POLIS' SMC Platform heads to La Rochelle

This June, POLIS’ Small and Medium-Sized City (SMC) Platform will be convening for the Working Group’s first face-to-face event of 2023.

This two-day event will take place in POLIS member city, La Rochelle (France), where attendees will have the chance to network with fellow POLIS members- and external transport experts- to examine the leading issues for sustainable mobility for SMCs.

POLIS has long championed the central role of SMCs in Europe’s sustainable mobility transition, supporting their capacity as test beds for innovation. The SMC platform provides a unique forum for exchange on the specific challenges these cities face and explore common solutions, while raising political awareness at international level.

The event will combine panel discussions, hands-on workshops, and site visits, including an interactive Data & digitalisation session coordinated in collaboration with POLIS Associate members Open Mobility Foundation and MobilityData.

How can data help better manage shared mobility, optimise related policies and enforce regulations? How can we improve urban deliveries and better manage the curb through digitisation? Which data specifications can be used for what purpose and use case?There are many questions facing SMCs... and many possible answers, we dive in!

The event will also host a project capacity building workshop examining why R&I projects are important for cities and regions, how project consortia are established, and what makes a potentially great proposal.

And a deep dive into active travel, bringing together cities at all stages of the active travel journey to learn, share and examine successful initiatives and how to translate them to different contexts. Kick-starting and advancing active travel infrastructure and services is a key priority for SMCs. Cities are all at different phrases of cycling and pedestrian planning and implementation. This workshop will bring together cities at all stages of the active travel journey to learn, share and examine successful projects and initiatives.

The event follows hot on the heels of last year's SMC meeting in Groningen and Emmen, where POLIS members from Reggio Emilia to Rogaland, Leuven to Payes Loire, cities (and regions) across Europe joined for two days of comprehensive discussion on the key challenges for sustainable mobility in smaller cities and the shared solutions at hand.

Delegates met in 2022 for rigorous exchange on key urban mobility topics.

“Exchanging knowledge and experiences and inspiring each other is central, we have explored our shared mobility ambitions and the challenges we are tackling,” said Philip Broeksma, Vice Mayor of Groningen, told the meeting last year.

POLIS members can register HERE.

About POLIS' SMC Platform

The Small and Medium-Sized Cities (SMC) platform aims to raise the profile of Small and Medium-sized Cities in the EU as living laboratories for transport innovation.

Within the POLIS SMC platform, small and medium-sized cities discuss mobility governance issues that are specific to their size and shape. Through the SMC platform, POLIS aims to raise the profile of smaller cities in the EU as living laboratories for transport innovation. The platform calls upon SMCs to cooperate and exchange knowledge and experiences on a wide range of governance topics.

Find out more HERE.