Stockholm Adopts Congestion Charge
Voters in Stockholm, Sweden approve a measure to charge motorists a fee to drive into the city center.
In September 2005 when Stockholm officials approved the idea of a congestion charging fee, public opinion was firmly opposed to the idea. One year later, after a seven month trial period, the people of Stockholm have voted to keep the traffic-reduction system in place. Near-complete results for the Sunday referendum showed that 51.7 percent of Stockholm voters approved the traffic toll, while 45.6 percent voted against it.
Depending on the time of day, Stockholm drivers paid 10 kronor and 20 kronor, or about €1-€2 (US$1.30 - US$2.50) when they entered or exited the city's center. The toll was in effect from 6:30 a.m. to 6:29 p.m. every weekday, with no fees on weekends, holidays or at night. Congestion charging reduced the number of vehicles driving into the center of Stockholm by nearly 25 percent. Noxious emissions declined 10 to 14 percent. And there were no negative impacts on Stockholm's retail or economic growth.
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Not quite right
Your content is right, but the headline is misleading. Residents of Stockholm certainly voted in favor of retaining the congestion charges. Had the Social Democrat government been re-elected, that would have been that.
But the right wing opposition won, and their general message is that they will count the votes from the parallel referendums held in 14 surrounding municipalities, who voted 60 percent against the tolls.
It gets complicated because one of the parties in the new government, the Center, supports the congestion charges. So the final decision is still hard to call.