Saturday 10 February 2024

Estonia's capital Tallinn has had free transport for the past 11 years

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/06/estonia-is-making-public-transport-free/

"Logically, free public transport should also encourage people to leave their cars at home, easing traffic congestion and reducing air pollution.

But a 2016 analysis of the Tallinn scheme found it didn’t really encourage many people to stop driving.

In 2014, a year into the experiment, the use of public transport had increased by 14%. However, car use only declined by 5%.

In fact, it was walkers who hopped on buses, as the number of trips made on foot dropped by a staggering 40%.

And while the share of car use marginally decreased, the average distance travelled by car actually went up.

In summary, the modal shift from car to public transport was accompanied by an undesired shift from walking to public transport and an increase in car traffic,” the study says.

Public transport use increased dramatically among the old and the young, and those on a very low income, as well as those out of employment and education.

However, there is no indication that employment opportunities improved as a result, according to the study."   World Economic Forum

No comments:

Post a Comment