In its recently published guidance on Social Climate Plans, the European Commission puts an emphasis on measures for cycling, including support for infrastructure, purchase and leasing of bikes, and better connections with public transport. Member States now need to take up these measures in their national plans under the Social Climate Fund, which they should submit until 30 June 2025.
Fighting transport poverty: Cycling in the Social Climate Fund
The
EU Social Climate Fund (SCF), designed to address the social consequences of creating an emissions trading system for the building and road transport sectors, will provide almost
€87 billion in targeted support to all EU Member States between 2026 and 2032 through national
Social Climate Plans. These plans have to be submitted to the Commission
until 30 June 2025.
In order to fight transport poverty in its different dimensions (affordability, availability and accessibility), the
SCF Regulation allows Member States to use SCF funds amongst others for
making bicycles more affordable, for
supporting shared mobility services (e.g. bike sharing) and for improving active mobility options, including
cycling infrastructure.
New Commission guidance confirms importance of cycling measures
After publishing best-practice examples for measures under the SCF a few months ago, the European Commission explains in more detail
how Member States could use cycling measures to address transport poverty in its recently released
Guidance on the Social Climate Plans:
- Member States are encouraged to promote a modal shift towards the increased use of bicycles, e-bikes, cargo-bikes and micromobility solutions through an integrated urban and regional mobility planning approach. This approach should prioritize the development of safe, direct, secure, and convenient cycling infrastructure and networks that connect low-income areas with key destinations.
- To support this, Member States could provide subsidies for the purchase, long-term rental, or leasing of bicycles, e-bikes, or cargo-bikes.
- With regards to support for micro-enterprises, subsidies for the purchase or leasing of zero-emission vehicles, including cargo-bikes, may be considered.
- Member States should consider supplementing public transport with on-demand services, mobility as a service, and shared mobility services to offer appropriate mobility options along the entire route chain, including the first and last mile in public transport. This could also include investments in mobility hubs for facilitating connections between public transport, shared mobility, cycling, and walking in suburban, peri-urban, and rural areas.
Cycling measures in national Social Climate Plans
With the deadline of 30 June 2025 coming up, preparations for the Social Climate Plans are in full swing in EU Member States. When drafting their plans, Member States and their
responsible authorities are
required to organise a public consultation with local and regional authorities, representatives of economic and social partners, relevant civil society organisations, youth organisations and other stakeholders. Below, we have compiled a selection of good practices on how ECF’s members, often together with partner organisations in the cycling industry, are advocating for the inclusion of cycling measures in national plans. This list is not meant to be exhaustive – please let us know about activities in other countries!
- In Germany, ECF’s member ADFC, together with three cycling industry associations coordinated by Zukunft Fahrrad, have published a position paper on the German Social Climate Plan. The associations are asking for investments in bike-sharing systems, social leasing or subscription schemes, and purchase incentives for bikes. While the German plan might be delayed due to the formation of a new federal government, the four associations are already actively presenting their proposals in stakeholder meetings with the responsible authorities.
- In the Netherlands, after advocacy activities by ECF member Fietsersbond, the public consultation on the Social Climate Plan included proposals for investing €96 million in fast and direct cycle routes, and €20 million in car- and bike-sharing.
- In Slovakia, ECF member Cyklokoalicia has been advocating for the inclusion of cycling measures for several months already. They are part of the relevant expert groups, and cycling measures (infrastructure and support for purchase and leasing of bikes, including cargo bikes and adapted tricycles) are taken up in the expert recommendations for the Slovak Social Climate Plan. The Social Climate Fund was also a central topic at the recent Slovak cycling conference Cyklomestá in Trnava.
- In Estonia, the expert recommendations for the Social Climate Plan include investment proposals of €20 million in cycling and walking infrastructure, €56 million in support for on-demand transport including bike-sharing, and €30 million in support for charging infrastructure and purchase subsidies for electric vehicles, including e-bikes.
What can you do?
The inclusion of cycling measures and indicators in the Social Climate Plans will ultimately depend on Member States’ individual decisions.
Therefore, it is still crucial for cycling sector organisations at the national level to make their voices heard in joint campaigns during the drafting of these plans, which will continue until June 2025. We encourage these organisations to advocate for the use of the Social Climate Fund for cycling measures in their communications with
national responsible authorities, and to participate in the national public consultation process.
You can find more detailed information in our advocacy guidance document.
