Reducing traffic emissions may force a restriction on the use of combustion engine cars in Helsinki. It is important that the changes are made openly and in anticipation so that the townspeople have time to prepare for them.
Bin Elsing, there is a discussion about restricting driving to an even greater extent. Deputy mayor Anni Sinnemäki (green) has hinted that Helsinki could have a similar zone where gasoline and diesel cars are prohibited, as is being planned for Stockholm. On Wednesday, the order from Aalto University was announced prognosis about what would happen to emissions if combustion engine cars were banned in 2035. The background is that Helsinki aims to be carbon neutral in 2030.
Private motoring is responsible for about one-tenth of the city's total emissions. According to the report, the electrification of driving is not enough to reduce emissions quickly enough. The number of electric cars is predicted to rise from the current three percent to 42 percent by 2030.
The new proposals will certainly divide opinions, that's what motoring has done in the capital lately. Helsinki is committed to promoting sustainable forms of transport, such as walking, cycling and public transport. In practice, the measures have sometimes looked more like an attempt to make driving more difficult than an effort to promote other modes of transport. Entrepreneurs in the center consider the difficulty of car traffic to be one of the reasons for the city center becoming dull. The attitude towards driving is inflamed also between city officials.
The confusion has been increased by the fact that the reasons for restricting driving have varied depending on the situation. Along with reducing emissions, there has also been a desire to limit electric cars on the grounds that cars take up too much space. It is good to get clarity on this, because reducing emissions is a major common goal, while dividing urban space is an ideological issue. Now they sometimes seem to be confused.
It is difficult for decision-makers to justify their decisions with an effort to make driving more difficult and less. Thus, decisions can end up being justified by the promotion of walking or cycling even in areas where there is no great need to restrict driving. It has made motorists suspect that the city is pursuing its own hidden agenda in traffic policy.
Instead, limiting traffic emissions is a clear and acceptable goal. It is good that the citizens are told about the plans early and openly so that they have time to prepare for the changes. That is how the common city should be developed.
The editorials are HS's positions on a current topic. The articles are prepared by HS's editorial department, and they reflect the journal principle line.
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