The data suggests that car traffic in Warsaw has noticeably decreased compared to 2019. Such observations come from the analysis of continuous traffic measurements in 84 points throughout the city, informed the Warsaw Municipal Roads Authority. A clear decrease was observed, among others, on bridges.
According to the ZDM communiqué, the modernization and expansion of the automatic traffic measurement system has recently been completed. “Currently, it allows you to assess the traffic volume in over 100 locations in characteristic, representative points of the city” – emphasize road workers. Traffic is measured: on the city limits, on the so-called stage ring road, city center ring road, bridges on the Vistula River and a cross-city railway line.
Fewer cars pass through the center
ZDM compared the readings from October 2019 and 2022. The analysis shows that car traffic in the capital has decreased. “The most noticeable is the decrease in traffic to and from the very center of the city – on the cordon of the downtown ring road we recorded approx. 980,000 vehicles per day (in both directions in total), which is approx. 13% less. The north-south traffic is also noticeably lower – we measured 619,000 vehicles, i.e. a decrease of 10 percent.” – reported ZDM.
Significantly less traffic was observed on the capital’s bridges. In 2022, as many as 37 percent fewer cars traveled over the Łazienkowski Bridge than three years earlier. On the neighboring bridges: Poniatowskiego and Siekierkowski, the loss of cars is 17 percent.
Decrease in traffic in WarsawZDM
The POW effect works
Interestingly, the sum of all cars passing from one side of the Vistula River to the other has not changed for three years. “This is the result of the opening of the new Anna Jagiellonka bridge on the S2 route, which took over approx. 90,000 vehicles a day. The traffic volume on the bridge along the POW allows for estimating separate measurements carried out in a reliable period on working days” – explained ZDM.
And he emphasized that the opening of the section of the S2 route with the tunnel near Ursynów strongly changed the distribution of traffic. In Bronisława Czech, the number of cars passing through it decreased by 42 percent, in Dolina Służewiecka – 21 percent, and in the area of the intersection of Płaskowicka and Puławska – 36 percent.
By what percentage has the traffic volume decreased?
“Taking into account the results from 84 measurement points that operated both in 2019 and in 2022, the car traffic on Warsaw roads decreased by 11 percent. Part of this result is the result of the opening of the S2 expressway – minus the effect of moving however, we still see an estimated decrease in traffic throughout Warsaw at the level of approx. 7 percent.” – summarize the drivers.
The question of what causes such a change will be answered in detail after the comprehensive Warsaw Traffic Study. However, road builders suggest that the transport habits of Warsaw residents have changed during the pandemic. Some people have stayed at remote work and do not commute to the office every day.
Director of ZDM about the planned renovation of streets in WarsawArtur Węgrzynowicz/tvnwarszawa.pl
Main photo source: TVN24