No one killed or badly hurt on Geneva’s roads

Geneva in 2061

Nobody has died on Geneva’s streets for many years. Walking and cycling are the normal ways to get around, the few vehicles are silent delivery vans, and children cycle to school on their own.

The next thing she noticed was how quiet everything was. People got around mostly on foot or on bicycle…The Grooters, Book 1, chapter “2061”

Geneva today

• Cycling is riskier in Geneva than elsewhere in Switzerland: 409 cycling accidents and 4 cyclists killed in 2025, a 10% rise in one year (Pro Vélo, cited in the same report).
• Serious injuries rose by 4.2% in 2024, and accidents involving people over 65 on e-bikes have almost tripled.
• In 2026, a resolution asking the canton to aim for “zero deaths and serious injuries” was rejected in committee by 9 votes to 6, without hearing any experts. Some members argued that figures per kilometre travelled would look better for Geneva, because of its many commuters.

Where it is already done

• Helsinki (Finland) recorded no road deaths for twelve months, from July 2024 to July 2025. More than half its streets are limited to 30 km/h, junctions and crossings were redesigned, and walking, cycling and public transport were expanded. City leaders credit long-term, systematic work rather than a single measure.
• Sweden adopted Vision Zero for road deaths in 1997, the principle that the road system must be designed so human mistakes are not fatal. Source to be added
• Oslo (Norway) has pursued a zero-deaths policy for years and is often cited alongside Helsinki; Norway has about half as many road deaths per million inhabitants as Switzerland.

How far along

Done somewhere A city or country already does it. Geneva only needs to adapt it.

The path to 2061

Milestones proposed for discussion.

1. 2027The canton adopts an official zero target, with a public yearly report measured both per resident and per kilometre travelled.
2. 203130 km/h becomes the default on city streets; the most dangerous junctions are redesigned; a continuous protected cycle network links all neighbourhoods.
3. 2041The city centre is free of private cars except deliveries and shared vehicles at the edge of town. Geneva records its first full year without a road death.
4. 2051Ten consecutive years without road deaths; serious injuries have become rare.
5. 2061Verity’s quiet city: streets belong to people again.

What moves it

Human needs it serves

Open questions

• Which measure is fairer for a city with so many cross-border commuters: casualties per resident or per kilometre? Publishing both ends the argument.
• How do we protect older people on e-bikes without discouraging them from cycling?
• Can shared self-driving vehicles remove driver error altogether, and when?

Sources

1. Grand Council of Geneva, report R 1052-A, “Objectif zéro mort et blessé grave sur nos routes” (2026)
2. EU Urban Mobility Observatory: Helsinki records zero road deaths over the past year (22 August 2025)

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