The 1st public consultation on the Nicosia Sustainable Mobility Plan (LMP) was successfully held on 18 May at the University of Cyprus.Citizens and many representatives of stakeholders expressed strong interest and participated with specific positions, proposals and questions.
As the Minister of Transport, Communications and Works, Mr. Yannis Karousosos, stressed while welcoming the event, the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan, which you will repeatedly hear referred to as the SDMP, is the strategic and integrated approach to effectively address the complexity and multimodality of urban transport. Its main objective is to improve accessibility and quality of life, achieving the shift towards sustainable mobility.
As he stressed, both he and the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works actively support the development of Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans for all cities in Cyprus. In particular, the Sustainable Mobility Branch of the Ministry, in cooperation with the local municipalities and bodies, has already prepared respective Plans for the cities of Limassol and Larnaca and is currently preparing Plans for the city of Nicosia, the free district of Famagusta and the National Strategic Land Transport Plan, while the corresponding one for the city of Paphos will soon be announced.
Referring specifically to Nicosia, the Minister said that, unlike other urban areas, a similar plan known as the Nicosia Integrated Mobility Plan had been prepared as early as 2010, which was the beginning of a comprehensive long-term effort to improve mobility in the city. Through this Plan, a series of projects and actions were proposed, several of which were co-funded by the European Union and the Republic of Cyprus and have already been implemented through a joint effort of the Municipalities and the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works.
Finally, the Minister of Transport, Communications and Works said that the SDC is the most important means to make our cities more beautiful, safer and more environmentally and user-friendly and invited all Nicosia Municipalities, relevant Departments, stakeholders and citizens to support the Ministry's efforts for the successful development of the Nicosia SDC.
For his part, the Mayor of Nicosia Mr. Yiorkatzis, in his address, referred to the obstacles recorded by the Nicosia Municipality in the implementation of the projects proposed through the Integrated Mobility Plan of Nicosia. "As a Local Authority we chose the hard way. To prepare our city and especially its centre for the 'next day'. The one of sustainable mobility, with modern approaches, friendly to people and the environment. But we proved and convinced that we want this change and we are determined to implement it."
Project Manager Mr. Aristotle Savva in his presentation entitled "Steps for the Nicosia of tomorrow - Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan", referred to the importance of strategic planning, the Nicosia Integrated Mobility Plan, as well as the next steps through the Nicosia Mobility Plan. He also mentioned that in parallel with the Nicosia CMP, the design, organisation and implementation of an Integrated Communication Plan for the promotion of sustainable mobility is being implemented through a separate contract.
Similarly, the Nicosia SDS Consultants in their presentation mentioned the characteristics and peculiarities of the study area, the city's policy for the future oriented towards sustainable urban mobility, as well as the main planning actions to satisfy this policy. They also referred to the differences between traditional transport planning and Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans, as well as to the development and implementation process to be followed in the framework of the Nicosia Urban Mobility Plan.
In the second part of the event, the floor was given to the other Mayors who attended for their own statements, as well as to the audience for questions and suggestions to the Nicosia SDC Consultants.
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