Titled 'Designing for Real Choice – Infrastructure as an Enabler', the session took place on 17 September 2025, organised by the Active Travel & Health Working Group with support from the Just Transition Taskforce, as part of EUROPEANMOBILITYWEEK celebrations.

The webinar marked the first in a renewed series on transport poverty and mobility justice, building on POLIS’ ongoing efforts since launching its Just Transition Agenda in 2021. The Taskforce has explored topics from urban-rural mobility and EV charging to gender mainstreaming and accessibility, now turning its focus to infrastructure as a driver of equity and choice.

As highlighted in POLIS’ Social Climate Fund policy paper, 'freedom of choice of alternative modes is a tool to fight transport poverty,' and small, targeted local interventions can deliver tangible impacts.

If you wish to watch the full webinar, click here.

Walking as a foundation of mobility

Gabriel Kofam and Judit Rab from BKK Budapest outlined the city’s Walking and Accessibility Strategy, which aims for walking to account for one-fifth of trips by 2030. Using tools like 'pain maps', household travel surveys, street scans, and georeferenced photos, BKK is developing a Walkability Index to systematically assess street-level infrastructure quality, safety, and accessibility. Pedestrian plazas and school street initiatives demonstrate how walking can enhance public life, tourism, and climate resilience.

Lily Scarponi of Transform Transport showcased the UX Mobility Multi-User Walkability Route Planner, a tool combining objective geospatial data with subjective user preferences. By accounting for factors like shade, safety, quietness, and aesthetics, planners can identify where infrastructure improvements will have the greatest impact, emphasising that walkability is defined by quality and experience, not just distance.

Maria Risom Laursen presented findings from Copenhagen’s ELABORATOR Project, highlighting the challenges of reallocating space in the city’s medieval centre. By reducing car parking, reorganising bicycle racks, and monitoring behavioural responses, the city aims to create more comfortable, safe, and equitable pedestrian environments.

Mario Alves of the International Federation of Pedestrians emphasised that walking underpins almost every public transport journey. Studies—including work from the UPPER project) show that most trips to buses, metros, or trains start on foot, with walking often accounting for a significant portion of total journey time. High-quality walking routes extend public transport catchment areas and influence users’ perceptions of accessibility, highlighting the importance of universal design for all people—including children, older adults, women, and people with disabilities.

Key takeaways

The webinar highlighted several key lessons for creating just and inclusive mobility systems:

1. Infrastructure shapes behaviour: safe, accessible, and attractive streets encourage walking and cycling;
2. User experience matters: safety, aesthetics, and comfort are as important as speed;
3. Equity and inclusion are essential: mobility systems must serve all users, not just the 'average' commuter;
4. Small interventions can have large impacts: from school street closures to improved crossings;
5. Cultural and behavioural change is necessary alongside physical infrastructure;
6. Memory and perception influence mobility choices: people often recall walking segments more vividly than time in vehicles.

As closing remarks emphasised, infrastructure should be understood not merely as physical hardware, but as a tool to expand real mobility choices, reduce transport poverty, and build inclusive, sustainable cities.

Read the full report HERE.