European Investment Bank to throw weight behind active mobility

The European Investment Bank has this month released a policy document on lending for transport projects that throws its full weight behind providing cash for sustainable city developments, including promoting cycling as a key future transport form.

Acknowledging the difficult to digest mathematics of 80% of Europeans (and near 70% of the global population) likely to live in cities by 2050, the document details the challenges of maintaining the status quo, proposing instead innovative ways to overcome the challenge of growth on a finite resource.

A comparably ancient technology against the EV cars and other ideas referenced, cycling is supported as an area that makes sense to invest in in order to reduce pollution, congestion and broader concerns on climate, as well as develop a social environment.

“The European Commission’s policy priorities concerning urban mobility are the promotion of the shift from individual car use to public and collective transport, walking and cycling and the adoption of zero-emission transport technologies for the decarbonisation of public fleets, with the development of related infrastructure,” writes the document under the Urban Mobility subhead.

Critically, the subject of efficient land use comes up repeatedly in the document, which is peppered with acknowledgments that urban sprawl has its limits.

“The European Investment Bank will take into account both land use and transport strategies in its project appraisal. Approved sustainable urban mobility plans and land use master plans or equivalent are a prerequisite for support,” writes the paper.

As pointed out by Cycling Industries Europe’ CEO Kevin Mayne prior to and at Eurobike, cycling has a major lure for investors in value for money terms versus other projects with higher upfront capex costs, largely because the infrastructure cost is both cheap and largely already in place ready for mass adaptation and subsequent adoption.

“To complement collective transport projects, the European Investment Bank will prioritise investments in assets supporting active mobility modes, such as walking and cycling. Due to their relatively small investment size, these are usually bundled with other transport schemes in comprehensive urban or regional development programmes and justified in that context. Although urban areas provide the greatest potential for walking and cycling, priority will also be given to regional and interurban active mobility projects, including stand-alone projects or as part of a wider programme. The EIB will also prioritise support for investments in the development of zero direct emission vehicle sharing services, to foster efficiency in the use of space and vehicles,” suggests the policy paper.

Climate adaptation and transport equality

Referencing the EU Joint Research Centre’s work on damage to critical transport infrastructure that is already happening down to the changes in our climate, the forecast is that six-fold the damage may be done by 2050. That means that a certain level of resilience is required in planning, with priority given to transport forms that most reduce the propensity for further and enhanced negative environmental impacts.

“The negative climate, environmental, safety and congestion externalities of transport as well as its unequal availability to users have reached unacceptable levels,” says the executive summary, adding that transport remains the only sector of the economy where emissions continue to grow unabated, while KSI rates are of “pandemic proportions”.

The European Union’s pledge to meet climate neutrality by 2050 has seen multiple lines of policy and investment progress made both directly and indirectly feeding into cycling’s chances of advancing as a transport form. Investors, drawn in by the electrification of the product, as well as the health and transport trends, have been piling into to businesses in recent years and enjoying the kudos of a perceived green investment. A further explainer of the trend of investment can be found in our interview with the ‘bike bankers’ at Baird.