The new sustainable mobility law: more bikes, fewer short-haul flights, and restoring night trains

BarcelonaContinuing the trend of this legislature, the Spanish government has achieved Push through the Sustainable Mobility Law this Wednesday at the last minute, on which the arrival of €10 billion in European funds depended. The new law seeks to decarbonize transport, digitize the sector, and recognize mobility as a citizen's right.

One of the most striking points is the reduction in short-haul flights. In this regard, the Ministry of Transport will promote the reduction of domestic flights on routes where there is a rail alternative with a duration of less than 2.5 hours, except in cases of connections with airports that connect with international routes. The reintroduction of night trains will also be studied, something that has not entirely convinced operators due to their high cost compared to conventional trains, where the same seat can be sold more than once during the day.

The law obliges cities to promote active mobility, i.e., walking and cycling, but also mobility by public transport and zero-emission vehicles. In this regard, a stable financing mechanism will be created to strengthen the public transport system.

With the expansion of e-commerce and its impact on cities, the law also advocates for cycle logistics and optimizing deliveries to avoid congested streets and unsuccessful trips. It also contemplates the regulation of automated vehicles in the transport system. Furthermore, in the event of high pollution, infrastructure managers and state authorities may decide to close roads to traffic or restrict access to certain vehicles.

At the business level, the Sustainable Mobility Law requires companies with more than 200 employees, both public and private, to have a sustainable mobility plan. This process will also be required by large activity centers (industrial and business parks) and will have to be reviewed at least every five years. Likewise, municipalities with more than 20,000 inhabitants and fewer than 50,000 are given one year to implement a sustainable mobility plan. The regulation also promotes the creation of low-emission zones (LEZs).

The aim is also to encourage companies to move toward more sustainable mobility with the implementation of rail motorways for freight. The Ministry of Transport will develop a rail motorway plan in those corridors where it is feasible and where there is business interest, in addition to creating a system of rail tariff discounts for freight traffic.

To achieve all this, a new co-governance system will be created: the General System for Sustainable Mobility, inspired by other national systems such as the National Health System. It will be the matrix of organizations that will monitor that municipalities comply with their obligations and create and implement their sustainable mobility plans, and will have new tools, such as data analysis.

Electric mobility

The Spanish government wants to get its act together on electric mobility, an issue that hasn't entirely convinced drivers. To promote it, the law contemplates the installation of charging points and fast and ultra-fast electric charging stations, known as electric charging stations. This is a demand from car manufacturers such as Seat.

On the other hand, the Spanish government plans for ports and airports to also be electrified. In this regard, before 2030, ports will have to guarantee the supply of electricity to docked ships and vessels, in line with the electrification project that the Port of Barcelona has been implementing for years. Furthermore, airports must supply electricity to remotely parked aircraft used in commercial air transport operations to board passengers or load cargo.