The Low Car City Living Lab
The Challenge
Nowadays, Amsterdam is still quite car-friendly. You can easily travel from the ring to the center in 10 minutes and parking spaces are abundant.
However, Amsterdam wants to become a low-car city, this means that car usage and access will be reduced and other modes of transport will be prioritized.
But first, why a low car city?
95%
Percentage of time that a car spends occupying parking spaces.
This space could be allocated to other purposes such as bike lanes or greenery.
18%
Of the CO2 emissions of Amsterdam come from transport
Cars are the main CO2 emitter in this sector and the one that's growing at the fastest pace
40%
Of the public space is allocated to cars and its infrastructure
Why don't we build public space for people instead of cars?
Continue scrolling to learn more
This is the Metropolitan Region of Amsterdam (MRA)
It is one of the main economic and cultural centers of the Netherlands and Europe
To keep such a big area running, there's a complex mobility system in place.
Most people come to Amsterdam by public transport, but many still come by car.
In fact, almost half of the cars driving in Amsterdam every day come from outside of the city
According to data from the MPN (Mobiliteitspanel Nederland), 47% of car trips that end in the city start outside the city.
For most drivers, public transport could be an option, since their departure point is less than 4km away from a train station
But, why aren't they using public transport?
*This graph uses data from the MPN (Netherlands Mobility Panel)
Distance to the closest train station as an alternative to the car
This means that even though there are public transport options, they often take too long or are inconvenient for the users. This is one of the reasons why many people opt for the car as their main transport mode.
So, how can we make sure that people efficiently and comfortably reach their destinations without taking the car into the inner city?
The solution for that is P+R
P+R's are strategically located facilities that allow travellers to park their cars and hop on efficient and high quality public transport. It can be understood as a parking lot with a train or bus station attached to it.
The current P+R situation
There already is a P+R system in The Netherlands
Let's take a look at some problems that this system has nowadays.
Inconsistent distribution
P+R facilities are distributed equally in the city and outside the city. In some cases like Zeeburger Eiland or Olympisch Stadium they are already inside the city.
Multiple Managers
There are several public and private instances administering P+R facilities in the MRA. Each manager has their own rules and procedures and they don't talk to each other.
Different Pricing
Some P+R facilties are free to use, while others have different pricing schemes or discount rules which makes it confusing and less accessible for users.