‘Tempo 60 on highways makes sense’

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Dark times for public transport and the environment. The Federal Council wants to expand the A1 motorway to at least six lanes on the Bern-Zurich and Lausanne-Geneva sections. In addition, several cities in western Switzerland are opposed to the recently presented SBB draft 2025 timetable.

Vincent Kaufmann (54), professor of urban sociology and mobility analysis at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), presents solutions in an interview with Blick.

Blick: Mr. Kaufmann, the 10 million strong Switzerland beckons. Traffic jams and overcrowded trains: is this our future?
Vincent Kaufmann: Unfortunately, yes – at least in Western Switzerland.

Why is that?
There are construction delays everywhere in the rail sector and the network is reaching its capacity limits.

What are the consequences?
To improve punctuality, a train is canceled every hour on the Lausanne-Geneva route.

All this could discourage people from taking the train.
Correct. Part of the population does not want to travel by car, and there are no trains now. This is very problematic.

Neither the SBB nor the Federal Council seem to have been able to anticipate the increase in traffic flows so far.
It’s crazy! In 2015, Switzerland signed the Paris Agreement, which set a goal: the CO₂-Neutrality by 2050. Nothing has happened in the past eight years. I’ve been dealing with these problems for years. This situation is extremely problematic – and angers me.

Why is nothing being done?
Because the Paris Agreement is not being taken seriously. This applies to all Western countries. There is enormous cynicism.

What should be done today to prevent life from becoming hell for commuters and drivers?
Home office. It can be promoted even better.

So expand the road network, as Minister of Transport Albert Rösti (55) proposes?
Not really! This would lead to new traffic flows. It is well known that reducing the capacity of a section of road eliminates some traffic. My suggestion would be to lower the speeds on the highways.

How does that work?
This way we can make traffic flow more smoothly. And let people drive less far in everyday life, for example to work. If we really want to be fast today, all we have to do is log on to the computer to communicate remotely.

That would make people travel less?
We have found that maximum capacity is reached at 60 km/h on a highway. At 60 km/h, the Geneva-Lausanne route would take 1 hour and 10 minutes instead of 45 minutes. Reducing the speed limit on the Autobahn to 60 km/h would mean that people would drive less in everyday life.

What about the train?
As for the train, I am a bit more differentiated. Sometimes you need fast transport. One could think of differentiated subscription prices. Long-distance trains can cost more than regional trains.

But at some point you have to expand the rail network.
Yes, but that can’t last 30 years!

Are you in favor of free train travel?
We wondered how much public transport prices should be reduced so that motorists do not use their cars. In reality, nothing will change if train travel is free. Drivers should be paid to switch to public transport!

What do you think of Tempo60? Write us your opinion in the comments!

Source:Blick