Signatory Profile
21 Jul 2010
City of Karlstad - Karlstads kommun
Sweden | Local/public authority
The city of Karlstad with 82.000 inhabitants is the biggest city in the county of Värmland. The municipality is 1165 km2 and inhabitants per km2 is 70.
The total number of employees in the city organization is about 6000.
Commitment
Some of the actions taken in our last commitment will be carried on with also in this commitment.
· The length of road safety bicycle lanes in the city centre will be increased.
During 2009 the municipality will extend the bicycle net 4,65 km. During 2010 the bicycle net will be extended another 2,5 km.
· Bicycle or walk to school, phase two, will be undertaken in the coming years. The aim of the project "Let the children walk and bike to the school" is to decrease the car kilometres made by parents giving a lift for the kids to school. The project will measure how many kids are having a lift to schools; it will carry out a questionnaire to parents about how the trips to school are for kids. There will be made an action plan about rebuilding streets, bike lanes etc. There will be campaigns about environment, road safety, health etc targeting parents, teachers and children.
The action plan will improve the traffic environment around the schools. This action plan consists of both physical and educational measures. When the traffic environment will improve and the level of safety increase children can walk and bike to school with less risk for accidents.
· In late autumn the Road safety committee is distributing reflector tags and information about bike safety.
Representatives from the national traffic safety association and officers from the municipality investigated citizens’ use of bicycle helmets during April 2009.
Result: Male commuters 31 %, Female commuters 39 %.
Reflector tags, 4000 each year, are distributed to citizens who travel with buses.
Tags, 300-400, are also distributed to visitors of the municipality advisory centre.
· Free bicycle lighting is distributed to new students who begin at Karlstad University. In 2009 about 500 students got bicycle lights.
· Alcohol safety interlock (ASI) device is standard in municipality heavy vehicles and vehicles with more than four passengers, minivans.
All buses in the local public traffic are equipped with alcohol safety interlock device as well 13 minivans, 2 heavy vehicles, and another 15 vehicles.
The policy is that all new municipality vehicles for transport of people and all heavy vehicles will be equipped with ASI-device.
· To promote low speed areas (30 km/h) in school areas and neighbourhoods. The low speed areas will be promoted by; traditionally signing, design of streets (aiming to make car drivers to lower the speed),
· A survey about traffic safety has been carried out to citizens in a central neighbourhood (Herrhagen) 2008 and a follow up is planned during 2009/2010.
The target group is 450 residents in the central neighbourhood and 75 employees at companies in the same area.
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