September 22, 2022
Car-free days: A proven and popular measure to reduce oil demand
Summary
In the light of the planned EU/UK embargo on Russian oil, the ongoing energy crisis and the climate emergency, many people can agree there is an urgent need to reduce Europe’s fossil fuel con-
sumption. The question is how to do it.
Car-free days are one of the most effective ways to rapidly reduce oil consumption in the short term. Our analysis estimates that one single car-free day implemented in major European cities could save between 534 and 932 thousand barrels of oil!
That’s why we’re calling on cities to quickly introduce regular car-free days at least until the energy crisis is over.
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Key Findings
- One single car-free day implemented in major European cities could save between 534 and 932 thousand barrels of oil.
- One weekly car-free day in all major EU and UK cities could therefore reduce the annual oil consumption from urban transport in Europe by around 3 to 5%.
- This equals 0.63% to 1.10% of the EU’s total annual oil consumption, or the annual oil demand of the three Baltic states Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Infographic
People in these European cities think cars should be banned one day a week
“This research clearly shows that car-free days are a sure fire way to get cities off oil very fast without any complicated infrastructure or policy change,” says Barbara Stoll, director of the Clean Cities Campaign.
The case for car-free
Lobbyists from the Clean Cities Campaign argue that implementing a weekly car-free day in all major EU and U.K. cities could “reduce the annual oil consumption from urban transport in Europe by around 3 percent to 5 percent” — a drop equivalent to the total oil consumption of the Baltic states.
Car-free day, volete sapere quanto petrolio risparmieremmo con un giorno senza auto?
“Le giornate senz’auto ci offrono un’anteprima di come le nostre città potrebbero essere se dessimo più spazio alle persone e meno alle auto – ha sottolineato Claudio Magliulo, responsabile italiano della campagna Clean Cities.
The Mancunian Way: A million cars on our roads
Manchester deserves London-style public transport and bike lanes – but not London-style air pollution. That’s according to clean air campaigners who are calling on leaders to ‘turbo charge’ transport plans so the city doesn’t become ‘overrun’ with cars.
El Día sin Coches reclama que se aceleren las Zonas de Bajas Emisiones en España
La campaña Clean Cities (Ciudades limpias) de su grupo ecologista busca “dar prioridad a la salud de las personas por encima del uso al vehículo privado”.