Archive: August 2023

The NGO "Vision Zero" and the Association "Energy-Efficient Cities of Ukraine" are starting cooperation within the framework of a new one-year project, the main goal of which is to promote the modernization and development of electric public transport in the cities of Ukraine by including it in state policy documents, in particular, in modernization and restoration plans.

The expert team of the NGO "Vision Zero" will provide support to the Association in the development of projects and components on the topic of sustainable urban mobility, collection and dissemination of relevant information on information resources, preparation and holding of educational webinars, round tables and other events. Electric public transport — primarily trams, trolleybuses and battery trolleybuses — is one of the most sustainable means of urban mobility with the lowest emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. State and international support for the modernization and development of this type of transport is critically important for the achievement of Ukraine's climate goals and the fulfillment of other international obligations on the way to European integration. According to the NGO "Vision Zero", Ukraine already belongs to the European countries with the largest number of electric public transport systems: 41 trolleybus systems and 18 tram systems. In total, Ukraine had 1,734 kilometers of tram tracks and 2,314 cars, as well as 4,397 kilometers of trolleybus lines and 3,889 trolleybuses before the start of the full-scale invasion. The cooperation project between the NGO "Vision Zero" and AEMU is supported by the European Climate Foundation and will last from August 1, 2023 to July 31, 2024.

The majority of the population of Ukraine supports the increase in fines for speeding, especially for high levels of speeding. These are the results of a sociological study conducted by the research agency Info Sapiens in the period from June 6 to 15, 2023 , commissioned by the Center for Democracy and the Rule of Law (CEDEM).

According to the results of the study, the vast majority of citizens believe that fines for exceeding the permitted speed should be increased in Ukraine. The greater the speeding, the higher the support for increasing fines.

The question "To what extent do you support an increase in fines for speeding on the roads, if the speeding will amount to..." was answered positively: 10 km/h and more - 54% of respondents, 20 km/h and more - 69%, 30 km/h and more - 79%, 40 km/h and more - 82%, 50 km/h and more - 86%.

Currently, in Ukraine, exceeding the speed limit from 21 to 50 km/h is punishable by a fine of UAH 340, and exceeding 50 km/h by a fine of UAH 1,700. According to an analytical study carried out earlier by CEDEM , in order to get closer to the best practices of EU member states in the field of liability for traffic violations, Ukraine should introduce a gradation of sanctions for every 10 km/h, significantly increase the amount of fines for high levels of speeding, and introduce a system penalty points.

"53.5% [of respondents] support increasing liability in the form of fines for speeding from 10 km/h to 20 km/h. This is a violation for which no fines are currently provided at all. Impunity for speeding exists only in Ukraine and Russia, and this idea is borrowed from Russia. Society clearly says that there should be fines already for exceeding 10 km/h - this is what our coalition of public organizations proposes ," commented Viktor Zagreba , coordinator of the Campaign "For Safe Roads" by CEDEM.

According to the director of the Center for Democracy and the Rule of Law, Olesya Holopik , the results of the study mean that there is a demand in society for more effective control over compliance with traffic rules, in particular, exceeding the set speed limit.

The sociological research was conducted by the CATI method (computer-assisted telephone interviews) based on a random sample of mobile phone numbers in the period from June 6 to 15, 2023, in all regions of Ukraine, with the exception of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol , Luhansk region, as well as some temporarily occupied territories where there is no connection. The research sample consisted of 1,000 interviews. The theoretical sampling error does not exceed 3.1% with a probability of 0.95%. The report on the results of the study is available on the website of TsEDEM.

The Center for Democracy and the Rule of Law reminds us that according to the official statistics of the Patrol Police, excessive speed is the main cause of road accidents with fatalities and injuries. In 2022, it became the official cause of most fatal traffic accidents, killing 1,633 people (58% of all registered fatalities) and injuring another 10,075. Therefore, excessive speed on the roads remains the "number one killer" in Ukraine, far ahead of other official causes.

Source: Tsedem press center