What it is

European Mobility Week is the European Commission’s main awareness campaign on sustainable urban mobility. It is not held in one place: towns and cities organise their own programmes between 16 and 22 September each year, and the week ends with Car-Free Day. The campaign has run since 2002. The Commission describes its aim as encouraging a shift towards walking, cycling, public transport and other clean transport, according to its campaign page.

In 2025 more than 2,700 towns and cities in 46 countries took part, and more than 900 organisations registered mobility actions.

How the campaign works

Each year has a theme. For 2026 it was “Mobility for Everyone – Intergenerational Fairness”, about making transport usable at every age and regardless of income, gender, ability or location, as the 2026 campaign listing explains. The campaign is coordinated by the European Mobility Week Secretariat.

Councils are encouraged to use the week to try out new planning measures, promote new infrastructure, measure air quality and ask residents for feedback. Alongside the week, businesses, civil society organisations, schools and municipalities can register Mobility Actions all year round.

Registration and campaign materials are on the campaign’s own site, mobilityweek.eu. We could not read that site automatically, so the participation criteria are not summarised here; check it directly before registering.

Awards and recent winners

There are two prizes. The European Mobility Week Award goes to a local authority for its campaign week; the Mobility Action Award rewards an initiative registered during the year. The awards for 2025 were presented in March 2026: Riga won the first, for activities such as the “Tweed Ride” and “Riga Rolls” and for expanding cycle infrastructure and 30 km/h zones. The autonomous province of Bolzano/Bozen won the second, for a guest pass that gives visitors public transport access. Braga received a special mention, according to the Commission’s announcement.

Why it matters for cities

For a council, the week is a fixed Europe-wide date on which to try out a planning measure and hear from residents. Riga’s award cited lasting changes, such as more cycle infrastructure and 30 km/h zones, as well as one-off events.

Taking part next year

The 2027 week runs from 16 to 22 September. Its theme has not been announced.