Strategien für ein nachhaltiges Verkehrssystem
Authors: Thaler Robert 
Published: March 2017

The consequences of today's European transport system are more than alarming: about 70 000 people are killed and 2 000 000 are injured every year in road accidents; private and commercial motor traffic, and to an increasing degree, air traffic are the main polluters (especially of the
air we breathe). Not only vegetation but also our health is being harmed, locally (in our cities and near the main motorways) as well as globally (CO2 emissions). Although the quality of life of an enormous number of people is reduced by these effects, the number of vehicles is
increasing, road-traffic volume is growing, traffic distances and speeds are going up, and traffic jams on the road and in the air are getting worse. In the transport market the principle “supply causes demand” is true for all means of transport, the offered quality of the means
of transport together with its infrastructure heavily influences mobility and new desires for mobility. In addition to the supply of infrastructure the price for transport heavily also influences the demand. The development of traffic no longer corresponds with the development of prosperity:
In the countries of the OECD traffic has risen disproportionately to their gross national product (GNP). Between 1965 and 1985 the GNP of the OECD countries increased by 81 percent, private car traffic by 137 percent, truck traffic by 133 percent, international truck traffic by 296 percent,
and truck transit on the Brenner even by a staggering 932 percent! So it is obvious that more kilometres are driven and more is transported than is proportionate to the national economies. This is the consequence of a distortion of costs favouring road traffic. So the rocketing increase
of cars, trucks and air traffic is no law of nature, but the result of a transport policy which promotes these means of transport in a very one-sided way. Further transport policy must not be based on auto-ideologies but on the scientific comparision of the means of transport taking into
account the ecological and economic advantages. This balance results in a clear hierarchy for a sustainable transport system: Pedestrians before cyclists before train before bus (called “soft mobility”), much before cars with catalytic converter before cars without before trucks
before planes. The European Federation for Transport and Environment (T & E), an association of ecologically orientated transport organisations, wants to see a “sustainable transport policy” based on ecology as well as economy – in its original meaning of being economical
with the use of natural sources of living – demanding a set of measures on four levels: • Avoidance of motorized driving by making pay its full costs through the enforcement of the “polluter pays” principle on the transport market (see the proposed principle of “ecobonus”
by the Environmental Transport Associations in Europe VCS, VCÖ, VCD, ETA) and traffic-avoiding regional planning and economic policy. • A shift to ecologically beneficial means of transport by encouraging public and non-motorized transport and parallel restrictions for cars,
trucks and planes. • An ecologically beneficial development of necessary transport by establishing strict environmental standards, a shift towards “cleaner” technology, traffic calming in towns, and car and truck restriction measures. • A consciousness and marketing
offensive for “soft mobility”. People in general and the opinion leaders in particular must be informed about the bad consequences of the excessive use of cars, and the positive possibilities for a better quality of the environment by enforcing “soft mobility” and
reduced car traffic. For the protection of human health and liveable cities, politicians and city planners must emancipate them from the demands of car traffic. Therefore the model of a “auto-free” city with high mobility for public transport, cyclists and pedestrians should
be the vision to be realised by 2000.