What is the challenge SUSTANCE project tackled? Citizens living in rural or peripheral areas of Central Europe are facing inadequate connectivity. They face fragmented transportation networks and lack of sustainable public transport solutions, particularly at the cross-border level. At the same time European policies look toward a greener and smarter future, by supporting, among others, actions aimed at promoting the development of sustainable public transport solutions. It is to provide all citizens with equal public transportation services and access opportunities. To ensure these journeys remained eco-friendly from the first mile to the last, SUSTANCE integrated green alternatives directly into the traveler's routine. We launched two new direct cross-border train services, one being from Austria (Neusiedl am See) to Hungary (Sopron) and the other from Italy (Trieste, Villa Opicina), via Slovenia (Divača, Pivka), to Croatia (Rijeka). We set basis for introducing another new cross-border train service between Croatia (Pula-Buzet) and Slovenia (Divača) and launched a collaborative web portal across Croatia, Italy, and Slovenia to help passengers seamlessly combine train travel with cycling. To support this on the ground, we installed physical bike and scooter sharing stations throughout Istria (Croatia) and developed an interactive ICT app for this region, that displays all private and public transport services in one place, thus offering travellers a clean way to complete their train trips. To tackle rural areas of Romagna Region (Italy), we digitalized existing public transport service by developing an open-source demand responsive transport application. Today, these trial initiatives have transformed from temporary tests into a permanent blueprint, successfully paving the way for long-term action plans and lasting, sustainable connectivity across Central Europe.