Tackling car use in big European cities

Cars are a common sight in cities all around the world. However, many of them weren't actually meant for the level of vehicles we see today. It can lead to a number of serious issues, including poor air quality as well as climate change. With that in mind, a number of big European cities are looking at tackling car use. They can use different measures to achieve this, including bollards, restrictions, and charges.

Paris

One of the most impressive success stories is the French capital. Since 2014 there has been a strict anti-car policy for the city. This has seen road closures, including the Right Bank Seine expressway and streets like the Rue de Rivoli. There are new traffic calming measures coming in too that will ban through traffic.

The impact has been incredible. Car use in the city has fallen massively. At the same time, more and more people have begun cycling instead. In fact, recent data from December said there are now far more bicycles on main thoroughfares during the busiest times of the day. A large reason for the boom in cycling is Paris has embraced the idea of the 15-minute city. Things people need daily are typically available within a short bicycle ride. Plus, the city has invested in more and more cycle lanes and other infrastructure.

Barcelona

There have been some interesting plans in Spain's second biggest city too. One of them is the creation of superblocks. These group blocks of the city together and discourage car use with bollards and other measures. More public space is instead used for play areas and green spaces.

Another impressive measure has been the pedestrianisation of Consell de Cent. The project has created a new urban park where there were once busy roads.

Sadly Barcelona needs to do a lot more. It has the highest car density of any city in the EU. It also has serious concerns with noise pollution and air quality. A major issue is the public transport has a reputation for being slow and unreliable. It makes people more likely to buy and use their own cars.

Brussels

The Belgian capital is one of the worst cities in the EU for road congestion. Not surprisingly, the air pollution levels are very high too. Luckily, work is underway to improve things, including creating new car-free plazas and using bollards.

Car use is falling nicely across the city, aided by an increase in cycling and more public transport services. There are also plans to introduce 50 low traffic neighbourhoods. Plus, the streetscape is changing in many areas with road closures, a reduction in car parks, and more trees.

The only issue is Brussels has a complex local government structure. In total there are 19 different municipalities. So, sadly it can be difficult for them to come together to tackle the problem.

Do you need to order bollards?

Barrier Mart understands how great measures to restrict vehicle use can be. They can make areas much safer as well as improve air quality, reduce noise, and more. We offer a number of fantastic products to help with that, including different styles of bollard, barriers, and more.

So, if you are considering any of these measures, you can speak to us about them. We would be happy to suggest bollards or other products for different locations. We can even install them in various parts of the UK.