Photo: Sofia Sabel/imagebank.sweden.se
Sweden
National-level objectives
In Sweden, the importance of increased and safe cycling has existed in the national policy discourse for some time, or, as Rensvala (2020) points out, “Sweden has for years expressed willingness to achieve ‘increased and safe cycling’” (p. 4). Although cycling has not necessarily been highlighted as an objective of its own, there are some related objectives where cycling is discussed or implied. In 2022, the Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute (VTI) published an investigation about objectives for increased cycling in Sweden. The background to their investigation was a government assignment from October 2021 (see Regeringskansliet, 2021-a/ Diarienummer: I2021/02603). VTI notes that there is not a well-defined national cycling objective in Sweden, except the so called GCK-objective (see Eriksson et al., 2022).[1] The GCK-objective is the only existing national objective in Sweden that explicitly regards cycling. It is part of the Milestone targets,[2] under the category sustainable urban development. The objective regards proportion of pedestrian, bicycle and public transport and is outlined as follows:
- “The proportion of personal journeys using public transport, cycling or walking in Sweden must be at least 25 percent by 2025, expressed in person kilometres travelled, with a view to doubling in the long term the proportion for pedestrian, bicycle and public transport.” (Naturvårdsverket, n.d.-a)
This objective is not yet fulfilled, and the current assessment[3] of the goals (as of August 2023) shows that it is uncertain whether it is possible to even fulfil this objective before the target year 2025 (Naturvårdsverket, 2022). In addition to the modal share objective, there is another cycling-related objective that is part of the Milestone targets under the category of reduced climate impact. The specific objective regards emissions of greenhouse gases from domestic transport and is outlined as follows:
- “Emissions from domestic transport, excluding domestic aviation, are to be reduced by at least 70 per cent at latest by 2030 compared with 2010. Domestic aviation is not included in the goal since domestic aviation is included in the EU ETS.” (Naturvårdsverket, n.d.-a)
Unlike the GCK-objective, the Swedish national agencies have, as of August 2023, assessed that it will not be possible to achieve this objective by 2030 (see Naturvårdsverket, 2023). The assessment suggests that new policy instruments will likely be required to achieve the emissions goal.
Despite the lack of clear national cycling objectives in Sweden, a national cycling strategy was produced in 2017. The strategy (see Regeringskansliet, 2017-a) does not define any new objectives but refers to a few political objectives with importance for increased and safe cycling. For instance, UN’s Agenda 2030 is mentioned, where the national cycling strategy claims that sustainable transport solutions, traffic safety, and health are relevant political goals for increased and safe cycling. The strategy also articulates the so-called environmental quality objectives (miljökvalitetsmålet) which in total consist of 16 objectives. Of the 16 objectives, the strategy refers to developing a good built environment, specifically referring to public transport systems and having attractive, safe, and efficient pedestrian and cycle paths (see Naturvårdsverket, 2018-a; Naturvårdsverket, 2018-b).
In addition to this, there are governing national objectives for transportation policy in Sweden, to which the national cycling strategy also refers (Regeringskansliet, 2017-a). The Swedish government outlines them on its website and divides them into one overarching objective and two secondary objectives (Regeringskansliet n.d; see also Trafikverket, 2022-a). The relation between these three objectives is that the transportation system must develop towards the overarching objective, whilst the secondary ones are equal to one another. In short, the overarching transport objective aims to ensure a socio-economic efficient and long-term sustainable transportation provision for all citizens and businesses in the entire country (Regeringskansliet, n.d.) The secondary objectives consist of 1) the accessibility objective and 2) the consideration objective. The accessibility objective regards the design, function, and usability of the transportation system which should contribute to accessibility with good quality and usability in the entire country, as well as being equal (meaning it should equally address the transportation needs of women and men). The consideration objective focuses on issues to consider when it comes to the design, function, and usability of the transportation system. For example, the consideration objective stresses that no one should be killed or seriously injured; therefore, the transportation system should be adapted to protect against this. It also means that the transportation system must contribute to the overarching generation goal for the environment, the environmental quality objectives, and increased health.[4]
The Swedish government notes on its website that, in order to achieve the overarching national transportation objective, the accessibility objective must develop within the framework set by the consideration objective (Regeringskansliet, n.d.). In other words, the accessibility objective focuses on developing a transportation system that is well-developed with good quality and accessible throughout the entire country, but it cannot develop without considering the aspects in the considerations objectives (in brief, several climate and environmental objectives, including a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 70 % in 2030 compared to 2010).
Another important objective, which is brought up by the Swedish Traffic Administration, is that as a national transportation agency, they must relate their work to the overarching objective for public health policy, which is about creating societal conditions for good and equal health for the entire population (see, e.g., Trafikverket, 2021-b). All of the areas within the public health policy in Sweden guide the broad work with public health in society in which, for example, the sub-objective to improve food habits and physical activity is one relevant for transportation and cycling. Therefore transportation policy should also contribute to promoting increased physical activity (Trafikverket 2021-b; for more information about Swedish public health policy and objectives, see Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2022)
In sum, there are several national objectives in Sweden that, in one way or another, can be linked to cycling—at the least to increased and safe cycling. As VTI concludes in their 2022 investigation, there are not any clear and specific national cycling objectives in Sweden (Eriksson et al., 2022). As part of its government assignment, VTI was also tasked to propose new objectives to specifically increase the share of cycling that promotes increased cycling for all ages and considers its effects on socio-economic groups in the entire country (Regeringskansliet, 2021-a). This shows an interest from the Swedish state to improve the objectives and potentially also the mechanisms that strengthen the possibilities to improve the cycling network throughout Sweden. The proposed cycling objectives in VTI’s investigation are, at the time of this report, still proposals and can be found in VTI’s report (see Eriksson et al., 2022). It remains to be seen in the coming years whether the national cycling objectives will be improved and made clearer. However, as Rensvala (2020) points out, “Increased and safe cycling has been repeated in politics and bureaucracy nationally since the turn of the millennium […] but it has never been an official, national objective” (6). With those words, the ambition from the Swedish state exists to some extent, but for cycling per se, the national objectives are, so far, more implicitly outlined and “baked in” rather than being specific and targeted.
Box 5. Summary of national-level cycling objectives in Sweden
- The proportion of personal journeys using public transport, cycling, or walking in Sweden must be at least 25 percent by 2025, expressed in person kilometres travelled, with a view to doubling in the long term the proportion for pedestrian, bicycle, and public transport (GCK-objective, milestone target; Naturvårdsverket, n.d.-a)
- Emissions from domestic transport, excluding domestic aviation, are to be reduced by at least 70% at latest by 2030, compared with 2010 (Milestone target; Naturvårdsverket, n.d.-a)
- Public transport systems are environmentally friendly, energy-efficient and accessible, and there are attractive, safe and efficient walking and cycling paths (Environmental quality objective—Good built environment; Naturvårdsverket, 2018-a)
- Ensure a socio-economic efficient and long-term sustainable transportation provision for all citizens and businesses in the entire country (Regeringskansliet, n.d.)
- The design, function and use of the transport system should contribute to providing everyone with basic accessibility with good quality and usability and contribute to development power throughout the country. The transport system must be equal, i.e., equally meet the transport needs of women and men.
- The design, function and use of the transport system must be adapted so that no one is killed or seriously injured, contribute to achieving the overall generational goal for the environment and the environmental quality objectives and contribute to increased health.
- Transportation policy should also contribute to promoting increased physical activity (Trafikverket, 2021-b; Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2022)
National-level mechanisms
Road-ownership and road network for bicycle infrastructure
To start with, about 80 % of bicycle infrastructure is under the responsibility of Swedish municipalities (in total 19,810 km of bicycle network), whilst 2,940 km of the bicycle network are either state-owned national or state-owned regional bicycle infrastructure (Trafikverket, 2021-a). The Swedish Transport Administration is responsible for both types of the state-owned bicycle network when it comes to maintenance and construction; the difference is that the state-owned regional network is planned and developed in the regional counterparts of the national transportation plan (i.e., county transportation plans), which is developed by the regions (Trafikverket, 2021-b). Overall, this means that a significant part of the Swedish bicycle infrastructure is under the responsibility of the Swedish Transport Administration.
In general, maintenance of the existing infrastructure falls under the responsibility of the road owner, which means that most maintenance of bicycle infrastructure is a municipal responsibility. Since a significant amount of the road network is state-owned bicycle infrastructure, the shared responsibility for the overall maintenance between municipalities and the Swedish Traffic Administration should not be underestimated. The budget allocated for maintenance of state-owned bicycle infrastructure is determined in the national transportation plan (and in their regional counterparts in the county transportation plans).
Mechanisms in relation to the GCK-objective
When it comes to mechanisms and measures that are taken to fulfil the GCK-objective, the website “Sveriges miljömål” lists several important actions (Naturvårdsverket, 2022).[5] Among those listed, one mechanism is to make car-use less attractive in combination with allocating more funding to public transportation. However, by having one national objective for three modes of transportation (pedestrian, cycling, and public transportation) it is unclear which concrete measures relate to fulfilling the cycling part alone. However, some of the mechanisms related to cycling are to design and plan a transportation system that prioritizes walking, cycling, and public transportation over car use, as well as to make the traffic environment safe, particularly for youths and elderly people. The responsible Swedish agencies (see more, Naturvårdsverket, 2022) also encourages the development of direct routes with good capacity for these modes of transportation compared to car-use. Although these are not very clear mechanisms, some additional measures are emphasized (Naturvårdsverket, 2022). For example, all road owners and involved actors at all levels of governance must proactively work to prioritize design and land-use to pedestrian, cycling, busses, and rail in the larger cities.[6]
In order to plan and design Swedish cities in a more sustainable way, one implemented mechanism listed under the GCK-objective is the establishment of the Swedish Council for Sustainable Cities. The Council aims to implement the Swedish government’s policy for sustainable urban development. Moreover, the Swedish National Board of Housing, Building, and Planning has committed to work together with the Swedish Traffic Administration to ensure walking, cycling, and public transit are to be used as guiding principles in Swedish urban transportation planning (Naturvårdsverket, 2022). In other words, planning for sustainable transport methods should take precedence over car-centric urban development.
Financial mechanisms
In Sweden, we can distinguish between what we call hard mechanisms and soft mechanisms at the national level to fulfil the national objectives. The former is related to funding[7] and other concrete measures to improve existing or develop new bicycle infrastructure, whilst the soft mechanisms are knowledge developing activities, knowledge exchanges, or similar initiatives. Hard mechanisms are crucial to get the infrastructure in place. The national and regional transportation plans, which allocate national funds, are central financial plans.
In addition to the maintenance introduced above, there are also mechanisms at the national level to improve the infrastructure network for cyclists and to develop or support measures for new or improved bicycle infrastructure. In Sweden, as can been seen in Figure 6, the funding for developing and maintaining state-owned road infrastructure comes from either the national transportation plan or the regional transportation plans. The municipal road network, that dominates all of the bicycle infrastructure, is mainly funded through the municipal budget, but also through co-financing from the state 0utlined in the county transportation plans or the in urban environment agreements (see below). As an example, the regional transportation plan in the Stockholm Region (for 2022-2033), allocates 18 percent of its SEK 9.9 billion budget to investments in bicycle infrastructure (see Region Stockholm, 2022). Finally, the private road ownership is funded either through road fees or through subsidies from the state or the municipalities (see Trafikverket, 2021-b).
Figure 6. This figure illustrates the three ownership types of the Swedish road network (including bicycling infrastructure), and how they are funded both in terms of development/construction and maintenance. Source: Trafikverket (2021-b).
In Sweden, the so-called stadsmiljöavtalen (urban environment agreements, or UEAs) are another hard mechanism. As a response to the rapid population growth in urban areas, the Swedish government implemented a decree (SFS 2015:579) for promoting sustainable urban environments. Municipalities and regions can apply for a government grant for initiatives that aim to increase the usability and use of regional and local public transport and/or biking as well as more sustainable freight transport or increase housing construction. The initiatives should lead to more energy efficient solutions in public transport and/or biking, streamlining of freight transport, and good built environments. To receive funding, involved municipalities must undertake countermeasures. Such countermeasures can be either physical or other relevant strategic physical measures, such as parking and traffic strategies or detailed plans, which all contribute to improved sustainable transportation or increased housing development. The application of UEAs has slightly changed since they were introduced in 2015. For example, in 2020 the Swedish parliament decided on a reinforcement of the UEAs for the period 2021-2022, allocating specific financing to measures for bicycle infrastructure (see Huynh et al., 2022). In 2021, 43 applications were approved, with a total funding of SEK 280 million to support 39 municipalities and regions with 65 km of pedestrian and cycling lanes as well as bicycle garages and parking spaces (see Trafikverket, 2022-b). For example, just under SEK 50 million of support was provided to Göteborg to go towards the detailed planning, intersection reconstruction, and construction of a bicycle parking garage beside the newly developing Haga train station (Trafikverket, n.d.-b). Between 2015 and 2021, a total of SEK 5.7 billion was allocated through UEAs, of which SEK 1.2 billion regards measures for bicycle infrastructure, and SEK 1.1 billion regards combined measures for public transportation and bicycle measures (Trafikverket 2022-a).
In addition to the funds that municipalities and regions can receive through the UEAs, the national transportation plan for 2022-2033 has a specific budget line for increased and safe cycling, also known as cykelpotten. This is the first time that cycling has its own budget line in the national transportation plan; in fact, the Swedish government commissioned the Swedish Traffic Administration to propose a specific budget line for cycling measures along state-owned roads in the directives to prepare the new national transportation plan (see Regeringskansliet, 2021-b). In total, SEK 1.7 billion is allocated to measures for increased and safe cycling, of which SEK 700 million SEK should be allocated to the regional transportation plans and thus be co-funded by the regions with the same amount. The main reason for this, according to the Swedish Traffic Administration, is that the state-owned regional roads have the highest need for upgrades to existing or development of new bicycle infrastructure along state-owned roads. On the contrary, and as pointed out by the same agency, there is no comprehensive overview of the need for measures directed to cycling along state-owned roads (Trafikverket, 2022-a), which indicates that, at this point, it is hard to make an assessment where the need for bicycle infrastructure is highest.
Soft mechanisms
There are at least two soft mechanisms used to achieve cycling objectives as well. Firstly, the National Cycling Council (Nationella cykelrådet) is a forum for cooperation within national efforts for increased and safe bicycling. The council is led by the Swedish Traffic Administration and consists of an array of national and local-level stakeholders[8] including civil society and interest organisations. Every other year, the council compiles and publishes a so-called “bicycle account” (cykelbokslut, in which bokslut normally refers to the financial accounts). The bicycle account is a report that consists of the current state of bicycling in Sweden when it comes to reporting, monitoring, and following up on the development of cycling in connection to the transport policy objectives in Sweden. For other means of transportation, there has been a long tradition of monitoring the development in relation to the transportation objectives, but for cycling, the bicycle accounts were first published in 2014 (Trafikverket, 2023).
In 2017, the Swedish government decided that the Swedish Traffic Administration (within the work of the National Cycling Council) should monitor the development of bicycling in Sweden by describing both the development and the efforts undertaken by relevant actors for increased and safe cycling at national, regional, and local levels (see Regeringskansliet, 2017-b, N2017/04201/TS). This work should be reported back to the responsible ministries in connection to the national bicycle account.
In parallel to the National Cycling Council, there is a national knowledge centre for cycling, called cykelcentrum. This knowledge centre was established in 2017/2018 when the Swedish government commissioned VTI to be the administrative host of the new knowledge centre in Sweden for research and education about cycling. The investment from the Swedish government consists of 5 million SEK per year between 2018 and 2023, and VTI will, together with several other researchers, interests organisations, national agencies, road owners, etc., develop the role of cycling in Sweden in order to contribute to a sustainable society with high quality of life in the entire country (see VTI, n.d) The knowledge centre aims to better connect cooperation and research to the issues relevant to bicycle actors (e.g., municipalities). Moreover, another important task for the centre is to collect and disseminate knowledge about cycling through knowledge reports, webinars, etc. (VTI, n.d.).
Key actors
Several actors on all three levels of government are involved in bicycle planning in Sweden. (For an overview of all key actors at all three levels of government in Swedish bicycle infrastructure planning, see Trafikverket, 2021-b). As bicycle infrastructure is highly integrated in both urban, regional, and spatial planning as well as in transportation planning, there are several actors who are responsible for various actions. The network of relevant actors includes agencies, municipalities, and other private actors. At a more detailed level, for example when it comes to the design of cycling infrastructure, it is important that municipalities have clear guidelines and policies connected to design but also that the entrepreneurs who perform the work have the necessary knowledge.
All in all, the national objectives at least target a shift to reduced car-use and increased use of walking, cycling, and public transportation. At least in urban areas, it calls for a willingness among road owners (mainly state and municipal) to (re)-organise the road infrastructure to promote these modes of transportation over car-use. The largest share of the road network is locally owned, which means that municipalities have a great responsibility. How the municipalities organise themselves plays a role as well as how the procurement of other actors to maintain the road network. Municipalities in Sweden organise themselves differently and the responsibility for cycling infrastructure can therefore fall on different administrations within the municipalities. The municipal planning monopoly is important as is the action of setting aside funds for coordinating with various departments that are involved in design, maintenance, and development of streets and traffic environments. This illustrates the importance of collaboration, but perhaps more importantly, coordination both vertically among stakeholders at different levels of government and horizontally across sectors.
Achieving policy coordination is not an easy task; however, the existing National Cycling Council, together with the establishment of the knowledge centre for cycling, work towards better coordination. With regards to agencies, Swedish Traffic Administration is one actor with the responsibility to maintain the national road network. Swedish Traffic Administration is also the responsible agency for the urban environment agreements and for the national transport plan, both of which involve setting aside funds for, among other things, infrastructure projects for cycling and walking. Additionally, the Swedish Traffic Administration (with the work of the National Cycling Council) should monitor the development of cycling in Sweden by reporting on the developments and efforts for increased and safe cycling at local, national, and regional levels (see Regeringskansliet, 2017-b).
The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency holds the overarching coordination responsibility for Sweden’s environmental objectives, but they are also responsible for providing guidance to other public authorities, municipalities, and regions (Naturvårdsverket, n.d.-b). For example, other agencies, such as Transport Analysis, have government assignments linked to transport policy goals where they report and coordinate with the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. One task for the agency is to conduct an annual follow-up of the transport policy goals (Trafikanalys n.d.-a).
There are many other agencies that could be relevant to highlight. For example, since cycling can promote better public health, the Public Health Agency of Sweden is an important actor in this context. Additionally, the Swedish National Board of Housing, Building and Planning is an important actor as they are the agency responsible for spatial planning and since increased cycling is an ingredient in sustainable urban development, the Swedish National Board of Housing, Building and Planning works together with the Swedish Traffic Administration to normalise walking, cycling, and public transport within urban transport planning (Naturevårdsverket, 2022).
To sum up, Sweden relies on collaboration both horizontally between sectors and vertically across administrative levels and in collaboration with civil society and private companies.
1 GCK= gång, cykel och kollektivtrafik. (Pedestrian, bicycle and public transport)
2 ” The milestone targets are intended to identify a desired social change and specify steps towards achieving the generational goal and one or more of the environmental quality objectives.” (Naturvårdsverket n.d.-a)
3 The assessment can be found at the website Sveriges Miljömål. It is run by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency in cooperation with seven other Swedish National Agencies and all County Administrative Boards. It outlines all environmental and climate objectives and collects them all to a national webpage for all environmental work. (See https://www.sverigesmiljomal.se/)
4 This means that the consideration objective refers to several other climate and environmental targets that must be considered when designing and developing the transportation system in Sweden.
6 This is not to claim this is done in practice, rather this particular action is listed as one measure that needs to be taken in order to fulfil the GCK-objective.
7 A more comprehensive overview of funding can be found in Trafikverket (2021-b)
8 In Swedish, the following organisations: Boverket, Cykelfrämjandet, Finspångs kommun, Folkhälsomyndigheten, Göteborgs Stad, Komexp (Västra Götalandsregionen och Region Jönköpings län), Naturvårdsverket, Svensk cykling, Sveriges kommuner och regioner, Trafikverket, Transportstyrelsen, Umeå kommun, VTI samt Cykelcentrum.