Almost every product or service we buy has an impact on transportation patterns in cities. The Greater London Authority (GLA) Group, a Procura+ participant, is committed to using strategic and sustainable public procurement to contribute sustainable delivery solutions that can also be role models for the private sector, in line with London’s 2030 Net Zero Target. To see how the GLA’s efforts look in practice, ICLEI Europe’s Procura+ Network gathered in London for a Procura+ CityMatch.
The CityMatch was kicked off by Transport for London (TfL) which showed how it is implementing green and social responsibility in its contracts. In accordance with the GLA Group Responsible Procurement Implementation Plan, from 1 July 2025, contracts that are over £1 million will be required to use zero emission vehicles for under 3.5 tonnes (N1 cars and M1 vans), while vehicles over 3.5 tonnes will need to be Low Emission Zone compliant. New contracts under £1 million will be subject to this requirement from 2027, and from 2025 will be asked to improve their environmental performance by showing efforts to achieve reduction of vehicle mileage and emissions.
As the aim of the Procura+ CityMatch is to facilitate exchange between different public authorities, the event highlighted different perspectives from across Europe as Procura+ participants discussed how they address sustainable transport solutions and challenges, with a special focus on last mile delivery. “It is great to have this knowledge and experience sharing with five European cities and regions. It was great to see how much we at TfL can learn from the delegates and our own suppliers”, says Tim Rudin, Head of Responsible Procurement at Greater London Authority/TfL. Stavanger (Norway) highlighted how it is using mandatory requirements, award criteria and technical specifications to promote low carbon delivery solutions; Aalborg (Denmark) presented the EU-funded MoLo Hubs project, which seeks to reduce urban traffic by initiating and implementing new and convenient logistics service offers at urban mobility hubs; Copenhagen (Denmark) focused on its green and social requirements for supplier vehicles; Metropolitan City of Rome (Italy) emphasised how its Sustainable Logistics Metropolitan Plan improves air quality and accessibility. Finally, Las Rozas de Madrid (Spain) explained how it is using the Local Green Deals to reduce the carbon footprint of service suppliers.
Participants also benefited from site visits. In a TfL depot the Work related Road Risk team introduced their vehicle monitoring and inspection system, followed by a presentation on how the underground trains are maintained. A visit to Telent, a supplier of road and traffic services made clear how London’s demand for low emission vehicles encouraged them to transition to a greener fleet.
The CityMatch ultimately showed there is great demand for both more sustainable solutions for the transport sector and for more events where public authorities can discuss and collaborate on public procurement-related challenges and solutions. As Simon Birk Nielsen, consultant for sustainable procurement from the Capital City of Copenhagen, Denmark noted: “There is a need for strategic implementation and taking the demands we set seriously. We need to be ambitious and be able to control what our contractors are saying." Nuria Blanco Caballero, Expert for transport and mobility from Las Rozas de Madrid, Spain added “The opportunity to work together on European projects, within the umbrella of ICLEI, and to find innovative solutions for our cities and citizens is what I take home from this event.”