Rail at the forefront of smart and sustainable mobility – Council adopts conclusions
The Council today adopted conclusions on ‘Putting rail at the forefront of smart and sustainable mobility’. The conclusions express member states’ shared ambitions for rail and provide guidance for several fields of work in this area, ranging from modal shift to investment and connectivity.
Against the background of the European Green Deal, the sustainable and smart mobility strategy and – of course – the European Year of Rail, now is an ideal time for the Council to take stock of efforts to promote railways and make an ambitious political statement on rail. Putting rail at the forefront has been one of the goals of the Portuguese presidency and perfectly reflects EU policy objectives. It is of great importance to me that when we speak about railways in a policy context, we see its value for greener mobility, as well as its contribution to societal and territorial cohesion, and to industrialisation and economic development.
Pedro Nuno Santos, Portuguese Minister for Infrastructure and Housing, President of the Council