Overview
This project comes from an analysis of the road tolls in Stockholm city in 2001. That study showed that the congestion problem on the roads in the area of Stockholm would fade away almost entirely, even with the calculated traffic levels for the year 2015, if a toll of 4 kr (approx. €0.42) per km was introduced in rush hour in the inner city and 2 kr (approx. €0.21) per km in the outer area of the city. This result was expected even though the traffic levels for 2015 were calculated to increase by 30% compared with the levels of today.
The study also showed that a toll of 2 kr per km in the inner city during rush hour combined with increased comfort in public transport would reduce the congestion and the traffic by almost as much as the higher toll. This result points at a package of road tolls combined with other measures and management means, that probably not would have the same effect separately, but together would give a synergy effect to decreased car traffic and on the negative environmental influence of urban transport.
The aim of this project has been to analyse the combination of management means to decrease the car traffic demand and the potential to decrease the congestion, environmental influence and the use of energy in the transport sector with a package of such management means.
Two scenarios with different combinations of management means and measures were analysed.
Scenario Synergy 1 comprises:
- Road tolls (2 kr per km in the inner city, 1 kr per km during rush hour in the inner city of Stockholm);
- Incentives for travelling together for work commuting trips in the inner city;
- Privilege taxation of parking spaces in work places in the inner city which are subsidised by employers.
In Scenario Synergy 2, the following management means was analysed:
- Road tolls (2 kr per km in the inner city, 1 kr per km during rush hour in the inner city of Stockholm);
- Attractive taxes in public transport;
- Investments in cycle paths;
- Investments due to better comfort in public transport.
Funding
Results
The results from the study show that the analysed combination of management means and other measures like mobility management have an effect on car traffic demand. The study shows that this type of means and management means should be included in analysis models and traffic prognosis used for infrastructure planning so the effect could be compared with the effects from traditional infrastructure investments.
The result shows that a combination of a lower road toll combined with other management means to increase congestion and encourage travelling by other traffic modes have almost the same effect on congestion than the twice as high toll does.
Policy implications
Investments in public transport could be a way to use the receipts from road tolls. The receipts from the lower road toll could cover the cost for:
- Extension of the Tvärbana;
- Extension of the regional public transport for 100 million kr (approx. €10.6 million);
- Replacement of all elderly subway and commuter trains;
- A new signalling system for one of the subway lines (den röda linjen).