European Rural Mobility Network meeting: Rural Pact adds value to addressing rural mobility challenges
- Rural Pact
- Rural Revitalisation Platform
- Connected rural areas
- Transport and mobility
- Infrastructure
The Rural Pact contributes to addressing rural mobility issues by bringing together and enabling collaboration among relevant stakeholders working in various policy areas, such as tourism, health, education, and housing. Rural Pact Support Office (RPSO) Team Leader Pascale Van Doren highlighted the added value of the Pact at the fifth meeting of the European Rural Mobility Network of 14-16 May 2024 in Èvora, Portugal.
The event, organised by the SMARTA-NET project, emphasised the added value of instruments such as Smart Villages and the Rural Pact that raise awareness of rural mobility issues at various governance levels and support communities in identifying practical solutions. It empowered participants to advocate for rural mobility issues and drive positive change in their communities by exploring innovative approaches, exchanging best practices, and identifying relevant funding mechanisms.
The event outlined the main pillars of the European Commission’s policy on rural mobility, including the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy which recognises the need to improve rural and remote areas’ connectivity and foster a just transition towards sustainable mobility. Other recent Commission initiatives include the revised Regulation for the development of the trans-European transport network (TEN-T), digital mobility initiatives (such as ‘Mobility as a Service’), and EU projects such as SMARTA and SMARTA2, Interreg’s MAMBA, LAST-MILE, and RUMOBIL.
RPSO Team Leader Ms. Van Doren contributed to the interactive discussion on the Rural Pact and Smart Villages, providing insights on how to apply these EU concepts and initiatives in practice on the basis of local integrated approaches.
SMARTA-NET is an EU-funded project that works to promote sustainable and resilient mobility connections between rural and remote areas, and urban areas, taking into account the need to support ecotourism.
Explore the latest Rural Pact resources on rural mobility, join the dedicated online community group and look out for the outcomes of our upcoming Good Practice Webinar 'Enhancing rural mobility through local action'.