Tonight's episode of Presadiretta, Monday 30 September, takes us to Oslo. A car-free, efficient and liveable city that has taken the climate challenge seriously.
Environmental issues take prime time on Rai, and once again it is thanks to Presadiretta, the programme hosted by Riccardo Iacona. After an investigation into the spread of gambling and gambling addiction, the next episode heads off to discover Oslo, a city that is showing Europe the way towards a zero-emission future. The programme airs on Monday 30 September at 21:45 on Raitre.
Zero cars in the city centre by 2019: with this landmark announcement, around three years ago the administration of the Norwegian capital launched a complex programme aimed at discouraging the use of private cars by every means possible. First, it removed around seven hundred parking spaces, leaving only those for people with disabilities and a number of charging stations for electric vehicles; at the same time it introduced a system of tolls, which become steeper for more polluting vehicles.
"By now almost the entire city centre is closed to traffic," confirms the report's author, Alessandro Macina. "We walked through it ourselves and found that getting around and living there is simply better." The areas that until recently were colonised by cars have in fact become public gardens, cycle paths and squares — spaces that adults and children can reclaim, to fully enjoy their own city. This is borne out by the fact that, despite some inevitable resistance, the reception has generally been very positive: "The project reached completion this year, but behind it lie four years of consultation with the local population," the journalist points out.
"I think it's important to reflect on what kind of city we want to live in. I am sure that when people imagine their ideal city, they don't dream of polluted air, cars permanently stuck in traffic or streets full of parked vehicles," comments deputy mayor for urban development Hanne Marcussen, in an email quoted by Fast Company.
A transition of this scale is, by necessity, only possible if a widespread and efficient public transport system is put into action. Oslo's administration adds an extra element: electric. By 2028 all buses will be electric, by 2023 taxis and ferries too — the latter currently accounting for 10 per cent of the city's emissions.
In the city centre, which covers a fairly limited area, 90 per cent of the population lives no more than three hundred metres from a public transport stop. It follows that walking, cycling or boarding a bus are already convenient and practical options. Then there are the three car-sharing networks, with 360 vehicles and 9,600 users, and the 205 kilometres of cycle paths (in addition to 567 kilometres of trails and shared cycling and walking routes).
The only cars that are welcome are electric and plug-in hybrid ones: in Oslo alone, around 35,000 are in circulation. Among new cars sold in 2015–2016, three in ten were electric. The state supports them not so much through straightforward monetary incentives, but through a mix of benefits: they pay neither tolls nor registration taxes, purchasing and leasing are exempt from VAT, they can use bus lanes and park free of charge in municipal spaces. To lead by example, the administration is also replacing its entire fleet of 1,100 vehicles.
"People make this choice for environmental reasons, but also because it makes more economic sense. Until recently they were spending hundreds of euros a month on petrol; recharging, by contrast, costs next to nothing," comments Alessandro Macina. "In Norway, electric is a mass market. This is shown by the fact that all the major car manufacturers have started offering only electric models, including Fca with the 500."
Sustainable mobility is an indispensable pillar of the plan through which Oslo has committed to halving its greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 and eliminating them entirely by 2030. This holistic and bold approach earned it the title of European Green Capital 2019. It also includes the recovery of disused spaces, transformed into urban farms where anyone can spend a couple of hours raking or pulling weeds. Or the highway for bees — a network of flowering gardens and wooden structures where insects can find food and shelter, right in the heart of the city.
As a climate change adaptation policy — since climate change in the area manifests primarily in the form of torrential rain and flooding — over the past decade eight rivers (totalling 2.8 kilometres) that had previously been buried to make way for concrete have been reopened. Work is under way on a further eight, stretching across almost three kilometres.
If one had to find the symbol of this green transition, the choice would undoubtedly fall on Vulkan. Until 2005 it was a former industrial district along the banks of the Akerselva river, left abandoned for fifty long years. Then a regeneration project began that transformed it into the city's most vibrant neighbourhood, made up of apartments, offices, venues, schools, hotels and cultural centres. It is also home to the large Mathallen food market, a regular stop for tourists and chefs in search of inspiration. Its rooftops house two enormous wooden beehives, designed by the architecture firm Snøhetta.
All these buildings are self-sufficient in terms of energy and have a very low environmental impact, as they are powered partly by solar panels and partly by a geothermal plant located three hundred metres underground. The eponymous car park, with its 102 charging points, is the largest electric vehicle charging station in Europe. "We are talking about enormous investments, both public and private," concludes Alessandro Macina, "but they stem from an awareness: this is the future."
"Vizio di stato" and "Oslo senza auto" are a report by Riccardo Iacona with Raffaella Pusceddu, Andrea Vignali, Alessandro Macina, Fabrizio Lazzaretti, edited by Raffaele Marco Della Monica. They air in the fifth episode of the new season of Presadiretta, on Monday 30 September at 21.45 on Raitre.
