Dragan Kabić
Considering the circumstances at the global, but also at the local level, we need to address the public once again, in a similar way as in previous years.
The current situation in Eastern Europe, premeditated or not, has caused another energy crisis with rising prices of fossil fuel derivatives globally. This price growth, like any other that this one to a great extent directs, mostly affects the most endangered strata of society, which are almost identical to the poorest ones. So in the context of states, the energy crisis feels the most poorer state, as well as the poorer citizens in them.
This crisis has hit Bosnia and Herzegovina unprepared. While its complicated government structure is trying to find a solution through the abolition of excise duties on oil and oil derivatives, local governments are pretending to be dead. Just few individuals with existing capital are taking advantage of the situation for personal interests, which is justified in the capitalist constellation of reality, but it is not justified when these are interests of a blackmailing nature and when they result in a complete demolition of public interests. So in Banja Luka, private transport companies, that perform public passenger transport, are announcing the suspension of their services, as long as their requirements are not fulfielld. We do not know what are these requirements and what is the agreement between the transport companies and the City of Banja Luka, but we have already seen the other side of this relationship – from the Autoprevoz privatization and the “Old Bus Station” land dispute, to the miraculous disappearance of some documents.
In any case, unwillingness to compromise and unwillingness to advocate for the public interest, on all sides, will mostly affect the users of public passenger transport. The majority of public transport users in Banja Luka are citizens who do not own a car as, unfortunately, the dominant means of transport in modal redistribution. Although, in fact, citizens have so far paid for public transport at the highest price in the region (in relation to average net salaries and ticket prices), now they will find themselves in a situation where they will either pay even more or not have public transport. If the fuel costs more, and the price of parking a passenger car is still so embarrassingly low, the fuel price will mean nothing to the citizens in the choice of transportation, as long as they have anything that rolls with internal combustion. On the other hand, if the public transport comes to the non-existence, economical repercussions are going to be felt dominantly becouse of those without anything that rolls with internal combustion, but not becouse their guilt. And they will feel it, much more, and before the others.
The transition to sustainable modes of transport, especially non-motorized forms, is necessary, but it does not depend only on citizens, but primarily on local governments that are able to, through urban and traffic planning and various measures within their competence, enable quality and safe traffic transition and less painful changes in the habits of its citizens.
Cities and municipalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina have not done much in terms of mobility in response to the Covid pandemic crisis. On this occasion, the Center repeats the requests to local governments in order to adapt cities and municipalities as soon as possible, not only to the current energy crisis, but also to the future, following the example of European cities and municipalities:
- construction of temporary bicycle lanes on the road (Pop-Up Bike Lanes)
- speed reduction in most residential and non-transit streets to 30km/h
- expansion of public city bicycle stations network
- expansion of sidewalks (if pedestrian paths are too narrow and / or additionally narrowed by waste bins and / or cafe terraces, they should be widened to a part of the road surface)
- additionally for the City of Banja Luka – to think once again about the management of public transport by the city
Cycling, hiking and partly public transport have proven to be modes of mobility that not only mitigate climate change, boost public health and the economy, reduce air and noise pollution, reduce congestion and free up public space, but also withstand local crises, locally and globally, such as economic crises, natural disasters and epidemiological crises. For more resilent future, a pedal must be pushed!