According to a recent report, last year, a driver in Bucharest lost 150 hours in traffic. To alleviate the chaos on the streets, stores, restaurants and hotels could be required to receive goods only at certain hours. At least, that's what a project by the City Hall suggests.

Bucharest is eighth in the world and fourth in Europe in terms of congestion. Ahead of us are London, Dublin and Toronto, where the average travel speed is 15 kilometers per hour. Things are not much different here. In 2023, drivers in the capital lost about 150 hours in traffic and spent an additional 1,000 RON on fuel due to the city's congestion.

The initiators of a project currently under public debate propose that stores, restaurants and hotels receive goods only during certain time intervals. In the initial version, contested by retailers, freight vehicles could only circulate during the night. In Bucharest alone, there are over 200,000 vehicles dedicated to supply. And a store needs, on average, at least four daily supplies.

George Bădescu, Director of the Association of Major Retail Chains in Romania: "If we are referring to the possibility of conducting supply activities during the night, this would mean that the staff would need to be present in the store during this period, we are not just talking about the simple unloading of a vehicle, we are also talking about shelving. It raises some issues related to the inevitable noise that would be felt near residential areas".

Radu Tănase, the Employers' Organization of Hotels and Restaurants in Romania: "Additional expenses for employees, the issue of the workforce, which we are already grappling with. This proposal for nighttime traffic is not the most suitable; we do not alleviate daytime traffic congestion and, at the same time, pollution, we just to shift it to nighttime".

According to the document, those who do not comply with the supply hours risk fines ranging from 3,000 to 5,000 RON. The same project includes waste management companies, which already have schedule restrictions.

Stelian Bujduveanu, Deputy Mayor of Bucharest: "Today, in the Municipality of Bucharest, it is prohibited for garbage trucks to collect waste between 7 - 10 AM and 4 - 7 PM, and so far it seems that the control authorities have not done their job. Until now, I have not personally seen any local police officer in the sector fine a waste collection vehicle".

Such regulations already exist in cities like Paris or Berlin.