Red tape Hot Box on The trouble with traffic
I never really noticed before that, but actually, when compared to those of the Scandinavian or Benelux cities, not to mention the Mediterranean ones, our streets look like highways.
Despite this fact, many Varsovians spend at least an hour or two of their day stuck in traffic jams on the way to and from work, while well-developed public transportation systems and fares for parking downtown have, among other factors, contributed to smooth running traffic in many Western cities. But many European cities are going even further in reducing downtown traffic by introducing fares for entering the city center. For example, London completed such a move last year and it has greatly reduced the amount of vehicles driving around the center. At the same time, it has increased the average speed of cars in that area. But what is working in London won't necessarily work in Warsaw. Introducing a fare for driving in the center of Warsaw and thus encouraging Varsovians to ride on trams and buses is an apocalyptic vision.
Anyone who has ever ridden a bus or the subway at 8 a.m. will probably get chills down his spine at the very thought of all those people giving up driving their car to work and pouring onto public transportation. It is much easier to fight downtown driving when you have a dozen subway lines (or at least a couple, as most European capitals do) than when you are struggling to complete the first one. But some cities in Poland are already thinking about introducing that fare. Maybe, despite the expected difficulties, Warsaw should consider doing that as well. Perhaps that would finally mobilize the city to finish the first subway line, to start the second one and to build "park and ride" parking lots. With the general trend in the world moving towards reintroducing the city centers to pedestrians and limiting traffic there, we in Warsaw still have to cross the streets in underground passages like moles or get stuck in traffic jams crawling along at 10 km/h.
Despite this fact, many Varsovians spend at least an hour or two of their day stuck in traffic jams on the way to and from work, while well-developed public transportation systems and fares for parking downtown have, among other factors, contributed to smooth running traffic in many Western cities. But many European cities are going even further in reducing downtown traffic by introducing fares for entering the city center. For example, London completed such a move last year and it has greatly reduced the amount of vehicles driving around the center. At the same time, it has increased the average speed of cars in that area. But what is working in London won't necessarily work in Warsaw. Introducing a fare for driving in the center of Warsaw and thus encouraging Varsovians to ride on trams and buses is an apocalyptic vision.
Anyone who has ever ridden a bus or the subway at 8 a.m. will probably get chills down his spine at the very thought of all those people giving up driving their car to work and pouring onto public transportation. It is much easier to fight downtown driving when you have a dozen subway lines (or at least a couple, as most European capitals do) than when you are struggling to complete the first one. But some cities in Poland are already thinking about introducing that fare. Maybe, despite the expected difficulties, Warsaw should consider doing that as well. Perhaps that would finally mobilize the city to finish the first subway line, to start the second one and to build "park and ride" parking lots. With the general trend in the world moving towards reintroducing the city centers to pedestrians and limiting traffic there, we in Warsaw still have to cross the streets in underground passages like moles or get stuck in traffic jams crawling along at 10 km/h.
