Called “All aboard!”, which links transport and climate change and demands new policies for the sector, the manifesto advocates, in particular, investment in rail and metro transport, buses powered by renewable energy, and ending air travel in Europe and the Iberian Peninsula for distances of less than 700 kilometres.

The entities signed to the manifesto are Zero, MUBI, Vida Justa, Movimento SOS Terras do Cávado, Movimento Cívico pela Estação Nova (Coimbra), Vida Justa, Campaign Jobs for the Climate and the Union of Workers in Public and Social Functions of the North.

The seven organisations warn that climate justice requires sustainable, accessible transport, “and whose cost does not exclude anyone” and that creates qualified jobs with rights.

“In the long term, the objective of extending free public transport to the entire country must be considered, as long as the necessary investment is guaranteed to make the individual car dispensable”, reads the manifesto.

Acácio Pires, from the environmental association Zero, told Lusa that public transport could be financed by taxes linked to fossil fuels and cars, highlighting that a third of greenhouse gas emissions in Portugal come from transport.

At a time when, he said, many public transport companies have difficulty attracting qualified personnel, from drivers to mechanics, “a change in the sector is crucial” which will also be “an opportunity for the economy”, increasing the bicycle manufacturing industry and capacity in the road and rail sector.

It is necessary, he summarised, to expand the supply of public transport, and it is essential that travel time on public transport is shorter than on individual transport.