In order to develop a Toolkit to design car-free cities, this work examines four different cities, namely Amsterdam, Copenhagen, London and Oslo. Initially, the current problem caused by car use in cities is identified then current transportation plans are examined. The results of these case studies show that cars cause multiple problems within cities, which can be subdivided into an emission problem a traffic problem and an urban planning problem. Furthermore, the studies show that it is not enough to solve one problem but provide a holistic solution concept which implements multiple measures simultaneously. The case studies, especially the situation in Oslo show that even today there are developments towards a car-free city with high public acceptance. However urban and traffic planners have to be aware, that there are two perspectives of planning. The motivation for cities to change their transportation system does not correspond with reasons why people choose their mode of transport. This has to be considered when Cities try to communicate the benefits of their transportation policy. Additionally, this work also introduces a new definition for car-free: “A city is called car-free if all stresses, restrictions and hazards caused by moving and stationary motorized traffic are minimized.” Furthermore, a quick expert survey about the barriers and drivers in a developing process of a car free city, possible measures to create a car-free city and the possible advantages and disadvantages of car-free cities, was conducted. The results of this survey suggest that experts image a car-free city as a liveable, healthy city with safe and attractive public space. Key barriers seem to be the lack of political will or the high dependence on cars as well as concerns of the retail sector. Key drivers seem to be a high quality public transport, as well as a high quality walking and cycling infrastructure. A combination of push and pull strategies appear to be most effective. Important measures to create a car-free city are the promotion of public transport, the promotion of high quality walking and cycling infrastructure and restrictive measures like charges and the reduction of parking space. These measures come along with a new priority of planning policy which prioritizes walking before cycling before public transport before individual traffic modes. To summarize, the result of this work is a description of the planning process, its key factors and appropriate measures to create a car-free city.
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In order to develop a Toolkit to design car-free cities, this work examines four different cities, namely Amsterdam, Copenhagen, London and Oslo. Initially, the current problem caused by car use in cities is identified then current transportation plans are examined. The results of these case studies show that cars cause multiple problems within cities, which can be subdivided into an emission problem a traffic problem and an urban planning problem. Furthermore, the studies show that it is not e...
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