In Summary

European towns and cities often have extensive urban public transport networks, which use a variety of transport modes on the road and rails. Public transport is a solution for sustainable mobility, contributing to the fight against climate change, and it employs more than one million people. However, workers in the sector face threats from liberalisation and privatisation programmes. Social dumping in public transport is facilitated by the growing competition created by tendering of public transport services, some of which is encouraged by EU rules. New forms of work such as Uber are also undermining quality employment in urban public transport.

ETF’s Urban Public Transport Committee (UPTC) acts to defend the interests of public transport workers in Europe. We want to safeguard and improve their social rights in an evolving economic environment, which endangers both working conditions and the very existence of collective public transport. We work to promote public transport as a solution for sustainable mobility, reducing congestion and greenhouse gas emissions.

Our trade union vision for sustainable urban mobility means improved safety for both passengers and workers, and a coherent social strategy for the future of public transport in the era of decarbonization, digitalisation and automation.