Will Brussels seal the fate of King Auto?
As of August 16, 22, the city of Brussels wants almost all through traffic out of its center. This concerns the streets that are located in the pentagon, the small ring that is surrounded by…. Of course, Brussels will not unleash a mobility revolution; smaller Belgian cities have done it before and the plan is probably also partly designed by examples. Whether they are successful or not. Since we’re here CarGuide still happy and with the enthusiasm and commitment to the interests of motorists, we can immediately start to kill. Or at least a procedure to devise to go against the plan. But maybe we should start making these kinds of decisions differently.
Of course we remain suspicious of all measures that (again) take away a piece of private mobility. But anyone who occasionally ventures into the center of Brussels by car also knows that it is almost saturated today. And tearing down blocks of houses to create drawn avenues, that is really no longer an issue in 2022. You can hardly object that the real core of the city is primarily the domain of the people who trade there, who live there and whose children go to school. Provided, of course, that some important conditions are met for all other ‘visitors’ to the city.
Hopefully, the plan won’t turn into a nightmare for merchants who have to deliver merchandise on a regular basis.
Such as easily accessible and more parking spaces just outside the ‘through’ zones do not pass by. There may already be enough car parks in Brussels – we even know some where you hardly see a car on a few days – but they are also quite expensive. Good public transport seems to us to be a second requirement. In metropolises such as Paris, New York and Tokyo, cities that once had too large centers to really accommodate the through traffic that will soon be targeted in Brussels, few residents have their own car. They will never be able to leave behind anyway. But they can rely on a wonderful metro network, with which you can move very quickly and quite comfortably. Extending metro lines to the real ‘suburbs’ of Brussels, think of Halle, Vilvoorde or even Leuven, can we also dream?
Hopefully the plan will be prevented, but not a nightmare for traders who regularly have to leave shopping goods, for less mobile people who really need to be able to travel with their car until, for a has bought van for those who need a move early of late. This can all be solved with posts, passes and even cameras with number plate recognition, the Brussels policymakers are making a strong case for. Shall we give them the benefit of the doubt for now?