One-third of Rigans want incentives for electric cars ended in the city

RIGA - One-third of Riga residents, or 33 percent, believe that incentives for electric vehicles in the city, including the Old Town, should be abolished altogether and electric cars should be treated the same as other vehicles, according to a survey carried out by research center SKDS, as Riga City Council's External Communications Department informed LETA.

Slightly more than a fifth, or 23 percent, of respondents believe that nothing needs to be changed. 22 percent of respondents believe that free parking should be allowed for only one hour in the entire territory of Riga, after which a fee should be charged. Another 8 percent said that free parking for electric vehicles should be abolished in the Old Town, while the existing arrangements should be maintained elsewhere.

"There are ongoing discussions about the need for some changes regarding free parking for electric cars in municipal parking lots in Riga, but in order to come to concrete proposals and decisions it is necessary to collect data on how often and for how long parking lots are used for free, what the share of electric cars is in the city, and others," says Olafs Pulks (New Unity), Chairman of the Traffic and Transport Committee of Riga City Council.

Residents are mostly concerned that the Old Town has almost become a free parking place for electric cars, and Pulks suggests that one solution could that electric vehicles may be parked in the Old Town for free for a maximum of two hours.

The current rules stipulate that electric cars may be parked free of charge in Riga.

805 residents of Riga aged 18-75 were interviewed for the survey.