Laboratorijas Street ends in a dead end at the territory of my school - the former 43rd, now Gerdera. Nearby is the intersection with Vārnu Street, celebrated in the novel by Jānis Grizinhš (Grikiss) "The Republic of Vārnu Street" and the film of the same name. But on the way from Vārnu to Pernavas stands a veritable anti-tank barrier – a concrete block adorned with flowers. Here it is, the "progressive" approach!
All for Safety
Changes in traffic in the historic area near 1905 Park came into effect on April 20 – firstly, former free parking areas have acquired the status of zones C and D. Parking on the sidewalk has been prohibited, moving cars onto the roadway, which has consequently been narrowed to the limit – as a bike lane needs to be inserted here as well. This has led to the introduction of one-way traffic.
"Pedestrian safety will be significantly improved," proclaims the website of Riga's neighborhoods apkaimes.lv. In this context, the speed limit of 20 km/h is justified on the streets: Vārnu, Alauksta, Zvaigžņu, Laboratorijas, Terēzes, Lauku. They are positioned as streets with "intensive pedestrian traffic."
Well, I don’t know – last Sunday, I only encountered two acquaintances chatting at a craft-hipster café (but they never went inside) and a typical person from the Indian subcontinent with a delivery backpack. Even he seemed to be riding a moped.
The speed limit on the streets of Ata, Stadion, Rudolf, and Sapiers has been raised to 30 km/h. But why was Vārnu closed off? The explanation from apkaimes.lv: "To reduce the car flow using this street as a route from Tālavas Street to Pernavas Street." Wonderful – but will this actually reduce the total number of cars in Riga? Or if you close one street out of a dozen in the neighborhood, will traffic jams now form – elsewhere?
Residents Against
The cherry on top is the size of the road signs installed in Grizinkalns. They are about the size of a tea saucer, impossible to notice without training.
Meanwhile, concerned residents, led by Vyacheslav Makarov, have posted a petition against the aforementioned innovations on the platform manabalss.lv. The explanation emphasizes that access to yards and gates will be complicated, including for emergency vehicles; it negatively impacts local entrepreneurs and the financial situation of residents. A detailed traffic safety audit and accident assessment justifying the need for such measures were not conducted during the changes.
In a survey conducted from April 14 to 16, 89% of a quite representative sample of 345 people expressed opposition to the bans. Meanwhile, the initiator is the chairperson of the Riga City Council's Committee on Transport and Communications, Marta Kotello ("Progressives"), who was previously an activist in Grizinkalns. The society she was involved in consists of 129 people.
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