Swiss Review 6/2020

Swiss Review / November 2020 / No.6 16 Society peoplewith disabilities. Considered dangerous, parking spaces located alongside tramlines are also to be re- moved. These modifications face opposition from the Swiss People’s Party (SVP), “but the rulings have gone our way so far”, says the Berne city councillor. One less visible car-related element is the number of private carparks, above and below the ground. Berne is au- thorising the construction of premises without carparks. In Geneva, there is “great political tension whenever a pro- ject reduces the role of the car in the city, or seeks to in- crease it”, explains Karen Troll, the spokesperson for the Department of Infrastructure. “There is a conflict of inter- est,” considers Damien Bonfanti, green mayor of the Com- mune of Lancy (GE). “Drivers want to keep what they have, whilst another section of the population are left feeling frustrated.” The politician supports the construction of buildings without parking spaces, provided that there are a sufficient number of spaces in the surrounding area, and that housing has sufficient public transport links. Bonfanti also highlights the costs generated by underground car- parks. These constructions cost around 50,000 Swiss francs each and require major excavation work. Another issue with this underground urbanisation is that it prevents the planting of trees. Yet localised neigh- bourhood plans continue to factor in a high level of motor- isation. This is the case in Allières, an area next to the new Eaux-Vives station, for example: 400homeswill comewith 409 parking spaces. “We have to anticipate changes in the urban environment. In fact, it’s the developers themselves who are asking to build fewer underground parking spaces, which just sit empty,” states CarolineMarti, vice-president of the Geneva branch of the VCS, the transport and envi- ronment association. She has co-signed a motion which specifically requests the creation of a car-free neighbour- hood as a pilot. A sign of the times, this propositionhas even gained support from FDP representatives. A sea change in Geneva Facedwith these requests for a lessmotorised city, the Tour- ing Club Switzerland (TCS) Geneva section has been quick to respond. It initiated a referendum against a change to the law, which would ease the requirement to maintain parking spaces. On 27 September, the people of Geneva sup- ported this legal change, thereby authorising the elimina- tion of 4,000 parking spaces, in favour of cycle paths, in par- ticular. But despite this, Switzerland is not turning into a car-free country, and themove away fromprivate vehicles does not mean people no longer travel by car. In Switzer- land, automobile traffic still counts for 50% of journeys and 65% of distance covered, with cars becoming increasingly large and heavy. Councillor Ursula Wyss inaugurating a bike hire scheme in Berne, where more than 50 per cent of households no longer own a car. Photo: Keystone a private vehicle, which represents a sizeable cost,” comments Munafò. This trend is less noticeable in cities of under 100,000 inhabitants, which “creates a divide between cities and the countryside, where many homes have several cars”, points out Kaufmann. The people of Berne trust their public transport For communities looking to reduce congestion in public areas, there must be a good incentive, as is the case in Berne. “In the city, students and elderly people do not have cars. For others, in particular for families, the choice to give up a car is based on trust. In Berne, you know that you can find a Mobility car near to your home,” explains Ur- sulaWyss. Additionally, the quality of public transport in Berne is high. “It is the only city in Switzerlandwhere the inhabitants consider the public transport as one of the things they like best about where they live,” the socialist politician is pleased to note, quoting a recent survey. Once this position has been achieved, the authorities can actuate one of the key factors in soft mobility: lim- iting the number of carparks. The city of Berne plans to remove half of its 12,000 public parking spaces over the next fewyears. UrsulaWyss indicates that the spaces marked for removal are mainly those located on the pavements, which are currently problematic for Cars on the road, cars above the road – Geneva remains a very car-centric place compared to other Swiss cities. Photo: Keystone