Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans

A Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) allows to incorporate all modes of transport into a single integrated and multimodal strategic planning approach for the mobility of people and goods, taking account of energy efficiency and sustainability concerns.

The European Commission has promoted this concept for several years. The Urban Mobility Package, presented in 2013 (available here), included guidelines for local authorities to develop and implement a SUMP. An updated version of the SUMP guidelines was published in 2019.

POLIS is a trusted partner of the European Commission in the promotion of SUMP development in Europe. POLIS is a partner in ELTIS, the online platform set up by the European Commission to spread information about best practices in sustainable urban planning. Furthermore, POLIS has organised two editions of the European Conference on Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans, in 2018 and in 2019.

POLIS is also a partner in several European projects focusing on SUMPs, including INTERREG REFORM and CIVITAS SUMPs-Up. While REFORM focuses on the role of regions in SUMP development, the SUMPs-Up project assists planning authorities in the development and implementation of SUMPs thanks to capacity building and learning activities. The project released three useful manuals that provide guidance on the identification of appropriate SUMP measures. The three manuals – respectively addressed to beginner, intermediate and advanced cities – also contain recommendations, rating systems for priorities of measures, and checklists tailored to each city type.

POLIS members exchange best practices on Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans within the Working Group on Governance.