Portugal signed two memorandums of understanding with the European Union body EIT Urban Mobility, and the two main national mobility and road safety authorities for development and innovation.
In a statement, the EIT Urban Mobility, from the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), reported the “reinforced commitment” with Portugal to implement “innovations and solutions that are adaptable and suitable for policy formation and its expansion”.
“The renewal of the memorandum with the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT) and the new memorandum established with the National Road Safety Authority (ANSR) confirm an ambitious joint agenda, aimed at accelerating decarbonization, improving accessibility, reinforcing multimodal integration and making cities more accessible”, reads the note released this Monday, 10.
EIT Urban Mobility – through its Innovation Hub South – will collaborate closely with IMT and ASNR, and together, they will disseminate innovations through events, reports and other communications, also identifying “challenges and synergies between key players, cities and metropolitan areas”.
According to Pedro Ladeira, director of the Road Prevention and Safety Unit, this collaboration represents “a significant step in our shared commitment to promoting sustainable, inclusive and, above all, safe urban mobility solutions in Portugal”.
“By combining ANSR’s national experience in road safety, based on these principles, with the capacity for innovation, and the network, of EIT Urban Mobility, the development and implementation of projects that reinforce safety and improve the quality of urban life for all citizens will be accelerated”, he said.
For his part, João Caetano, president of the Institute of Mobility and Land Transport, recalled that EIT Urban Mobility has been “an active and enthusiastic partner of IMT in promoting cutting-edge innovations in terms of mobility”.
The collaboration aims to promote “relevant initiatives and pilot projects”, then supporting their implementation, also looking for “opportunities for partnerships, joint ventures, or new areas of expansion”, reinforcing the role of both parties in the mobility ecosystem and increasing visibility among potential partners.
Since its creation in 2021, EIT Urban Mobility has supported and financed more than 50 different projects in Portugal and invested more than 3 million euros in the country in innovation and education for sustainable mobility.
The agreements were signed at the Tomorrow Mobility World Congress, which took place between November 4th and 6th, in Barcelona, and brought together world experts in urban mobility to discuss and shape the future of sustainable transport.