The report determined that all the projects have varying degrees of weakness alongside a potentially-damaging lack of ambition, which could affect development. Further to that, the Chamber of Commerce is convinced by the necessity of adding a framework on the sustainable impact of decisions on land.
Whilst the Chamber of Commerce does find the sector-wide plans for housing, transport, and activity zones complementary and consistent, the report outlined other concerns. The report described the framework as a spatial development emerging from prior decades, which in turn contributes to the limitations of mobility.
The sector-wide housing plan must have a much higher offer, the Chamber of Commerce report finds. In order to reach this point, the report recommends facilitating authorisation processes. The majority of new housing zones are located in areas with good existing public transport connections. Nevertheless, the Chamber of Commerce stressed that the plans for around 20,000 new homes on an estimated area of 500 hectares is insufficient, if figures on an annual increase of 12,000 new residents are to be believed.
The sector-wide plans for activity zones are considered essential to allow the founding or implementation of new businesses. The report praised the optimal locations for potential new projects - namely close to town centres and key transport routes, but outlined that the sum of new surfaces has dropped compared to the 2014 project. The report suggested this is not in line with the demand for space.
The Chamber of Commerce described plans for transport as a ‘crucial development factor for the Grand Duchy’. Nevertheless, the current distribution of activities (notably in the Luxembourg canton) stands in contradiction to the distribution of the population, especially in rural areas. The consequence of this is that some roads are overburdened.
The geographic distribution of infrastructure projects and emphasis on cycling routes and park & rides were aspects praised by the Chamber of Commerce. Recommendations included improvements in optimising cross-border public transport, especially between residential areas for cross-border workers and employment areas in Luxembourg. Finally, the logistics of the sector-wide master plan were found to be insufficient in comparison to the ambitions of the mobility sector.
In terms of landscapes, the Chamber of Commerce expressed its position against over-regulation leading to bureaucracy, complex administrative procedures, and an inflation in legislation. The Chamber also queried whether landscapes required their own sector-wide master plan due to the existing legal framework on environmental protection. Ultimately, the Chamber warned against creating a complex legal ‘mille-feuille’ of legislation.
