5 European cities reach ACCESS CITY Award 2024 final

The European Commission will reward the most accessible urban environments on 1 December

Łódź (Poland), Saint-Quentin (France), San Cristóbal de La Laguna (Spain), South Dublin County (Ireland), and Tübingen (Germany) have been chosen as finalists for the 2024 Access City Award. These cities have demonstrated best practices and highlighted their commitment to ensure accessibility to urban life for all, including persons with disabilities and older citizens, including for built environment, public transport, facilities, and services, as well as information and communication technologies and services.

Vice-President for Values and Transparency, Věra Jourová, said:

Accessibility is an essential step towards equality, ensuring that everyone can benefit from the same level of freedom and autonomy. It is important to recognise the commitment of the cities to breaking down barriers, and to encourage initiatives and best practices to make urban life in Europe accessible for all citizens."

European Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, also commented on the occasion:

Cities throughout the European Union are dedicated to removing barriers and creating truly accessible urban spaces for all. At the same time, cities are embracing the digital and green transitions, which present opportunities, and a responsibility to ensure these transitions benefit everyone including persons with disabilities. The Access City Award recognises and celebrates cities that prioritise accessibility to improve the quality of life."

Among 32 cities that applied for the award, 21 candidates were pre-selected by national experts. The five finalists were then shortlisted by an EU jury.

The 2024 Access City Award winners will be announced on 1 December 2023 at an award ceremony during the European Day of Persons with Disabilities conference (organised jointly by the European Commission and the European Disability Forum). The ceremony will be broadcast live here, starting at 9.30 AM, and will feature international sign interpretation, audio-description and English captioning.

The winner and runners-up will each receive a monetary prize as follows: 1^st place – 150,000 euros, 2^nd place - 120,000 euros and 3^rd place – 80,000 euros.

The essence of the Access City Award

The Access City Award was launched in 2010 to promote accessibility initiatives in European cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants and raise awareness about how accessible spaces – both physical and virtual – are the first vital step to equality. In this regard, the award is about ensuring equal access to city life for persons with disabilities. The initiative aims to encourage cities to inspire one another and share innovative and good practices.

The Award is given to the city that has demonstrably prioritised accessibility in fundamental aspects of city living through a holistic approach, and that has concrete plans for further improvements.