working hand-in-hand with local authorities in these cities to identify their individual, organisational and institutional capacity gaps. Addressing these needs helps ensure that the appropriate services - based on the latest transport data - will be designed, implemented and maintained effectively. The SUITS Consortium has organised an evaluation workshop for 20th June 2017 to gain insight into existing capacity gaps.
If a local authority chooses to promote sustainable transport for its citizens, its priority should be to change its own organisational attitude and behaviour to reflect this decision. To achieve this, interdepartmental working and the exchange of knowledge and good practices with other small- and medium-sized local authorities are vital. Doing so also builds the capacity of all groups involved. Yet despite the constantly growing knowledge base, the sharing of this expertise remains a challenge that needs to be addressed.
SUITS will develop a suite of learning materials that will be delivered in the form of webinars and online documents. They will be promoted in workshops and at multiplier events. These materials will also feed into SUITS’s efforts to transform stakeholder networks and transport planning departments into knowledge networks through a cycle of organisational change management. Currently, a survey is being conducted to establish the most pressing issues for which cities require capacity building support.
To read an interview with the SUITS project coordinator, Andree Woodcock, visit eltis.org.
