Congratulations Ulricehamn! But now it's time for the state to invest in E20 and save lives

By: Thomas Ström 10/5/15

I'd like to start by congratulating Ulricehamn. 
In two weeks a 17 kilometers long new road section of highway 40 will be inaugurated, which makes it possible to drive on a two-lane highway all the way to and from Gothenburg. 

Of course, this will affect Ulricehamn as a municipality. All of a sudden it will become an appealing place for people who wish to live in a smaller city and are willing to commute. As the accessibility gets better, more businesses will want to establish in the area. Moreover, there will be fewer accidents on the highway, etcetera. As I see it, there are only advantages for everyone in and around this cozy little town by lake Åsunden. 

However, as in most cases, there are disadvantages – in this case as well. One of them, which I take very seriously, is that the new highway facilitates for drivers to choose E4 when driving between our country's two largest cities. The E4; which already is very congested by heavy traffic between Skåne (the continent) and Stockholm. 
Can the E4 really handle this without being affected by more accidents and traffic jams?  

Another sad story in this context is the decay of E20 through Skaraborg, Närke,  Södermanland and so forth up to Stockholm. Sure, there have been some investments in for example Götene, where the highway is amazing. But this is not enough for this small section to be the only part of this big road to be in top condition. More resources need to be added immediately. 

A couple of decades ago, E20 was the obvious choice when driving between Stockholm and Gothenburg. What if that could happen again? This would create a balance between the two European roads. 

This way, we would no longer need to hear about all of the accidents occurring today at the E20. I do not have the statistics on this, but even though there is a lower congestion compared to a few years ago, there still occur at least one accident a week on this road. Unfortunately, several of them end up with disablement or a fatal outcome. Think about all of the lives that could have been saved and the suffering that could have been avoided if the state had invested in expanding the E20 20 years ago. 

Do not make me say the same thing in 20 years. 
Therefore: INVEST IN AN EXPANSION OF E20 NOW! 

 


Photo: E20 väster om Skara/Joel Torsson via Wikimedia Commons