Conciliabus: Promoting sustainable mobility, especially of young people and children

By project PROXIMITIES

Published on 20 February 2025

Spain

Cataluña

MANRESA

About this good practice

The practice consist on several activities that allow primary school children to go to their schools by foot, bike, or bus, with volunteer parents or monitors.

The first one is Conciliabus, which is a free service with universal access that can be requested by School Centres and family associations in Manresa, and it is activated with a minimum of five children.
The service has an operating document that entails commitments on the part of the educational community, the participating families, the management entity, the monitors and the City Council.

The second one is the municipal program that provides free bus card for all young people aged 16 to 18 (all Catalan children up to 16 years old can have a free bus card offered by the regional government).

The last one is called "Park and ride" and consist on parking facilities located on the outskirts of the city or near public transportation hubs, to encourage people -especially parents with their kids- to park their cars and use public transport to reach together the urban centre.

Expert opinion

This good practice is an excellent example of specific measures policy makers can take to promote and enhance sustainable mobility in their Municipalities and regions. The good practice is in line with the EU goals, as sustainable mobility is a central pillar of the European Union’s transport and environmental policies, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and make transport systems more efficient and inclusive. The EU defines sustainable mobility as transport that meets the needs of society while minimizing environmental impact, enhancing accessibility, and promoting health and safety. A key framework is the European Green Deal, which sets the ambitious goal of making the EU climate-neutral by 2050. Transport, which accounts for around 25% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions, is a major focus. In support of this, the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, adopted in 2020, outlines 82 initiatives to make transport more digital, efficient, and low-carbon by 2030 and beyond. This good practice puts a specific focus on students and children, aiming to change habits at a young age. It can be transferred to other EU regions.

Magda Michaliková

Works at Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform

Resources needed

Two monitors for every 10 or 12 children.
Involvement of the schools & community.
Some infrastructure is required (bike lanes, wide sidewalks, signaling , parking lots, etc).
The estimated cost of the service for a school year, involving 6 schools, 150 children and covering 10 routes is €55,000.

Evidence of success

It started in 2017 with 2 schools and around 30 students, and now it's being used in 6 schools and more than 150 kids. A clear upward trend is proved. 25 in-depth interviews have been carried out with families: a majority rated the service very positively, outstanding the reconciliation and facilitation of time use as a priority reason for use. They also valued road safety education and autonomy of children. Children pointed out that they arrive at school early and can play with their classmates

Potential for learning or transfer

-Mobility opportunities for social inclusion and cohesion, changing citizens mobility behaviors and habits.
-Improve competitiveness, security and accessibility of public transports also by fostering multi-modal solutions.
-Shared responsibility and community ownership of public spaces, as this practice it’s a bottom up activity, from the family associations to the current city council commitment.
-It could be applied in peripheral territories to enhance soft connections and ecomobility as well as fostering the social bonds of the community and gender equity.