In an attempt to cut down on inner city transport and make the environment cleaner, the government reportedly has a plan in the pipeline to close off Bratislava city centre completely to all traffic, except electric shuttle trams and bicycles, which will then be free for everyone.
The government wants to put the ambitious plan, announced today on this assumptive 1 April, into practice already this summer, and will push for other cities in Europe to do the same.
The zone goes as far as to include PKO and River Park to the west and to the new Apollo business centres to the east, and all the way to the main train station. On the Petrzalka side, the car-free zone will start at Einsteinova. The money that could be saved from not having to rebuild a new ‘Stary Most’ bridge could be used for the project.
Word has already spread to Brussels, which commended the plan for being a brave but motivating one, and it is already thinking of making it compulsory for all cities in the EU, as part of its drive to combat pollution and energy consumption.
Environmentalists fully back the innovative initiative and believe that it would change the face of Europe if applied to all major cities. Bratislava City Hall is worried about the logistics of the plan, though, and it thinks it might have a negative impact on tourism. Some believe that only fools would go ahead with the plan.
wow. good luck. so the innards of bratislava will only be open to the exceptional lot of mafia and politicians who have those handy stickers on their cars?