(Adnkronos) – The current context highlights the strategic importance of TPL, both at an environmental and socioeconomic level, with positive repercussions on the entire national economy, as a fundamental pillar for urban mobility and the well-being of communities. The numbers confirm it: 15 million passengers transported every day; 124 thousand workers involved in the sector; The annual turnover of the sector is 12 billion with 33 billion in investments absorbed in 2023. The benefits of the Tpl on the environment, economy and employment are equally tangible: 40 cars taken off the road for each bus; 600 for each subway; 1,500 for each regional train. Given this commitment, it makes sense to remember that road congestion costs over 100 billion in Europe every year. Conversely, in the last year the TPL has generated a +25% of jobs compared to those produced by the overall management of private mobility. Asstra presented its priority proposals to support Local Public Transport (LPT) during the XVIII National Conference held in Rome on 15 and 16 April 2024. Positive numbers, which outline a virtuous direction to follow without hesitation. And this is why the Association – through the report by President Andrea Gibelli – underlines the need to strengthen and stabilize the TPL system, both from a regulatory and economic point of view to encourage the gradual transition from private to collective transport. Fundamental step to reduce environmental impact, manage traffic in cities more efficiently and sustainably and support the economy. A crucial point concerns the importance of the energy and digital transition in the LPT sector. Asstra highlights the need for targeted investments to promote technological and sustainable innovation, both in the fleet of vehicles used and in the support infrastructure. This is done not only to improve the efficiency and quality of the service offered, but also to create opportunities for industrial and employment development in the sector. Among the concrete proposals presented by the Association is the review and update of the National Transport Fund, in order to align national legislation with European directives and guarantee long-term resources for the development of the sector. This also includes the promotion of synergies between companies, the adjustment of tariffs and the retention of staff through collective agreements and training programmes. Another focal point concerns investments in energy and digital transition. Asstra proposes to integrate depreciation fees directly into service contracts to ensure financial stability for public transport operators and encourage the adoption of more sustainable technologies. Also functional in this direction is the possible extension of energy concessions to operators in the sector and the strengthening of the digitalisation of services to improve the passenger experience and optimize resource management. On the tariff front, Asstra proposes a balanced policy that takes into account economic, environmental and social needs. The objective is to avoid total gratuity, which could cause financial imbalances and income redistribution problems. At the same time, it suggests the implementation of automatic fare update mechanisms and the promotion of innovative policies to encourage the use of public transport. As a preparatory part of the speech, in this second work session, Asstra produced and presented an assessment model of the impacts of the energy transition to quantify the impacts generated by the transition at a national level, calculating the bus requirement and the necessary financial resources, as well as to provide a useful tool for evaluating, defining and updating expenses and investments for service contracts and contributions in the financial economic plan. The study was carried out by Asstra through the “bus” technical working group with the contribution of some associated companies and presented by Paolo Rapinesi (Atb Bergamo), Marco Zanini (Gtt Turin), Fabrizio Cagossi (Tper Bologna) and Marco Locatelli ( Trasporti Bergamo Sud-Ovest Spa). The work allowed us to build a new model, through an algorithm, to allow all LPT operators in Italy and public decision makers to quantify the resources necessary to manage the energy transition process. The model envisages three scenarios that consider the European targets in the long term and the technological evolution underway, with the need to reach zero emissions by 2050 and to reduce the average age of the wastewater fleet to 7.5 years in the next 15 years. According to community indications, the percentage of new registrations of zero-emission buses in urban areas should reach 100% as early as 2035. While at extra-urban level, CO2 emissions should be reduced by 65% by 2040. At a macro level, the application of the model highlights the difficulty in achieving community objectives, even by scrupulously following the indications provided by the EU, as well as the need at a national level for additional resources both for current expenses and for investments, in order to update the fleet of vehicles and infrastructures. At a micro level, the algorithm allows individual companies to adjust additional additional costs to be assessed on a case-by-case basis, due to the excessive heterogeneity of the system at a territorial level. The study confirms that the current context conditions do not allow the achievement of the energy transition objectives set at community level: hence the need to promote an energy mix through choices oriented according to the principle of technological neutrality and compatibility of operating needs ( mission profile) and economic and financial sustainability. Nonetheless, it provides an economic-financial planning tool, immediately available to companies, administrations and institutions. In this sense, at the conclusion of the work, Asstra underlined the importance of a holistic and strategic approach to address the current and future challenges of Local Public Transport: the proposals and the study presented aim to guarantee economic, environmental and social sustainability of the sector, while promoting innovation and long-term industrial development. —[email protected] (Web Info)
Tags: Tpl million passengers day thousand workers Asstra presents priority actions sector
