• Stockholm charge has immediate positive impact

    Stockholm introduced its congestion charge last month, with an immediate drop in car journeys, a decrease in journey times, and a shift onto public transport.

    Download file - form

    Please complete the this form to have access to file, once submitted the file will load on the browser window.

    On the first day the overall number of cars travelling to and from the city centre was down by 25%. In some places at the most expensive times of day it was down by 35%, with an overall average after the first full week between 25% and 30%.

    “This is beyond our expectations, and the system is also working well technically,” a finance ministry expert told the French news agency AFP.

    Many of Sweden’s most skeptical media suddenly changed their view. Those who were expecting chaos suddenly found themselves reporting on the success of the charge, with one tabloid even running the headline “City reclaimed!”

    The Swedish capital has largely followed the model of the London congestion charge introduced in February 2003, but with certain differences. The main one is a toll ring rather than charge zone – motorists having to pay in both directions, with the charge differentiated according to the time of day.

    But many of the impacts of the Stockholm charge have followed those observed in London. The effect of the charge in getting people out of cars and onto public transport was greater than the predicted willingness to pay.

    As a result, projected income from the charge is 20-30% lower than expected, but SL, the public transport company which made extra capacity available as the charge began, has reported increased usage and no problems with overcrowding. In addition, new “Park & Ride” car parks at tram and underground stations outside the toll ring have proved popular.

    Buses, taxis and distribution vehicles have reported reductions in travel times, and a city spokeswoman said the time needed to drive from one side of the city to the other in rush-hour was only 45% longer than during off-peak hours, compared with 200% normally. Traffic levels on the roads just outside the outer charge band were up a little, but much less than had been feared.

    If the London experience is reliable, the impact of the charge may be reduced as people get used to it, but Stockholm has a target reduction of 15%, and London has settled on a level of traffic around 15% less than before its charge.

    The Swedish charge is a seven-month experiment that will end in July. Then there will be a referendum on whether to continue with it, though party politics could mean voters vote not just on what they think of the charge.

    This news story is taken from the February 2006 edition of T&E Bulletin.