In the past twelve months, Helsinki has reached a remarkable milestone: for the first time, there have been no traffic fatalities in the Finnish capital. This news caused an international headline – after all, Helsinki, with a population of around 690,000, is one of the largest cities to have achieved this to date. The development is also attributed to the consistent introduction of 30 km/h zones in large parts of the city.
Helsinki has been pursuing an ambitious road safety strategy for several years. The focus is on reducing the speed limit to 30 km/h in residential areas and on many main roads in the city centre. Studies and practical examples show that a lower speed not only drastically reduces the risk of accidents, but above all the severity of injuries in the event of collisions.
Other European cities have also recognised the benefits of 30 km/h and taken their own measures. In Spain, a 30 km/h speed limit has been in force on most city centre roads since May 2021. Cities such as Paris, Brussels and Grenoble are also increasingly opting for 30 km/h as the standard speed. Experience shows: Following the introduction of this regulation, the number of road deaths has fallen significantly in many places. Paris, for example, reported a historic low in road deaths the year after the introduction.
While critics of speed limits often predict longer journey times, experience and above all scientific insights show that the loss of time is usually minimal, but the quality of life is noticeably improved thanks to greater safety and less noise. The successes in Helsinki, Brussels, Paris and Spain suggest that a consistent speed reduction can be a decisive step towards Vision Zero – the goal of zero traffic fatalities.