Vienna to reward car-free travel with concert tickets

If you take public transport, cycle or walk in Vienna, you stand to gain more than fresh air and exercise, with the city unveiling an app on Monday to reward car-free travel with free concert and museum tickets.

A total of 1,000 users will start a test of the smartphone app from February 26.

If the six-month test is successful, the app is expected to be rolled out to the broader public in the autumn.

The app works through a tracking system that recognises the mode of transport used and calculates the CO2 savings in comparison to taking a car.

"We want to reward CO2 reduction with a cultural experience," Vienna city council member Peter Hanke told a press conference at the presentation of the new app, which allows users to collect "culture tokens" whenever they commute without cars.

Users get one token as soon as they have saved 20 kilogrammes of CO2, which would be reached if a average resident within the city limits commuted without a car for two weeks, according to project leader Christina Hubin.

The tokens can be exchanged for free tickets at four participating cultural institutions.

The Vienna Museum of the city's history, an art exhibition space, a theatre and a classical concert venue are taking part.

In the initial test phase the participating institutions will not be compensated.

Vienna, with its 1.8 million inhabitants, is known for its efficient public transport.

Annual travel cards for public transport cost just one euro per day and now outnumber cars in the city.

Under a newly formed coalition government between the conservative People's Party (OeVP) and the Greens, Austria aims to be climate neutral by 2040, a decade ahead of the EU's target.

Related Links
Car Technology at SpaceMart.com

Tweet

Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly

paypal only

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal

Bugatti touts green ambitions while storming full speed ahead
Molsheim, France (AFP) Jan 26, 2020
Supercar manufacturer Bugatti, fresh off one of its best years, wants the world to know it has taken environmental concerns to heart even as it prepares a next generation of heart-pounding - and gas-guzzling - speed machines. The French automaker has implemented a series of measures to offset the carbon emitted by the 81 racers it produced last year, including a shift to biogas and other green energy sources to power its manufacturing facilities in northeast France. But will Bugatti, which has ... read more