Reykjavík mayor rejects claims over traffic and city services

Reykjavík Mayor Hildur Björnsdóttir says the city will pursue a transport policy aimed at moving people between destinations more quickly, regardless of their chosen mode of travel. She made the comments to mbl.is while rejecting claims by Pétur H. Marteinsson, the Social Democratic Alliance’s leader on Reykjavík City Council.

“Previous governing majorities have systematically worked to reduce the number of above-ground parking spaces in Reykjavík, particularly in the city centre. We have made it our goal to reverse that where possible, although access to underground parking has certainly improved,” Hildur said.

She said traffic had also been deliberately restricted in many parts of the city in recent years, with the latest example being the Höfðabakki intersection. The city, she said, would move away from such planned delays.

Pétur said in Monday’s newspaper that his earlier claim that the number of parking spaces had increased was a slip. The increase had been in underground spaces, not above-ground spaces. He also acknowledged that streets had been narrowed after previously saying they had not.

Mayor rejects claim of harsher approach

Hildur also rejected Pétur’s claim that the city had adopted a harsher tone towards people in vulnerable circumstances.

“I find this completely baseless,” she said. Hildur said the city was working to improve the efficiency of its operations while protecting its statutory services for residents. The city would focus on services it was legally required to provide, many of which concerned groups most vulnerable in society, she said.

She added that the city needed to assess whether it was providing excessive services in some areas or services far beyond those offered by neighbouring municipalities.

“No operation can offer the best services to the lowest-income groups and the worst services to the highest-income groups, who then move to other municipalities. Such an operation will never be sustainable. We support welfare services, but understand that they need strong value creation to thrive,” Hildur said.

New neighbourhoods being planned

Hildur said the basic idea behind urban densification was to build in areas where infrastructure could support additional development. She argued that Reykjavík had instead concentrated development in small areas within existing neighbourhoods, where preschools, primary schools and sports facilities were already under severe strain.

She said this had caused considerable opposition and dissatisfaction in the neighbourhoods. Apartments built on those sites had also often been of unsuitable sizes or lacked parking spaces, while demand had been so limited that some had not sold.

Hildur said the city wanted to provide greater freedom in the housing market and more scope to build the types of apartments people actually wanted. She rejected Pétur’s claim that urban densification in Reykjavík had not been a mistake.

She said work was now under way to plan new neighbourhoods and change the city’s planning priorities.