Transport Modes: Greater Interoperability Needed

Every situation in life has its ideal means of transport, so – as the Future Mobility Alliance says – people should always consider whether, for example, a car, a bicycle, walking or a train is the best option.

According to the association, it also wants people to accept that it is not cars, public transport and cyclists on the roads, but people on the roads.

The statement quotes Gábor Pukler, the association's president, as saying that "we need much greater interoperability between modes of transport to make our lives more efficient. Every situation in life has its own most appropriate means of transport, our goal is that everyone should use a variety of means of transport."

He added that "the focus is now on improving urban transport, highlighting the growing range of options beyond the car, and the importance of integrating as many solutions as possible into private transport, which can often be cheaper, faster, less stressful or more convenient.”

According to data, there are 420 cars per 1,000 inhabitants in Hungary, 0.77% of which are purely electric. A survey shows that the majority of drivers – 67% - drive less than 20 kilometers a day, half of them less than 10 kilometers, while the cost of maintaining their own car is the same as parking.

Statistics show that transport is the third largest item of expenditure in the average household, accounting for 11-12% of total expenditure, which, according to the association, means that conscious transport can save tens or hundreds of thousands of forints a year.

The association said that, in terms of cost and sustainability, walking and cycling are the most important modes of transport, followed by public transport, including rail. Walking and cycling also have a positive impact on health and electric bicycles are easy to ride uphill and downhill.

According to experts from the Future Mobility Alliance, the environmental impact of transport can also be reduced by paying attention to the technical condition of the car and by knowing the characteristics of an environmentally conscious driving style. Sharing a car or renting a car from a community car-sharing company can also be a solution, as one car from such a source can replace 6-12 cars of general ownership, according to the data.

In addition to private bicycles and scooters, the use of community rental scooters is a realistic option, which have already appeared in the agglomeration outside the capital and in a growing number of municipalities, including Szeged, Veszprém, Székesfehérvár and Siófok. Thanks also to the spread of community scooters, the number of privately owned scooters is also steadily increasing, with an estimated 50,000 scooters in the country. According to the Future Mobility Association, micro-mobility devices typically cover a distance of 5-8 kilometers, avoiding traffic jams and without having to pay for parking.