Cuprija (Serbia)
Ćuprija is city of 33,500 inhabitants situated in Pomoravlje region in central Serbia. It is a centre of health, education, music and a place with a long cultural and historic legacy. The city is eager for a better public transport and for a developed parking system in the city center.
Ćuprija has no specific data on modal split. However, vehicle registration records for 2009 indicated 7,265 private cars, 312 motorbikes and 28 busses. The average household owns two bicycles. The number of motor vehicles in Cuprija has nearly doubled since the 1990s.
The local authority has developed a general urban plan and efforts are being made to increase the number of bus lines connecting Ćuprija with neighboring towns and villages. In the long run, it is hoped these efforts will result in a decrease in private motor vehicle use within the town itself. Several private companies operate the public transport lines in the city and its outlying areas, while extra-urban bus lines serve the many people who travel to and between the towns of Jagodina, Ćuprija and Paracin. Schoolchildren and elderly residents from nearby villages ride for free thanks to subsidies by the municipality.
The urban plan also envisages the construction and renovation of pedestrian infrastructure and bicycle paths but progress has been slow in the field of sustainable local transport while innovative measures have yet to be implemented. However, for European Car-Free Day in 2009 the municipality’s youth office carried out car counts at different locations around the city. The result was 215 to 240 cars per hour at each location.
The city has two pedestrian zones (one active during summer months only everyday from 7 to 11 p.m. while the other is permanent). It has restricted parking zones where non-residents can park for up to one hour. Technology has been implemented to allow the payment of parking tariffs by mobile phone.
Car parking remains unruly with vehicles seldom adhering to the limited parking zones resulting in “the whole town becoming one big public parking,” said Vladimir Djordjevic, manager of international and domestic projects in the municipality’s Department for Local Economic Development. As a first step, attempts will be made to redefine town parking through two public car parks, while in the longer term park and rides may also be considered. Future plans include bicycle sharing and bicycle renting, as well as reconstruction of pedestrian areas.
In its work on local transport, the city cooperates with the private transport operators, youth office and other public and private organizations.
Summary finalized: September 2010
