The Committee on the
Environment and Sustainable www.cese.ma
Development
Sustainable Mobility: Towards
Sustainable and Accessible
Transportation
Ilali Idriss Abderrahim Ksiri
Rapporteur of the President of the
subject committee
Morocco’s steadfast dedication to advancing infrastructure and sustainable transportation is
evidenced through a range of initiatives, including the establishment of high-speed rail lines,
tramways, and high-speed busways. This progress can be credited to the implementation of
modern legal and regulatory frameworks, coupled with enhanced forms of territorial governance
brought with advanced regionalization scheme.
Yet, the exponential increase in the demand for transportation of goods and people – in urban
and rural areas – challenges the current organizational paradigm. This is primarily due to the
national and territorial policies that put road infrastructure and private vehicles ahead of the
mobility needs of individuals.
Further, given the diverse needs of the population, both in dense urban areas and scattered or
landlocked rural areas, the availability of public transportation remains insufficient, inadequate,
and inaccessible, which limits access to employment, services, and leisure opportunities for var-
ious reasons, including:
î From a financial perspective, many citizens are compelled to relocate in search of lower rents
and land prices, in which case they lack access to adequate public transportation;
î From a physical standpoint, accessibility is another issue as many citizens (the elderly and/or
the disabled) face difficulties using transportation independently.
Besides, the population, particularly in urban areas, is suffering from pollution due to increased
mobility, as transportation systems account for most CO2 emissions.
The Committee on the
Environment and Sustainable www.cese.ma
Development
The ESEC, acting on its own initiative, has î Undertake a comprehensive review of the
decided to examine ways to improve mobility taxi governance system to evaluate the
in Morocco the aim being to help improve the feasibility of liberalizing and professionalizing
wellbeing of society and uphold the right to the taxi industry;
access basic social services and employment
î Facilitate the prompt execution of the
through quality, more accessible and more
contract program aimed at building logistics
eco-friendly modes of transportation. To
platforms on the outskirts of cities while
this end, the Council calls for establishing an
ensuring rail connectivity;
integrated sustainable mobility system to
achieve the following objectives : î Ensure conformity of the legal framework
governing roads and traffic with the
î Improve access to sustainable public
principles of sustainable transportation;
transportation for all citizens and build
sustainable rural infrastructure, thus cutting î Incorporate the requirements for sustainable
down both dependence on personal mobility into the regulations governing
vehicles and spatial and social inequalities; urban and territorial planning;
î Promote eco-friendly alternatives to î Provide sustainable mobility capacity-
personal vehicles and internal combustion building training on a territorial scale,
engines, such as urban buses/BHNS, mini- including for elected officials;
buses, intercity buses, and trams (small, light,
î Develop a citizen-oriented awareness-
and agile), while increasing intermodal and
raising communication strategy about
multimodal transportation modes ranging
the principles and benefits of sustainable
from mobility-parking spaces to station-
mobility, through multi-channel educational
based car sharing and park-and-ride lots;
content on such issues as the environment,
î Prioritize electric solutions over personal healthcare, and technological advances.
vehicles, such as locally produced electric
The recommended transportation system
motorcycles, by undertaking pilot projects
requires establishing a regionally extended
in small to medium-sized cities to showcase
inter-ministerial committee for sustainable
their suitability and measure their impact;
mobility aimed at averting overlaps, conflicting
responsibilities, and uneven resource
allocation.
