Vienna shines: Second highest school road quota in Europe!

Vienna shines: Second highest school road quota in Europe!

Vienna is one of the pioneers in the field of school roads and traffic calming. Current data show that 26.1 percent of elementary schools have set up school roads in Vienna. This gives the city second among 36 major European cities. Only London is still ahead with 26.9 percent. These key figures show the city's efforts to make the school environment safer for children. The Verkehrsclub Austria (VCÖ) emphasizes that measures in front of schools are not sufficient to promote the independent mobility of children. Rather, a standard Tempo 30 area and corresponding traffic calms must also be introduced in residential areas in order to increase security.

Katharina Jaschinsky from the VCÖ emphasizes the importance of mobility for children's health: "Active mobility in everyday life is essential to counter the increasing lack of exercise." The proportion of streets in Vienna, which are designed for km/herse 30, is currently around 66 percent, which means tenth place in the European rank.

school roads as a solution for traffic problems

car traffic in front of schools not only leads to dangerous chaos, but also limits the independent mobility of children. In Austria, every fifth way of school is covered by car by car by children aged 6 to 14. At the same time, however, every third way of school goes on foot or by bike. Almost half uses public transport. School roads were integrated into the road traffic regulations in 2022 and enabled entry restrictions that reduce traffic and thus increase safety. It is expected that these measures also reduce traffic chaos through parent taxis and encourage children to be more active.

In traffic -calmed zones, children can play twice as long without parental supervision, which promotes their social development. Despite the positive developments, however, there is a great need for action, especially with regard to the Rad-infrastructure Vienna, which is still behind cities like Paris or Copenhagen with 22 percent structurally separate bike paths.

changes in the law and new impulses

The amendment to the road traffic regulations has reduced legal hurdles for the implementation of school roads. A new legal opinion and a practice -oriented guide were published to support municipalities in the permanent establishment of these safe school routes. Applications in cities such as Cologne and Berlin show the functionality and advantages of school streets. Steffen Brückner from the "Kidical Mass" campaign alliance emphasizes the importance of school roads in the creation of livable places and demands more consideration of school mobility in urban planning.

For a sustainable mobility turn, binding targets for the federal, state and municipalities must also be formulated. The mobility should be thought from the perspective of the children in order to have future generations navigated safely and independently through the city.

Overall, the developments in Vienna and other European cities show that school roads are an inexpensive and effective measure in order to sustainably improve traffic safety and mobility behavior of children. The commitment to safe school routes is supported by numerous national and international examples that can serve as a blueprint for further measures.

The progress is promising, but it remains to be seen how quickly and consistently the measures are implemented. The future of mobility for children is a collective responsibility that must now be implemented.

Further information can be found in the articles of Kleine Zeitung href = "https://vcoe.at/publikations/vcoe-factsheets/detail/schulstrassen-machen-machen-gulumbeld-sicherer"> vcö and VCD .