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Nordic country becomes first in the world where electric car sales outstrip those powered by other meansNorway became the first country in the world where the sale of electric cars has overtaken those powered by petrol, diesel and hybrid engines last year, with the German carmaker Volkswagen replacing Tesla as the top battery-vehicle producer, data shows.Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) made up 54.3% of all...

Hauliers stranded in their cabs on UK roads say they are being used as political pawnsSee all our coronavirus coverageJuan Andrés had braced himself for what promised to be an atypical holiday season. But the lorry driver from southern Spain never imagined that Christmas Day would be spent in his cab tucking into a ham and cheese sandwich – among provisions handed out by...

Digital system automatically reduces electric bicycles’ power in built-up areasElectric bike motors will be shut down when entering residential or built-up areas of Amsterdam, under a government-funded project to cut road deaths from the increasingly powerful vehicles.The digital technology, which has been successfully trialled on a 4km stretch of bike lanes at Schiphol airport, was funded by the Dutch ministry of infrastructure and water...

Thousands of people took part in a silent march in Bayonne for Philippe Monguillot, 59, who was declared brain dead after an attack by passengers who refused to wear face masks. He later died in hospital.The driver’s family organised the march from the bus stop where the assault took place. Monguillot's colleagues used their right to refuse to work in the aftermath of the...

One French driver in five admits to a Jekyll and Hyde personality when they take the wheelThe French are the road-rage champions of Europe, according to a survey, with the highest number of drivers who feel they become more aggressive when they get on the road.The 10th annual poll of “responsible driving” published by the Vinci Motorway Foundation and carried out by the Ipsos...

Road markings redrawn after cyclists demand more space to comply with Covid-19 rulesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageGerman cities are redrawing road markings to create “pop-up” cycle lanes for the duration of the Covid-19 lockdown, as cyclists demand more space to physically distance on their commutes to work.Local authorities in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin trialled a temporary widening of two cycle...

After years of committed action, neither city recorded a single pedestrian fatality in 2019 They cut speed limits, changed street design, removed space for cars and generally made life harder for motorists.Now it appears the work is paying off. Two of Europe’s smaller capital cities – Oslo and Helsinki – are reaping the rewards of committed action on making their roads safer, reducing pedestrian...

Despite €16.3bn in EU funding, cities have failed to get people on to bikes or buses, report saysCommuters in Europe are still choosing their cars over public transport despite enduring ever longer journey times into city centres owing to traffic congestion, the EU’s spending watchdog has found.Six years after Brussels announced a step-change in urban transport and provided more than €16.3bn (£14bn) in funding,...

Country is first to implement measure nationwide in attempt to reduce congestionLuxembourg is to become the first country to offer a free public transport system, as the government tries to reduce particularly dense car traffic.Some cities have taken similar partial measures but the transport ministry said it was the only time such a decision had encompassed an entire country. Continue reading...

As preclude to day of action, power to thousands of homes deliberately cut by workers Police fired teargas and charged at demonstrators in central Paris as hundreds of thousands of protesters across the country staged a show of force against the government’s controversial pension reform plans.The violence erupted at Place de la Nation, one of Paris’s biggest squares, as riot police attempted to disperse...

Gilets jaunes-style movement has threatened to bring down national governmentRegional elections in Norway on Monday are being billed as a referendum on the country’s environmental policies, with the country split over road toll rises that have already threatened to bring down the national government.A sharp increase in motorway toll and congestion charges in recent years has helped fuel a political movement that is proving...

Child reaches high speeds during night-time motorway adventure before pulling over and putting his hazard lights onAn eight-year-old boy has been found safe after taking his parents’ car for a 140km/h (87mph) night-time spin down a motorway in Germany.He tearfully told police he “just wanted to drive a little bit”. Continue reading...

Over 400 riders caught under influence of alcohol in Munich since vehicles legalised in JunePoliticians in Munich are calling for the use of e-scooters to be restricted during Oktoberfest in response to number of people being caught using the newly-legal vehicles while drunk.The use of electric scooters was legalised across Germany in June in the hope they may help reduce the carbon footprint of...