Here’s one fact you need to know about Finland. This Nordic country produces some of the best racing drivers in the world, ranging from Kimi Raikkonen, Mika Hakkinen, Marcus Gronholm, Tommi Makinen, Jari-Matti Latvala, Juha Kankkunen and so on. The Finns love driving their cars, but the nation’s capital, Helsinki, wants cars to off the roads by 2025. Wait, what?
The city of Helsinki plans to replace cars with a unified transport system, run by transportation operators. All the Finns need to do is to go to the “route planner” – a system which integrates bikes, buses, urban rail, taxis, and walking options; factoring weather and traffic conditions to create an optimized commuting routes. The setup is aimed to reduce the usage of cars, and ultimately eliminating the need for a car.
Interestingly, the younger generation of Helsinki views transportation differently compared to their parents, where they think cars are no longer a status symbol for them. Instead, they prefer a simple, flexible and inexpensive mode of transportation. Admittedly, the current public transportation system in Helsinki is insufficient to serve everyone needs, but that could soon change in a decade or so.
Helsinki is blessed with a diverse transportation system that has turned this city as one of the most liveable cities in the world, according to Liveable Cities Index.
[Source: Helsinki Times]
