City traffic controllers want 30 km/h everywhere

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The cities are on the brakes. To improve the coexistence of pedestrians, motorists, public transport, cyclists and e-scooter users, city traffic controllers are also campaigning for 30 km/h, according to the Swiss Association of Cities.

With the general speed limit of 30 km/h in urban areas, the Mobility Cities Conference (SKM) aims to reduce traffic noise and increase road safety. As the Bundesrat wrote last week in response to an interpellation by SVP Landsraadslide Walter Wobmann (65), reducing the speed from 50 to 30 will greatly increase road safety.

Significantly fewer accidents

The Accident Prevention Advisory Center (BFU) states that the introduction of 30 km/h reduces the number of serious accidents by an average of 38 percent compared to 50 km/h.

And the BFU data also shows that the risk of an injury increases at higher speeds. The risk of being injured or even killed in an accident is 22 percent in urban areas on a street with a speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour. At Tempo 50 this is already 36 percent. This is due to physics: the lower the speed, the lower the energy acting in a collision.

In addition: thanks to the lower speed and therefore shorter braking distances, collisions can also be avoided more often.

Public transport must have priority

For the SKM, speed reduction means noise reduction at the source, it writes in its press release. In addition, lower speeds in road traffic bring even more benefits: public space can be used differently, for walking or cycling, according to the conference.

Especially for children, safety is increased when motorists and motorcyclists drive at lower speeds in the neighborhood, but also on the main road they have to cross on their way to school. In addition, Tempo 30 improves the traffic flow in the cities.

The Mobility Cities Conference also emphasizes that if public transport functions well, a speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour can be agreed on the main roads. Possible loss of time that the speed reduction entails can, according to mobility experts, be compensated by, for example, giving buses priority at traffic lights.

Noise and emission reduction

The experts also emphasize that many city dwellers are demanding a reduction in noise and emissions. Residents often move around the city centers on foot, by public transport or by bicycle. And several commuters also come to the centers by train.

Still, the association of cities was criticized when its Tempo 30 plans became public. In addition to the point of criticism that public transport would also suffer from a speed reduction – which is controversial – various circles complain that the main roads often do not belong to the cities, but are the responsibility of the cantons. They would rule against 30 km/h on these roads.

Stop and go

After all, the cantons must also take into account the concerns of the inhabitants of the agglomeration municipalities. Not all commuters are willing or able to use public transport. It is crucial for them that they can quickly drive to work in the city in the morning and return home in the evening. The traffic experts counter that they don’t get to work faster with stop-and-go traffic during rush hours – mainly because it’s not always guaranteed that workers will find a parking spot right away.

In addition, people especially want to switch to public transport during rush hours. And with the adoption of the revised Spatial Planning Act in 2013, people had just spoken out for housing in urban areas and not for landscape construction. This is also seen as a sign against the steadily increasing commuter flows.

Exceptions with blue lights

One thing is clear: not only public transport should be given preference, but there should also be exceptions for police and ambulances, which should be able to drive faster with sirens and blue lights in case of emergency.

Source:Blick