Race to Zero at UPWr: sustainable transport

• In the year 2000 the European Union presented a definition of sustainable transport.
• What is the link between transport and the living conditions of future generations? - Essentially everything," says Dr Maciej Zathey.
• Habits and limitations, or the love of cars, are only one side of the coin.
• Does the University of Life Sciences have an influence on shaping sustainable transport? Yes - by educating experts who are aware of the challenges of urbanization
• The Wrocław authorities are planning to create a Clean Transport Zone in the city. How do these zones work?

One definition of sustainable transport was formulated by the OECD in 1996, on which work had started two years earlier under the Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) project. According to the definition, sustainable transport is transport that doesn’t endanger public health and meets transport needs according to the principles of using renewable resources below their regenerative capacity and non-renewable resources below the level of development of their renewable substitutes.

The EU’s take on sustainable transport 

In the European Union, a sustainable transport system was first defined in detail in 2000 by a group of experts from the European Commission in the document 'Defining an environmentally sustainable transport system' (this was also the first time that a car-free day was organised under the banner of the EU). This definition was adopted virtually unchanged a year later in the April Resolution of the European Union Committee of Ministers of Transport. According to EC experts, a sustainable transport system is one that ensures accessibility to transport destinations in a safe manner that does not endanger human health and the environment in a way that is equal for the present and future generations; allows it to function efficiently, offers a choice of transport modes and sustains the economy and regional development; reduces emissions and waste within the earth's capacity to absorb them, uses renewable resources in amounts that can be reproduced, uses non-renewable resources in amounts that can be replaced by renewable substitutes, while minimising land use and noise.

Objectives, practice and balance

Dr. Maciej Zathey, from the Department of Socio-Economic Studies at the Institute of Spatial Management of the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, head of the Institute of Territorial Development, a unit subordinate to the self-government of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, when asked what the average citizen knows about sustainable transport, says frankly: – Not much.

And he adds straight away that ignorance is caused, among others, by the fact that at the level of science there is no clarity as to what sustainable development means. – The word sustainable means sustaining the conditions for life and functioning of the economy from the point of view of availability of resources, and thus building sustainability and stability not only for us, but first and foremost for the next generations – explains Dr. Zathey, and referring to the definition adopted in the April Resolution of the EU Commission of Ministers of Transport, he doesn’t hide the fact that practice is still different from the accepted assumptions. We are still dealing with transport systems that consume non-renewable and renewable resources rather than paying attention to their balancing. This means that there is still a high level of motorisation, which is based primarily on fossil fuels.

– And here, of course, he raises the argument of the benefits of electromobility – we don’t consume fossil fuels in the form of hydrocarbons and we don’t emit carbon dioxide by driving an electric car. It's just that in the case of Poland, electricity is still mostly derived from fossil fuels. The exhaust pipe of an 'electric car' is therefore not in the car, but in the power plant. Other doubts relate to the acquisition of rare earth elements and metals, which are necessary for the production of complex devices, including batteries, and then the management of these devices – says the head of the Institute for Territorial Development, emphasising that in his opinion we can talk about sustainable mobility when there is a balance between the circulation of materials and energy. And he mentions the bicycle as a great example of such mobility.

The power of habits and constraints

Dr. Maciej Zathey admits that sustainable transport is determined by limitations. The car is still regarded in Poland as a marker of social standing and material status, and the use of public transport as belonging to students, pensioners and the poor.

– This is half true, although we do indeed have a mental problem with mass transfer to trams or buses. However, there is also a second group of users who choose not to opt for public transport because they simply have no other option. This is the case when someone lives outside a city they need to get to and can’t take the bus because there are no or too few connections. Such choices also apply to people who care for their relatives – says Dr. Zathey adding that another issue relevant to sustainable transport is spatial management, which is often overlooked, although it is crucial here.

– After all, transport, i.e. at least public transport, is closely linked to how we plan our city and housing estates. Spatial planning determines the consequences of migration and transport flows. As long as spatial planning is not integrated into sustainable transport development strategies, we will continue to be condemned to using individual transport. People must have an appropriate offer to use it, and it is difficult to create it in the situation of a dispersed, even chaotic settlement structure today – admits Dr Maciej Zathey.

Professor Jan Kazak from the Division of Spatial Economics and Management commutes to work by bicycle. And he says without hesitation that it is not for show.

– For me it is a functional, comfortable means of transport. And not only for me, because there are more people who come to the university by bike. But I think I can say, not only on my own behalf, that from the perspective of a cyclist it is perfectly clear that the entire space, not only on campus, is organised with drivers in mind. Fortunately, we’re beginning to see efforts that take the needs of cyclists into account, although these are more of an intervention than a systemic approach – says Prof. Kazak.

What can universities do?

The head of the Institute of Territorial Development makes no secret of the fact that the role of a university is to properly educate experts – there is a spatial management degree programme at the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, which touches upon the accessibility of, for example, rural areas and the relationship between rural and urban areas.

– After all, our graduates will be involved in the spatial planning process in different places and in different dimensions. At this stage we need to instil the ideas in them, that they will then put into practice. At the same time, we must be aware that visions alone are not enough, especially if the academic teacher is not setting the right example – admits Dr. Zathey, emphasising that in Europe, in many countries, a system of incentives is being introduced to convince employees of public institutions to change habits related to, for example, public transport or cycling. Such a solution is already applied in Germany by some corporations and public institutions – employees who commute to work by bike receive a symbolic monthly allowance of several dozen euros.

At UPWr, bicycle racks are set up by the campus buildings on Grunwaldzki Square and Biskupin. In March 2023, a bicycle storage room was opened in the main building at Norwida 25, another one was opened in the Geo-Info-Hydro building, setting aside part of the garage for it. A bike storage is also planned for Chełmońskiego Street.

Clean Transport Zone

Sustainable transport and mobility are key to tackling the climate crisis and also to achieving the goals of the European Green Deal. Currently, transport accounts for almost 25 percent of CO₂ emissions in the European Union.

In December 2022, swiatoze.pl reported that Wrocław was the third city, after Kraków and Warsaw, to carry out a study of its car fleet and emissions from road transport. On its basis, recommendations were prepared for shaping the Clean Transport Zone, including entry criteria, which could be created as early as 2025. A Clean Transport Zone is a precisely limited area where specific vehicles cannot enter – there are currently more than 300 such zones in Europe. Polish local authorities can create them from January 2022, based on the amendment to the Electromobility Act. The first such decision was taken by the city council of Krakow – the Clean Transport Zone will coincide with the administrative borders of the city.

Restricting the movement of a relatively small number of vehicles can bring about a significant reduction in harmful emissions from road transport. According to the World Health Organisation, air pollution is responsible for more than 300 000 premature deaths per year in European Union countries. Road transport is the largest source of health-threatening nitrogen oxides, accounting for more than 40 per cent of NOx emissions. Car transport also generates more than 11 percent of fine PM2.5 emissions.

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