On March 19-20 the ‘Transforming Transportation’ conference at the World Bank took place, which was co-hosted by WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities and attended by various officials and organizations from the Netherlands.

Across two days of technical sessions and plenaries, more than 150 speakers joined thousands of participants in Washington, D.C., and online to accelerate innovation and create new partnerships. The conference covered key topics of concern for both climate change and sustainable development, including public transportation, electric mobility, walking and cycling, road safety, and increasing access to jobs, education and health care.

The Netherlands has many great examples and insights on the topic of (urban) transportation and related infrastructure matters, that we are eager to share and further collaborate on internationally. This has also been underscored by the Netherlands’ contribution into the ‘Global Facility to Decarbonize Transport’ (GFDT), a multi-donor trust fund that provides financial and technical assistance to World Bank teams promoting transport decarbonization in low and middle-income countries.

Of course, “active mobility” and in particular cycling has long been a hallmark of Dutch society and something we eagerly speak about on a global stage. During TT24 the Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management hosted a session on ‘Accelerating Active Mobility for a Sustainable Tomorrow’, with a key-note speech from the Mr. Kees van den Burg, Vice Minister of Mobility and Transport of the Netherlands. The Vice Minister spoke about the “Active Program” which was launched at COP28 and the “Active Mobility Fund” to be launched at ‘Velo City’ in Ghent later this year. Until recently the costs for many international initiatives (e.g. workshops) on cycling were covered by the Netherlands, but now Belgium and Luxemburg will be contributing as well. The Vice Minister called upon other countries to join in as well, as it truly is a collective effort to achieve our climate goals and build healthy, livable and equitable cities worldwide.

Also present at TT24, with a booth, was the Dutch Cycling Embassy (DCE), a public-private network for inclusive and sustainable mobility, by way of cycling. They represent the best of Dutch bicycling: knowledge, experience and experts offered by private companies, NGO’s, research institutions, national and local governments. The DCE is very active internationally, for example by hosting workshops with local municipalities in Asia, Africa and the Americas on the advantages and issues of cycling in an urban environment and how to best to incorporate the existing infrastructure and culture.

Looking ahead to June, the Netherlands will be hosting a World Bank “Leaders in Urban Transport Planning” (LUTP) summit for transportation/infrastructure representatives from World Bank client countries. The LUTP is tailored to the learning needs of the participants and focusses on discussion, problem-solving and experiential learning through case studies, group exercises and site visits. The main focus will be on active mobility with visits to the Hague, Amsterdam and Rotterdam. During the program participants will learn the history and evolution of the mobility systems in the Netherlands. Needless to say, there will be opportunities for Dutch experts, companies and knowledge institutes to engage and present their insights and offerings as well.