Following the protests against the Good Move mobility plan in several neighbourhoods across the Capital Region, Brussels Minister-President Rudi Vervoort has stated that it is a good idea to pause the plan in places where it creates "tensions."
The introduction of the Good Move circulation plans (which aim to make Brussels neighbourhoods largely car-free) in several districts in Anderlecht, Jette and particularly Schaerbeek led to heavy protests, after which some municipal authorities put the plans on pause – "a good idea," Vervoort told Le Soir.
"We had reached a dead end in the Cage-aux-Ours district [in Schaerbeek]. It would just get worse and worse with the violence. At some point, you have to stop," Vervoort said, adding that in areas where the Good Move plans cause "tension," he wants to put them on hold for a while. "When a problem is disputed so heavily that it threatens social peace, we must be able to put the brakes on, provide relief for a while."
Still, he does not want to abandon the new mobility plan altogether. "If there is no problem, there is no reason to stop. But where Good Move causes tension, it is better not to persevere. In fact, that would be counterproductive for the whole project."
'Extreme polarisation'
In an interview with La Libre on Wednesday, Brussels State Secretary for Urbanism Pascal Smet stated that he is concerned about the future of the regional mobility plan as he fears that the broad support for it is disappearing.
Still, reversing the plan is not an option, as "transit traffic must be kept on the main roads and the quality of life in the neighbourhoods must be improved," he said, adding that he believes the solution partly lies in presenting the plan and communicating about it differently.
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Vervoort, too, said that this is "a time of crisis and extreme polarisation," which is why it is sometimes important to "take a deep breath before we start working on the plan again."
On the lowtrafficneighourhoods.brussels website, a map with detailed information on what phase of the plan each neighbourhood is currently working on (such as perimeter, consultation moments), along with answers to frequently asked questions.
