Cooperative approaches to transport challenges in Metropolitan Regions
CATCH_MR will explore and adapt sustainable transport solutions for metropolises and their regions.12 partners will take part in the project, representing 7 Metropolitan Regions (MRs): Oslo/Akershus (NO), Gothenburg Region (SE), Berlin-Brandenburg (GE), Vienna/Lower Austria (AU), Ljubljana Urban Region (SL), Budapest/Central Hungarian Region (H), Province of Rome/Lazio Region (I). Efficient, reliable and sustainable transport is a key precondition for economic growth. This is a major challenge for MRs. As major transport-nodes, the MRs handle large volumes of local, regional and international traffic. At the same time, the MRs are strongly aware of the urgency to develop patterns and forms of transport which have less impact on the environment. The overall objective for CATCH_MR is to promote sustainable transport solutions across whole MRs. This means both reducing transport needs without impairing mobility, and increasing the share of environmentally friendly transport.
The partners intend to work systematically towards this goal through three consecutive sub-objectives:
- reducing the need to travel within the regions through coordinating transport and land-use
- increasing the share of public transport 
- increasing use of renewable energy in transport
The partners aim to work towards these objectives by identifying and promoting good practice by:
- understanding urban sprawl and achieving new planning solutions
- promoting public transport by new frameworks (eg. incentives and disincentives)
- promoting the substitution of fossil-based fuel with affordable technology and the necessary infrastructure
- connecting regional and metropolitan transport policies (through governance, joint funding & implementation)
These fields are strongly interdependent and should not be addressed in isolation. In the partners’ view, better solutions for the MRs as whole can be achieved through integrated approaches involving both the
cities and their surrounding regions. The core activities will be seven peer workshops and exchange visits. Each MR will host a workshop and address topics where they have particularly knowledge and experience. The hosting region will be supported in each case by 2 other MRs. Practical experience will be presented and discussed at each workshop, examples of good practice highlighted, and policy advice developed. Recommendations may be generally applicable, or adapted to suite specific situations in each MR.
