UPDATE: Urban mobility can be supported by the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIFs) in accordance to the following objectives and articles:

• Thematic Objective  7 ‘Sustainable transport’ aims at promoting sustainable transport and removing bottlenecks by investing in TEN-T, environment-friendly and low-carbon transport systems and interoperable railway systems;
• Thematic Objective 4 ‘Low-carbon economy’ aims at supporting a shift towards a low-carbon economy by promoting low-carbon strategies, incl. sustainable urban mobility;
• Article 7 of the EBRD regulation also foresees support to sustainable urban development through strategies for integrated action.

Over 2007-2013, €7.9 bn were spent from the ESIFs on urban mobility. For 2014-2020, the Commission expects a minimum of €12 bn to be spent, representing an increase of 40 per cent compared to the previous financing period.

24 EU member states are benefiting, including all 15 cohesion countries.

The ESIFs are managed in a decentralised way: the Commission and the member states develop partnership agreements on national level and operational programmes on regional level. The funds are then managed by a specific managing authority in each member state. In addition, cities can spend directly 5 per cent of the funds on urban development.

For sound delivery, the Commission advises cities to make use of technical assistance tools such as JASPERS and ELENA, to use opportunities for peer-to-peer exchange such as the Covenant of Mayors and CIVITAS, to work across administrative boundaries and national borders and to use a Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan to set an integrated strategic frame to their urban mobility projects.

Cities should contact the managing authority in their country to find out about the concrete opportunities in the region in which they are located.

For more information visit:

• ESIF portal
• EC regional policy
• Managing authorities
• Thematic guidance fiche on sustainable multimodal urban mobility
• Thematic guidance fiche on transport

The fi-compass platform is designed to support ESIF managing authorities, EaSI microfinance providers and other interested parties, by providing practical know-how and learning tools on financial instruments, will progressively become the knowledge hub for ESIF financial instruments.