The European Mobility Week is held every year from 16th till 22nd September, and its constant part is the Car Free Day (22nd September), when you can travel by public transport around Wroclaw for free.
NextBike has also joined the celebration of the European Mobility Week. This year, during the week of 16th–22nd September, every user can ride the Wroclaw City Bike free of charge for one hour a day.
Everything depends on us
This year’s leitmotif of the European Mobility Week is: Save energy. Why is this important for urban mobility? Because energy prices increase, and transport service is a large part of municipal expenses. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it is also important to reduce dependence on Russian oil and switch to sustainable energy sources. In addition, we have a climate crisis and we should reduce carbon emissions.
What can we do?
Can actions of individual persons change anything? Of course! Just start and convince others to do the same.
Use public transport. Buses can help us reduce carbon emission and energy consumption levels, particularly when they are powered by pure energy sources.
Move actively! In a municipal area, you can travel up to 5 km by bicycle or on foot. This is the way to save energy and to take care of your physical and mental health.
Feel the freedom by moving without a car: can you work from home, shop at local shops or travel with your friends in one car? If you can, do it.
And if you cannot give up your car completely, drive slowly! Limiting your speed by 10 km/h, you can reduce your fuel bill even by 250 PLN per year.
Monika Kozłowska-Święconek, Director of the Sustainable Mobility Office of the Wroclaw City Office: The European Mobility Week is a great opportunity to try something different and change from your car to a bike, scooter or public transport. As new tram lines are built and the bike path network is expanded, travelling by car becomes less economical in terms of money and time.
‘Apart from the participation of Wroclaw in the celebration of the European Mobility Week, we also organise autumn campaigns promoting active mobility. On 7th September, schoolchildren and pre-schoolers joined the Cycling May OVERTIME campaign, and in October, we will invite adult inhabitants of our city to join the Cycling Round and Round competition,’ adds Monika Kozłowska-Święconek.
Wroclaw joins
On the occasion of the European Mobility Week, the Przyjaźń Sztuka Edukacja [Friendship Art Education] Foundation and the ART JTM & Partners Foundation prepared workshops, artistic, cultural and social events thanks to financial aid from the municipality’s funds. On Saturday 23rd September, there will be the culmination of attractions at a picnic with Green Wroclaw! The Music Tram will run on the Bus-Tram Route, and the activities will be accompanied by Tramek – a muppet that will show how easy and pleasant is to be mobile!
Park Tysiąclecia will become a family picnic site with workshops, a neighbour walk, a city game and stage performances for one day. The event will start with a parade of snails. Children on bicycles are invited to attend it. The start time is at 12:00 p.m. at the Wrocław Zachód Culture Centre, ul. Chociebuska 4/6. Each participant will receive a tattoo with a snail and bike decorations. There will be flags, banners and the anthem of the parade.
The picnic will be an opportunity to discover the city’s ecological projects, to collect wing-flowers in exchange for electro-waste and to take part in dozens of games and workshops. And, last but least, to compete for awards: gifts in a wheel of fortune or an electric scooter and a bike in the main ecological knowledge competition.
Program of the European Mobility Week in Wroclaw
9th–22nd September
Workshops in schools on global education and sustainable mobility.
18th–22nd September
City Field Game for children, young people and their families – for registration and maps with tasks to download, visit artjtm.com or local points. The final and the prize-giving ceremony will take place during the Saturday with Green Wroclaw.
18th and 21st September
Mobile Senior workshops – a group of seniors will map the nearest space with regard to paths on which they move around the housing estate. They will mark the paths, bike stations and wheelchair ramps. Seniors will learn to use city bikes. For registration, visit the Wrocław-Zachód Culture Centre, ckwz.pl.
22nd September
‘The Mobile and the Sustainable’ debate The starting point for the discussion will be fragments of interviews about public transport with inhabitants of the Nowy Dwór district. The meeting will include the premiere of the spot ‘How to arrive successfully’ and a show of outcomes of stop-motion animation workshops for children. Municipal Public Library Branch no. 22, ul. Chociebuska 8/10, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., no registration required.
Cruises on the Oder by environment-friendly boats showing the beauty of Wroclaw from the perspective of the river from 3:00 p.m. till 6:00 p.m., Piotr Włostowic Boulevard, City Boats harbour.
23rd September
A guided cycling tour of the city – presentation of the advantages of bike transport, 2:00 p.m., start from Plac Solny.
A ride by Melex electric vehicles around the Old Town and Ostrów Tumski, 2:30 p.m., start from Plac Solny.
Rental of kayaks from 10:00 a.m. till 2:00 p.m., Odra Centrum, Wybrzeże Juliusza Słowackiego 5B, this time against the password: European Mobility Week 2003.
Making bikes available along with a campaign encouraging drivers to leave their motor vehicles – for more details, see the website of the European Commission Regional Representation in Wroclaw.
Saturday with Green Wroclaw – an open-air family event with a number of educational and promotional activities in the field of sustainable mobility, Park Tysiąclecia, 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
The program includes, among others:
- Snails Go First – a cycling parade of children and young people,
- a neighbour walk,
- theatre and art workshops,
- a large-format board game,
- a workshop on the creation of colour bike accessories,
the stand of the European Commission Representation in Wroclaw and the Office of the European Parliament in Wroclaw: workshops on practical skills of servicing a bike without specialist equipment, a competition of knowledge about the European Mobility Week with prizes, the screening of a film connected with the European Mobility Week.
