managing

 Motorised vehicles are seldom seen travelling through the historic centre of JERROEN WILLEMS

for vehicles which have an end point within Ghent.” No way through He adds that the plan has helped public transport to circulate more freely and claims there are now almost for motorists in Ghent no traffic jams in the centre. “Keeping private vehicles out of the Through traffic has been banished from the centre of ’s centre helps to keep the city alive; our third largest city in an effort to relieve congestion. Could such a goal is to make Ghent more accessible, sustainable and liveable. The car radical measure work in the UK? is no longer the preferred mode of transportation in the city.” irst time visitors to the medieval dispensation. Thirty two cameras track Additional changes recently city of Ghent cannot fail to vehicles passing between districts, with implemented include increasing Fnotice the impressive Gothic a €55 fine levied at motorists without the size of the city’s only architecture of several imposing authority to do so. areas from 35ha to 51ha, reducing buildings such as Saint Bavo Cathedral Restricting movement across the speed limits across the city to 30km/h and Saint Nicholas’ Church. But city is aimed at preventing longer and increasing the price of parking something else, not so obvious at first distance traffic from entering and a vehicle on the or in an glance, marks this place out from most congesting Ghent, but it seems also underground car park by a factor of other : there is next to no traffic to have dramatically reduced shorter “Keeping private at least two. throughout much of the centre. journeys by vehicles inside the vehicles out of An extra 2400 extra parking spaces It is nearly a year since the City conurbation. Transfer between two the centre keeps have been created outside of the city, of Ghent authority introduced a districts has also been made harder the city alive.” with a dedicated shuttle bus providing ‘Circulation Plan’ which makes it very following the introduction of several Frank Vanden access to the centre. And an electric Bulcke difficult, if not impossible, to drive ‘cuts’ to key routes, prohibiting all people mover known as a Wandlebus through the city from one side to the motorised traffic from passing. provides free travel within the larger other. Ghent has been divided into six “Before the Circulation Plan was pedestrian only zones to frail persons districts that surround the historic introduced, around 40% of the traffic in or those with young children. centre and are collectively circled by a Ghent was not heading to a destination Cycle infrastructure has also been ring , 11km in circumference. in the city; now those vehicles have improved, with more dedicated Motorists are free to enter any of gone,” says the city’s mobility director routes created. Journeys by bike the six districts from the and Frank Vanden Bulcke. “We have also Dover currently account for around 30% of leave the same way, but are generally found that cutting the city up into • • Ghent all movements, and the city authority not permitted to drive from one district ‘pizza slices’ has removed a lot of local aims to increase this figure to 35% to another unless they have special traffic and there is better accessibility by 2030. >

24 transportation professional managing traffic

Evolution of radical city thinking Ghent may only have 259,000 inhabitants but in Circulation Plan last April, when the city centre the 14th Century was one of the largest cities in was divided into six sectors to manage traffic Europe. With industrialisation 500 years later the movement and the pedestrianised zones were city became a centre for the cotton industry. doubled in size. As the city evolved, the population spread At one important beside a out over a wide area and today its ring road in the city – previously popular with both cars encompasses a notably large area for the size of and cyclists – access for private vehicles has

conurbation. now been banned. Up to 800 cars used to pass  Ghent champions tranquil living JERROEN WILLEMS Twenty years ago Ghent introduced a through the intersection each hour, but now as , banning through traffic from many as 1400 bikes an hour ride through the area be breaking the rules when behind the wheel in a the historic centre. “It was a huge success, every morning and evening. Red lines painted on pedestrian zone. despite some shopkeepers not agreeing at the the road remind approaching motorists that they Elsewhere in the city, junction priorities have beginning,” says the city’s strategic mobility are no longer allowed to pass that point. changed to favour the movement of cycles over planner Jan Gheldof. “But a couple of years ago Motorists who live in a pedestrianised area cars. Cycling through the city in December, TP we noticed a problem with through traffic and are permitted to drive to their homes. But some noticed how easy it was to get around by bike. But the Mayor decided it was time for a rethink in residents have started to display a sticker in cobbled in the centre were slippery in the terms of how traffic is regulated.” their windscreens to deflect unwarranted rain and care had to be taken to avoid getting your This rethink led to the introduction of Ghent’s criticism from other road users that they may front wheel lodged in one of many tram lines.

Ghent’s new Circulation Plan Could a circulation plan, like that seen in Ghent, work in large towns and cities in the UK? Antwerp   Bruges Laura Peacock City districts Innovation manager Brugse Poort Oxfordshire County Council Rabot This is a very interesting proposal. Whether R40 Coupure something similar would work in Oxford ring road Tolhuis requires more detailed consideration and Krook technical work, not least an understanding R40 Portus Ganda of the impact on the Oxford ‘Ring Road’ which already carries R4 large volumes of traffic and the A34 for a significant section. ring Car free areas road We are actively exploring options for further demand Rivers, management in Oxford city to stop general traffic moving through the centre. This includes consideration of a congestion charge and workplace parking levy, which would support and complement proposals for bus rapid transit, a step change in cycling and public realm and a city wide zero emission zone.  The Council is also collaborating with data aggregation and communication innovators to explore how we combine these > Ghent’s mobility team is confident for relatively small cities, like Ghent? new methods with demand management. that the Circulation Plan has notably Frank Vanden Bulcke does not think so. reduced vehicle movements and claims “Most of the things we are doing could Tony Ciaburro FCIHT also that bus patronage has risen by be exported to little cities, but also to Chief executive, SOCIETAL and former around 10% since last spring. big cities too,” he says. Northamptonshire County Council director But it will not know for sure how ’s central area has evolved successful it has been in cutting traffic around an ancient street layout and is until this April, when a set of data is extremely sensitive to even the most minor published to mark the end of the plan’s incident or change in travel patterns. first year of implementation. We have what could once have been described as an ‘Inner But while vehicle use within Ring Road’ but decades of sporadic development has been such the central cordon is likely to have that it is now the key distributor road for most traffic entering or dropped, the city authority recognises leaving the central area and the town. also that some routes providing access It is already at capacity most of the time and is fed by a to and from the ring road may have number of heavily congested radial routes. For many motorists seen an increase in traffic. there is very little opportunity to vary their routes. Overall, the city is pleased with how Preventing traffic from travelling between local districts the Circulation Plan has performed. would have little effect on the central area congestion. However, But can a ban on vehicles travelling  More than a third of journeys in the city radical solutions such as Ghent’s are heading in the right through an urban centre work only are made by bike JERROEN WILLEMS direction and remind us that we have to be bold in our thinking.

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