The Environment Ministers of OECD member countries endorsed the Guidelines for moving towards Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) at their meeting in May 2001. These Guidelines are based on the results and conclusions of the EST project involving many OECD and non-OECD countries and provide a solution to making transport policy more sustainable and enhancing quality of life. They have been developed to enable economic development and individual welfare without causing undue health and environmental impacts and depletion of finite resources.

The EST Guidelines will assist governments at all levels in the development and implementation of strategies towards EST. Effective implementation of the EST Guidelines requires strategies that accommodate the particular geographic and socio-economic conditions of countries or regions.These guidelines guidelines represent a desirable and feasible approach for the transport sector that may also be of value in the sustainable development of other sectors.