Funchal hosts CIVITAS Deployment Programme

As one of the follower cities in the UNCHAIN project, Funchal, Portugal, took centre stage in the third study visit of the CIVITAS Replication and Deployment Programme from 19–21 November 2024. The visit brought together city officials and logistics experts to explore sustainable urban freight strategies tailored to Funchal’s unique geographical context.

The study visit welcomed representatives from Baerum (Norway), Hamburg (Germany), and Bruges (Belgium), alongside experts from Parkunload and Chalmers University of Technology. Together, they joined the local team to examine and co-create solutions to Funchal’s pressing urban logistics challenges.

Zooming in on Funchal’s Logistics Landscape

Bruno Pereira, Deputy Mayor of Funchal, opened the event with an introduction to the city’s Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) and its ambitions to balance livability, accessibility, and economic vitality. Funchal’s steep terrain, vibrant tourism economy, and compact historical centre all contribute to a complex mobility puzzle, especially when it comes to the movement of goods.

Participants visited the city’s central market area, a focal point of commercial activity that typifies the challenges faced by many urban centres: congested streets, blocked loading bays, and safety concerns for both pedestrians and drivers.

A key stop was the logistics hub of LogisLink, which handles around 40% of Madeira’s incoming freight. Conversations with logistics operators illuminated the practical barriers to more sustainable last-mile deliveries — from the lack of available drivers to limited delivery time slots accepted by shop owners.

Co-Creating Solutions with the UNCHAIN Approach

The second half of the visit emphasised collaboration and creativity, reflecting the UNCHAIN project’s ethos of shared learning and capacity-building across cities. In a series of interactive workshops, the group worked on solutions that could make a difference for Funchal, and offer lessons for other followers and replication cities in the UNCHAIN community.

Proposals included stakeholder engagement plans, scenario planning beyond purely technical interventions, and ambassador programmes to inspire change through lived experience. Key ideas ranged from redesigning the market’s access strategy to piloting new logistics models tailored to local constraints.

A Shared Commitment to Smarter Urban Freight

By hosting this study visit, Funchal demonstrated its readiness to test, learn, and evolve. The city’s openness to new perspectives and active engagement with peers underscores its commitment to sustainable and inclusive urban logistics — values at the heart of both CIVITAS and UNCHAIN.

The outcomes of the visit will feed into Funchal’s ongoing collaboration with the UNCHAIN project, supporting the city’s efforts to pilot and eventually upscale innovative freight solutions. As the project progresses, Funchal stands as a promising example of how smaller cities with specific geographical limitations can still lead the way in rethinking urban logistics for the better.