Strategy for
Liveable cities
Short version
Photo:
Cover Ida Gyulai/Vallastaden p. 2 Ulf Huett Nilsson, Johnér p. 5 Veg Tech AB
p. 6 Oliver Friberg Olsson, Getty Images
Green, healthy and safe cities where
people meet and
innovations are created
In the ‘Strategy for liveable cities’, the Government presents its overall policy for sustain- able urban development. It is Sweden’s first national urban development strategy. The strategy focuses on goals for sustainable cities and policies primarily for urban transport and green areas, as well as innovative and sustainable construction.
The Government wants to strength- en opportunities for municipalities to develop green, healthy and safe cities where people meet and innovations are created. The increased housing construction provides opportunities to make the transition to a climate- smart, attractive society with people at the centre. Many solutions are available locally, and the state’s role is to support municipalities to pick up the pace of the transition.
The competition for land is tough in increasingly dense cities. Urban planning must aim for sustainable
urban structures with efficient use of land. Priority must be given to people and greenery. Peri-urban nature and parks contribute to quality of life and can improve public health. The green areas are also important components of ecosystem services, i.e. the services and products that nature’s ecosystem provides to people. This includes the ability to clean air, lower tempera- tures, take care of surface water and offer recreational and healthy environments. With nature’s help, the built environment can be more sustainable, healthy and attractive.
Proximity and accessibility to cities are important conditions for the Government’s ‘Strategy for liveable cities’. It must be easy and safe for everyone to walk and cycle to their closest store, their job or school.
Street space is an important part of public space which, to a greater degree, can accommodate a vibrant city life, with scope for convenience stores, open-air cafés and culture.
In cities, proximity makes it possible for more people to live their daily lives without a car of their own.
Sustainable transport in cities is
crucial for a more healthy environ- ment and to help reduce harmful air pollution. Traffic planning is there- fore a central part of a national policy for urban development. To a greater extent, it must create the conditions for efficient and environmentally- friendly ways to travel, including sustainable commuting. In cities and towns, it is important to give greater priority to a social structure with good opportunities for walking and cycling, and for traveling by public transport rather than private car.
It must be easy to make smart environmental choices in our everyday lives – both for citizens and for those who plan and build.
By means of innovations, digitalisa- tion and environmental and climate technology, it is possible to meet challenges in an effective and sustain- able way so that cities provide good living environments for people to live in without wasting the planet’s resources. To make it easier to live in an environmentally friendly manner, the Government is invest- ing in innovative and sustainable construction.
Goals for sustainable urban development
Policy for liveable cities
Sustainable cities are inclusive and accessible urban environments that offer everyone an attractive and green living environment. Their compact nature makes it easy to live an everyday life and get around using sustainable transport, such as walking and cycling. The holistic approach of the planning together with smart solutions contribute to cities where people can live climate-smart, healthy and safe lives.
Council for Sustainable Cities The Government has established a Council for Sustainable Cities, which will act to implement the Govern- ment’s policy for sustainable urban development. The Council will be a forum for the heads of government agencies of those agencies that are of strategic importance to the long-term work on sustainable urban develop- ment. The work is led by a chair, and a representative of the munici- palities is a member of the Council.
A network of experts is associated with the Council. The Council will be active until May 2022 and its task will be to coordinate on measures that contribute to sustainable urban development.
The Council will present an annual report regarding an overall list of implemented or planned
measures for the agencies that promote sustainable urban develop- ment. This list will be published annually on the website hallbarstad.
se. In addition, the Council will present annual reports to the Government on proposals concer- ning measures described in impact assessments that the Council consi- ders to be of strategic importance to the work on sustainable cities but which wholly or partially lie outside the areas of responsibility of the participating agencies. The Council will also present proposals on any issues that should be examined.
Greener cities
The grant to greener cities aims to increase opportunities for municipa- lities to implement measures for urban greenery, ecosystem services in
urban environments and children’s outdoor environments. Through this investment, the Government aims to strengthen the opportunities for cities to develop into green, healthy and safe places, adapted to a changed climate where people meet and innovations are created. The grant can also promote innovative, multi- functional and resource-efficient urban green spaces, improve the robustness and resilience of cities through urban green spaces and improve the resilience of cities to high temperatures or floods. There are possibilities in cities to cope with many of the climate and environmen- tal challenges, and sustainable urban development is an important tool in the efforts to achieve the environ- mental quality objective ‘A Good Built Environment’.
New interim targets in the environmental system for sustainable urban development
Interim target to increase proportion of walking, cycling and public transport
The proportion of passenger trans- port in Sweden using public trans- port, cycling and walking must be at least 25 per cent by 2025, expressed in passenger kilometres, with the aim of doubling the proportion of walking, cycling and public transport over time.
Interim target on methods for urban green spaces and ecosystem services in urban environments
By 2020, municipalities must have access to a refined method for making use of and integrating urban green spaces and ecosystem services in urban environments in the planning, building and managing of cities and towns.
Interim target on integration of urban green spaces and ecosystem services in urban environments
By 2025, the majority of the munici- palities must make use of and integrate urban green spaces and ecosystem services in urban environ- ments in the planning, building and managing of cities and towns.
Overall goals for sustainable cities
Retention pond, Växjö. Open systems for surface water with good possibilities for infiltration and runoff create the foundation of sustainable and modern surface water management.
Innovative and sustainable construction
The Government has introduced a government grant for innovative and sustainable housing construction with reduced impact, climate adapta- tion and sustainable material choices.
Government considers it important that the housing being built is
sustainable and takes advantage of innovative and architectural solu- tions. From a climate and environ- mental perspective, it is important to build properly right from the start, using sustainable materials.
The Government considers that to build a climate resilient and sustainable society, it is important to
aim for increased energy efficiency and reduced climate impact, that the choice of materials is made taking account of people’s health and the environment, and that account is taken of adaptation to climate change in construction and the physical planning, both with regard to new projects and in existing buildings.
Measures for sustainable transport
Sustainable passenger transport In cities it is quite possible for people to live their lives without a car of their own. It is important to give greater priority to a physical structure with good opportunities for walking and cycling, and for traveling by public transport rather than private car. In cities, people must be able to easily choose environmentally friendly and energy-efficient means of transport to get to schools, work- places, green areas and other impor- tant target points. A secure and safe
traffic environment is important so that both children and older people can to a greater degree go walking and cycling. Through better mix- ed-use of urban areas and improved accessibility through walking, cycling and public transport, a larger propor- tion of electric vehicles and other vehicles with low emissions, as well as more efficient and better coordina- ted goods transport, wellbeing in cities can increase while the negative effects on health and the environme- nt decrease. At the same time, it is a
priority issue to increase the electrifi- cation of, and the share of renewable fuels in, the transport sector throug- hout the country.
’ The next generation’s travel and transport partnership programme’
puts focus on developing solutions for a more transport-efficient society, where transport is used in a smarter way and with more resource-efficient vehicles, renewable fuels and reduced emissions.
Other initiatives that contribute to more liveable cities
2030 Agenda and New Urban Agenda
In 2015, 17 Global Goals for Sustain- able Development were adopted – the 2030 Agenda. Several of the goals concern housing and land issues, and Goal 11 deals with cities and settle- ments being inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. The New Urban Agenda, which was adopted in 2016,
is a framework for the global work on sustainable urban development.
Sweden will have a leading interna- tional role in sustainable urban development. In this, the Global Goals for Sustainable Development and the UN goals in the New Urban Agenda are central. Going even further, Sweden has set a goal to be the world’s first fossil-free welfare
nations. Sustainable cities will play a key role in this, and Sweden aims to share its experiences. Many Swedish cities are engaged in international cooperation, and the government initiative Smart City Sweden is a platform to share sustainable urban solutions.
Urban environment agreements In 2015, the Government established urban environment agreements to encourage a higher proportion of passenger transport by means of cycling and public transport in cities.
This support provides opportunities for municipalities and county councils to receive up to 50 per cent in central government co-financing for infrastructure for public trans- port, and from 2017 also for cycling.
To increase the chances of producing a more thoroughly prepared propo- sal, at the same time as opportunities are given to implement more time- consuming measures and services in return, the urban environment agreements have been extended.
As of 2018, urban environment agreements are part of the economic framework for the development of the transport system, and are expec- ted to amount to SEK 1 billion
annually between 2018 and 2029.
The Government intends to also include measures for sustainable freight transport solutions in urban environments that reduce climate and environmental impacts, such as mixed loading, coordinated city logistics and goods by cycle.
Electric vehicle premium
In 2017, the Government introduced a premium for electric vehicles so that more private individuals gain access to electric cycles, mopeds or motorcycles. To significantly improve the possibilities of commuting and travelling in a climate-friendly way by cycle, the Government has allocated SEK 1 050 million between 2018 and 2020 to an electric vehicle premium for the purchase by private individu- als of electric bicycles, electric mopeds or electric motorcycles.
Low emission zones
The problems with air pollution vary greatly around the country, and the biggest problems are in the vicinity of busy roads and close to larger cities. Moving towards lower emis- sions therefore requires flexibility and adaptation to local conditions.
Municipalities, which are responsible for air quality at local level, should therefore have greater possibilities of using local policy levers to deal with any air quality problems. The Government will introduce legislati- ve amendments that will allow municipalities to introduce low emission zones that also cover light vehicles, and an additional low emission zone for heavy vehicles, with the aim of improving air in the cities. This means there will be special zones in urban environments where only vehicles that meet certain emissions limits may drive.
Designed environment
In February 2018, the Government presented a new policy for architec- ture and design for sustainable designed living environments in the government bill ‘The policy for sustainable designed environments’, which includes an enhanced responsibility structure and propos- als for new national goals for architecture and design. Architec- ture and design, and carefully designed living environments, can contribute to sustainable urban development. The way cities are planned and designed creates conditions for sustainable develop- ment in cities and can strengthen social aspects and counter segrega- tion processes. People’s opportuni- ties to develop and feel healthy are greatly affected by the way housing, living environments, public places and entire cities are formed, designed and put together.
Initiatives for more and better sustainable housing
The Government has adopted a number of measures to create more housing and more sustainable housing environments, and in particular rental housing for young people. An investment grant has been introduced to promote the construction of rental housing and student accommodation. To receive the grant, the building must have low energy consumption. The idea is that the investment grant will encourage the construction of more housing with rents that make them attractive to more households.
Grants will also be awarded so that, in or next to residential areas with socioeconomic challenges, outdoor environments will be created that stimulate activities and a sense of community, and preserve or develop the design of a residential area. The grant can be used for such purposes
as building and renovating play- grounds, meeting places, areas for spontaneous sports activities and parks. The grant aims at raising the quality of life in these areas, which over time can also contribute to reduced segregation.
Cycling strategy
The Government wants to promote increased and safe cycling. There- fore, in 2017, the Government adopted a national cycling strategy for more and safer cycling. The strategy is a platform for future joint efforts and will be followed up and further developed.
The Climate Leap
Municipalities, companies, organisa- tions and others can apply for support for measures that reduce climate impact. Several of the measures contribute to sustainable urban development. Support has been granted to some 14 000 charging points for electric vehicles that lead to reduced greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution and noise.
Other examples are support to expansion of district heating networks, information on sustaina- ble commuting and other cam- paigns, and energy efficiency in apartment buildings.
Electric buses
In July 2016, the Government introduced a premium to speed up the electrification of the transport sector and contribute to a sustainable urban environment. An electric bus runs wholly or partly on electri- city. It can be charged in a garage, at a charging point at the last stop, or while in service. The electric bus premium also provides support to buses that receive electricity from a fuel cell. The premium covers part of the additional costs for electric buses in relation to conventional buses.
An equitable city
There is a current trend towards increased segregation in cities and widening gaps in Sweden. There can be very large differences between various residential areas within a city or municipality when it comes to unemployment, life expectancy, school outcomes, incomes, depend- ence on benefits, social services, health, voter turnout, exposure to crime and insecurity. There are also differences between women and men, girls and boys within residen- tial areas.
The reform programme for reduced segregation aims at lifting areas with socioeconomic challeng- es and breaking the structural causes of segregation. The reform pro- gramme will run between 2017 and 2025, and focus on combating crime, reducing long-term unem- ployment, lifting schools, strength- ening social services and reducing housing segregation
A city for everyone
Children and young people must be given the chance to develop and feel safe, and be able to participate and exert influence. Children and young people are very much affected by decisions concerning urban plan- ning and the design of residential areas, traffic and the environment.
It is therefore important that all activities adopt a child rights perspective, examine how children are affected and what consequences decisions can have for girls and boys, young women and young men.
In 2016–2018, the Government has invested a total of SEK 500 million to stimulate improvements to school and preschool playgrounds.
