Opinion of Oslo's decision to phase out the use of private cars in city borders?

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Oslo has become the first major city (although probably not the last) to ban motor cars under the new Labour-Green-Left government. Your thoughts? Read this Atlantic article for the dets:

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/10/the-car-free-city/411781/

[TJ in Oregon]

I hope Madison doesn't get any ideas...

But seriously it would be fine as long as it's limited to a small area.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Well obviously it couldn't really work in America (although I guess if traininthedistance reads this he might crack down on my head for saying that). U.S. cities are too sparsely arranged (I pity the urban planer trying to work LA into a remotely usable city for non-motorists), zoning is too weirdly arranged and public transport routinely underfunded. But it would be interesting to see if the Oslo-dwellers (oslonians?) can figure out a way to make it work. A lot of European cities weren't really designed for the car, and you can ... tell.

[Figueira]

It's obviously impossible to really know until it goes into effect, but I voted FD because it's a good thing to try out.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Yes, although something tells me removing the car from, say, Washington DC or NYC would face a certain amount of roadblocks. (No pun intended)

[traininthedistance]

Well obviously it couldn't really work in America (although I guess if traininthedistance reads this he might crack down on my head for saying that). U.S. cities are too sparsely arranged (I pity the urban planer trying to work LA into a remotely usable city for non-motorists), zoning is too weirdly arranged and public transport routinely underfunded. But it would be interesting to see if the Oslo-dwellers (oslonians?) can figure out a way to make it work. A lot of European cities weren't really designed for the car, and you can ... tell.

FUN FACT:  When Norman Mailer ran for NYC Mayor in 1969, one of his campaign planks was making Manhattan car-free.  And Roosevelt Island was actually car-free for many years, though they eventually gave up on that.

But seriously, while it might be nice for some small areas like Manhattan south of Canal, or downtown/North End Boston, and while there are certainly individual streets where it might make sense to remove auto traffic, this isn't something I particularly care to push.  I mean, cars can drive on woonerfs, they just can't put their speed over other users' comfort and safety.  It's more important to tame them/build dedicated infra for other modes/make them pay their social costs over a wider range of urban areas, then it is to merely have symbolic car-free centers.  

Though seeing cities across the pond do it is good if only for the aspriational/rhetorical effect, and it obviously is feasible over there, so FD.

[Cranberry]

I don't know about Oslo, but the concept of car-free areas in European cities is not a particularly new one - nearly every city here, mostly in the narrow medieval city parts, but not only, has pedestrian-only areas, and they can be quite extensive relative to the city's size. I'm guessing this project in Oslo might go one step further than is the norm thus far in Europe, but the idea is not really that brand new and/or radically shocking.

I obviously think this is a very Freedom Thing to do.

[tpfkaw]

No, ban bicycles and make mopeds punishable by death.

[dead0man]

FD I guess, why would anybody that doesn't live there or go there care one way or the other...other than in a "oh, that's interesting, good luck with that" kind of way.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

sounds like it's just in the downtown area.  do they have plans for what the people living their do with their cars?

[DC Al Fine]

How do proposals like this work for businesses? Do they make exceptions for say, a truck delivering ingredients to a restaurant?

[Torie]

How do proposals like this work for businesses? Do they make exceptions for say, a truck delivering ingredients to a restaurant?

Chautauqua is basically a small town. Service vehicles are allowed in, and for loading and unloading and deliveries, one can get a one hour pass to use a vehicle to do that. Cars otherwise are parked in a common parking lot nearby with shuttle service. It works well.

[RFayette]

No, ban bicycles and make mopeds punishable by death.

[Cranberry]

sounds like it's just in the downtown area.  do they have plans for what the people living their do with their cars?

Probably give them some parking spot outside the no-traffic area. Given the usual demographics of a European downtown-dweller, this should not be too many though

[DemPGH]

I would not support something like that here because it simply would not work, but if Oslo can make it work, more power to them.

[Clark Kent]

Horrible decision. Cars are good.

[Lexii, harbinger of chaos and sexual anarchy]

It's worked pretty good at the BA downtown

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

I fail to see why this would work in New York. Too many visitors from NJ & CT. Ideally locals wouldn't be unnecessarily driving, but a lot of things are actually quite distant and would too many connections. Shopping without a car is also pretty dire.

[Hatman 🍁]

No, ban bicycles and make mopeds punishable by death.

I certainly hope you guys are not serious.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

No, ban bicycles and make mopeds punishable by death.

Amen!

[DavidB.]

The idea that some people would want to ban bicycles might be the only way to convince a majority of Dutch people that the death penalty is something to be supported.

Anyway, I generally support banning cars from European city centers, at least if there is good public transportation, but this seems like a typically leftist form of taking it too far and making people's lives harder just for the sake of ideological rigidity. HD.

[dead0man]

I don't live in a place where cars and bikes share the same road.  We have a pretty good bike network here in Omaha, but it's mostly off street (and less convenient for most people, so it's more used for exercising instead of commuting....I think, not really sure).  So I don't have a hatred of the smaller two wheelers.  Kind of like 'em actually.  I like anything that goes faster than a human can run.  Something inside me desires speed.  It's why I drive Mazda.

[traininthedistance]

No, ban bicycles and make mopeds punishable by death.

I certainly hope you guys are not serious.

I think you don't quite understand how powerful a motivation hippie-punching is for some people.

[dead0man]

Have you ever punched a hippy?  SOOOOOOO satisfying.  Even watching Forrest Gump do it makes one feel good.