- The Swiss Association of Cities wants Tempo 30 to become the norm in cities.
- In this way, the perceived traffic noise could be halved.
- According to a new position paper, reducing the speed from 50 km/h to 30 km/h results in three decibels less noise.
- This is because traffic will flow more smoothly and noisy accelerations will become less frequent.
Legend:
The speed reduction would significantly reduce the noise, argues the association of cities. Here a Tempo 30 sign in the city of Geneva.
KEYSTONE/Salvatore Di Nolfi
The association of cities argued that the problem of noise intensified with increasing inner concentration. In addition, there would be changed lifestyles and a new composition of the population.
Experience has shown that a new mix and intensified use of public spaces would be better accepted if the noise did not increase.
“An effective measure”
With reference to a study by the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), the association of cities also expects costs of CHF 2.3 billion a year to be attributed to road noise. This is because the value of exposed properties is falling and the health consequences of noise pollution are expensive.
Tempo 30 is “an effective, inexpensive and easy to implement measure”. It also corresponds to the polluter pays principle and can be easily combined with public transport.
Tempo 30 should become the norm
So far, according to the Association of Cities, the Federal Supreme Court has only recognized individual cases or road section-related orders of 30 km/h on main roads.
From 2023, Tempo 30 should be able to be introduced on “non-traffic-oriented” roads without an expert opinion. Now the traffic regulation ordinance must be adapted, according to the association of cities.