On the occasion of European Mobility Week and World Car Free Day, which is celebrated today, “Jutro za sve” hosted an expert in the field of traffic, professor of the traffic faculty in Sarajevo, Osman Lindov, who spoke about the concept of urban mobility and how much work is being done on it in our country.
“Europe designed this week of urban mobility and declared today the Day Without Cars, with the intention of sending a message to the citizens of Europe, in the cities, to use this week for some other way of movement, not only with a car. Unfortunately, today’s Day Without Cars is not taken seriously by our country or our cities,” Professor Lindov believes.
Urban mobility, among other things, represents the possibility that people can use their cars less and choose another form of transport instead. Our guest believes that citizens must have a good offer.
“Bike paths, paths that are safe, that have no connection with motor traffic, reduce the areas for motor traffic, open new areas for cyclists, commuters, and pedestrians, so that there is as little danger as possible in connection with motor traffic. That is why we need to lower uneven motor vehicles on the ground, leave pedestrians on the ground, cyclists, and in this way give the possibility that citizens do not use their individual vehicles”, stresses Lindov.
He pointed out that public transport must therefore be at the appropriate level – safe and punctual.
“… that you can enter at any time, that you can access the bus station, tram station, minibus station at any time, that this is the schedule that will be maintained, which is designed for the needs of these citizens,” says Lindov.
This year’s European Mobility Week is celebrated under the motto “Mobility for all”, with special emphasis on the elderly, children and people with disabilities.
Professor Lindov points out that, unfortunately, our guidelines for designing and building roads are about 20 years old.
“It is not understood that strictly every means of public transport must be adequate for people with disabilities, the elderly, that every station must have adequate ramps lowered for both cyclists and people in wheelchairs. Society or the state should initiate clearer guidelines, clearer controls. You cannot build a road today without a bike path and without tactile strips for people with reduced visibility or people with disabilities,” he emphasized.
Asked to comment on the safety problem of electric scooters, but also of other road users who come into contact with them, professor Lindov said that, in his opinion, the problem is not scooters but cars.
“Here, look, now we’re on a road, the main city highway, look how many motorhomes, cyclists you see? You don’t see them. Every, let’s say, every 15, 20 minutes, half an hour, they come by. And now they’re our problem. They’re not, people, the problem is 40,000 motor vehicles in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina alone,” he said.
Lindov points out that scooters are an alternative to motor vehicles and that we must accept them as an integral part of urban movement.
“But what we have to do, on the other hand, is to make safe paths for them, so that they don’t disturb pedestrians, so that they don’t collide with motor vehicles. Unfortunately, some of our local legislation said: ‘Come on, now we’ll control and stop them, they’re our biggest problem, we’ll sanction them.’ Come on, people, sanction motor vehicles,” Professor Osman Lindov concluded, BHRT writes.
