It took us quite a while to think of a good example of a practice of mobility in Brussels. Eventually we decided upon two: trams and CycloCity.

Here are the reasons why:

-          From all the means of public transportation trams are the most user-friendly:

o   They are usually on time unlike the trains;

o   Their network is logical and understandable unlike the one of buses;

o   They are nicely clean and quiet unlike the metro.

It might still be a little weird – why trams? Maybe this will answer the question.

In Tallinn there are also trams but they are nothing like the ones here in Brussels. Most of the trams there originate from the 70ties. In addition, they are very slow and noisy. Compared to the ones in Brussels they are also shorter and very crowded during rush-hours.

 

We chose CycloCity as the second example of good practice. When the trams represent the current best practice of mobility in Brussels, CycloCity is the one of the future.

At the moment there are several CycloCity stations near the city centre. However, the majority of the bikes there just lay unused. Still, we believe that with the upcoming expansion and modifications in the systems in spring, the service will be used and loved by a great number of locals and tourists.

The CycloCity was chosen as a good example also because there is nothing similar in Tallinn. There may be a few bike rental places provided by private owners but nothing organised by the city government. As new roads for cyclists are being built this kind of system could also be implemented there.

 

For the worst example of practice of mobility we chose the ignoring of traffic laws, especially by the pedestrians. During the last few days here in Brussels we have seen that for pedestrians there is no difference what colour the traffic light is – they cross the street anyway. Also, on several occasions people have come out of their cars to talk to their acquaintances when they are supposed to keep on driving. Instead they just block the road for a minute or two.

Although it would be biased to say that something like that does not happen in Tallinn, the situation is far from being that bad. Usually there are only a few people that cross the street when the lights are red and those in general are really in a hurry.

Changing the habits of people is a very difficult task and so we wish the people in Brussels good luck and keep in mind the laws!