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By 2019, one European capital city plans to be completely car-free.
A newly-elected city council in Oslo, Norway, made the landmark decision to restrict all private vehicles from the capital’s centre, marking the first permanent ban of this kind, theweathernetwork.com reported.
Oslo’s city council is comprised of Norway’s Labour, Green, and Socialist Left parties – all of which intend to construct 60 km of extra bike lanes in the interim, while allocating more funds to the city’s public transport system, Reuters reports.
“We want to have a car-free centre,” Lan Marie Nguyen Berg (28), lead negotiator for the Green Party in Oslo, told Reuters. She’s now a member of the City Government, as Councillor for the Environment and Communications.
The ban is part of a larger plan from Oslo’s politicians, calling for a drastic reduction of carbon emissions, including cutting all carbon emissions in half in five years, by comparison to 1990s levels.
Although the proposal is environmentally appealing, there are concerns about accessibility issues for commuters with disabilities. Local businesses, too, worry that lack of vehicle access will impact their Revenue.
Council members have assured the public that vehicles transporting those with disabilities, or bringing food to businesses, will still be permitted in the area.
For those unable to ride a bike, or reluctant to use public transport, the city has offered to subsidize the cost of an electric bike.
Sources: www.theweathernetwork.com, Reuters, The Huffington Post
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