A petitioner is calling for a ban on the Autofestival, pictured in this archive photo Paperjam/archives

A petitioner is calling for a ban on the Autofestival, pictured in this archive photo Paperjam/archives

The most ambitious is petition 1198 calling for an end to the annual Autofestival, in which car dealerships offer preferential rates at the start of the year to sell the majority of their stock. “In these times of climate emergency, to promote the all-powerful car as the only transport solution is a lie, and this goes against the very essential measures that should aim to promote public transport, multimodality and soft mobility (train, bicycle, tram, bus) […] The state should legislate to prohibit the Autofestival and any advertising referring to it,” the petitioner writes.

Petition 1211 calls for the government to revise the cost of the roadworthiness tests, the price of which increased recently. While the author of petition 1243 calls for a reduction in taxes and an increase in fuel excise in a bid to “drastically reduce traffic because we still have a lot of international carriers making detours through Luxembourg to refuel.” Luxembourg has among the cheapest fuel prices in Europe. Luxembourg’s finance minister confirmed to Delano last week that an excise of 1-2 cents per litre will be introduced within a month. For some, this increase may not be enough.

Speeding traffic is the target of the author of petition 1251, who wants to install 30k/hr speed limits in areas which currently have a 50k/hr limit to be applied from 7:30am to 8pm. Public transport is to be made free of charge starting March 2020. But, buses face the same difficulties as other road users confronted with large volumes of traffic.

Petition 1252 calls for the creation of dedicated bus lanes on motorways A1, A3, A4 and A6, by converting the hard shoulder.

Finally, the author of petition 1254 wants the state to install smart traffic lights that will help reduce traffic-related CO2 emissions by “optimizing traffic according to priorities (tram, late buses, emergency services) on main roads both in town and outside urban areas [...] Better coordinated traffic lights will be able to give road users real waiting times for different routes via a connected mobile application,” the petitioner writes.

In total, 19 petitions went live on Friday and can be signed until 16 May. Petitions with 4,500 signatures or more will be debated in parliament. Anyone may sign a petition in Luxembourg provided they are aged 15 or over and have a social security card for Luxembourg.