The municipality of Ljutomer, Slovenia, has been a partner in the URBACT II project Active Travel Network which was launched in 2009 and completed in 2012. Active Travel Network partners were looking to encourage Active Travel in cities as appropriate means of transport for short trips to tackle environmental problems.
Ljutomer joined the URBACT project Active Travel Network in search of solutions to local traffic problems caused by high levels of car-use: The Municipality also faced a host of related challenges: shop owners were demanding more car parks to improve city centre access; the city centre faced decay as shops and people moved out; citizens saw walking and cycling as leisure activities, rather than as a means of transport; pedestrians and cyclists were not given enough priority, on the roads or in planning decisions; pedestrians were endangered by poor infrastructure; public transport needed improvement; and, finally, increasing energy costs were making motorised travel expensive.
It was time to improve unhealthy travel habits, raise public transport use, create good conditions for walking and cycling, and promote active, high quality lifestyles…
A post was dedicated to the Active Travel Network’s goals and achievements on this blog in 2012. This video presents the project and its outcomes in Ljutomer – positive outcomes, as the pictures above testifies: Ljutomer was a finalist for the European Commission’s Sustainable Mobility Award 2012!
