Zlati Kamen conference with an emphasis on sustainable mobility
The Zlati Kamen (“Golden Stone”) conference “Future-Ready Municipalities” took place in Ljubljana on 11 February 2020. Particular emphasis was placed on sustainable mobility as an extremely important aspect of the development of cities and municipalities. The conference is Slovenia’s highest-profile meeting in the local government sphere, where representatives of local communities, the business enterprise sector and the government exchange views on development opportunities and good practices. Among those speaking on the development of sustainable mobility at the regional level was RRA LUR director Lilijana Madjar.
The conference began with an address by interim infrastructure minister Alenka Bratušek, who underlined that sustainable mobility is an extremely important component of the development of cities and regions. The focus in this regard needs to be on suitable measures to facilitate the development of mobility that is friendly to pedestrians, cyclists and the users of public transport and other alternative forms of mobility.
Municipalities should plan measures in the light of their needs and include a wide circle of people in their preparation, since only in this way can the quality of life of residents be assured. On the other hand it is the responsibility of every individual to consider alternative forms of transport in order to reduce the number of cars on the road.
RRA LUR director Lilijana Madjar also addressed the conference on the theme of good practice in the development of sustainable mobility in the region. She presented the entire range of activities aimed at ensuring sustainable mobility in the Ljubljana Urban Region, where the interconnection of all 26 municipalities of the region is an extremely important factor. As an example of excellent practice that confirms the findings presented at the conference, she highlighted the process of drafting the Integrated Transport Strategy of the Ljubljana Urban Region, an innovative strategic document based on five pillars: walking and cycling; public transport; motorised traffic; goods traffic and logistics; and integrated transport planning. Great potential has been identified in cycling, P+R hubs and priority lanes for buses, while efforts are also being made to modernise railway infrastructure, construct a Ljubljana railway hub and build a railway link to Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport in Brnik.
Polona Demšar Mitrovič from the Sustainable Mobility Directorate at the Ministry of Infrastructure said that Slovenia tops the list of EU countries in terms of transport spending per household – with the percentage of these costs coming immediately behind housing costs and before food costs. While the use of alternative fuels and e-mobility are important, these measures are not enough and it will also be necessary to reduce the number of cars on the roads, while individual municipalities need to plan measures with regard to their own development priorities.
More on the Zlati Kamen Conference and the conferral of awards: www.planetgv.si/zlati-kamen/
