Transport club slams government’s ‘out of date’ road plans

Two wheels good: The Swiss Transport Club wants to see more bicycle lanes © Keystone / Salvatore Di Nolfi

The Swiss Transport Club is calling for a reorientation of road construction policy in Switzerland. At its annual conference on Monday the association pleaded for more 30km/h speed zones and an expansion of bicycle paths.

Government plans for the further expansion of the national roads are “completely out of date”, it said in a statementExternal link. Current policy “creates new traffic problems instead of fixing old ones”, it said.

In its opinion, the planned expansion projects are “oversized and unsuitable for solving existing traffic problems”. More roads result in more traffic, it said.

“Instead of pouring more than CHF4 billion ($4.3 billion) into asphalt, the funds must be invested in sustainable transport projects and infrastructure,” said the organisation’s president, Ruedi Blumer.

The Swiss Transport Club is calling for investment in public transport and cycling infrastructure. In addition, more 30km/h speed zones should be created, especially on traffic-oriented roads in cities, it said.