Last Friday, Gil Durand and Benoît July from Le Soir interviewed the experts: André Simonart and Diego Eggermont. Here is what they suggest to reduce car dependency and promote sustainable alternatives to car in Wallonia.
📉 CO2 Emissions: Road transport accounts for 25% of greenhouse gas emissions in Wallonia. Goal: reduce CO2 emissions by 47% by 2030. 🌍
🗣️ André Simonart: “The key is support. You’re not going to convince someone to give up their car just by writing a report.” 💼🔑
🚌 Public Transport: Increase the modal share to 25% by 2030 (compared to 13% in 2017). TEC receives an annual allocation of one billion euros to improve service and green the fleet. 🚄
🗣️ André Simonart: “It's important to question the automatic choice of the car for every trip and consider alternatives like trains, shared cars, or cycling.”
🗣️ Diego Eggermont: “ There is no single mode of transport that can replace the car for everything. For some people, what they need is a basket of solutions that allows them, depending on the moment or in combination, to replace the car.” 🚶♂️🚲
🚴♀️ Cycling: Quintuple the use of bicycles by 2030. Currently, only 2.4% of Walloons cycle to work, compared to 20% in Flanders. 🔧
🗣️ André Simonart: "Get people on a bike, with a reasonable target, a few days a year when the weather's good, during holiday periods and with a suitable itinerary... if it works, then the momentum is there. Cycling quickly becomes addictive... Companies also need to do their bit, such as providing secure parking, showers, etc."
👥 Carpooling: Initiatives like those of Laetitia Van Calsteren in Nivelles show that carpooling can be a viable solution with workshops and working groups to test interest. 🚗💬
🗣️ André Simonart: “The car is undeniably part of mobility, but that doesn't mean it has to be “all about the car”. There's always that brake of it's the car ‘or’; but in fact, the solution is the car ‘and’. We always expect politicians to do things - and that's legitimate - but when something is available, like the mobility budget, we have to use it."
🚗 Car Sharing can help reduce car usage without eliminating it entirely, and car sharing, initially designed for big cities, is now thriving in smaller urban centres.
🗣️ Frédéric Van Malleghem: "It may seem paradoxical, but our service is developing very well in small towns of between 15,000 and 30,000 inhabitants. Larger towns like Liège and Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve were slow to take off, but are now booming."
In conclusion, alternatives exist, but adoption remains a challenge. To succeed, support in this transition from citizens, companies and organisations is essential. 🌿🚀
I'll come back next week with the latest report from FOD Mobiliteit en Vervoer / SPF Mobilité et Transports regarding commutes. Like and follow to see it.
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