The world’s most electric city | Future of Cities

What if an entire city decided to go electric? This one is. Step into Oslo, Norway.

What if an entire city decided to go electric? Imagine a place where trams glide silently through the streets, buses hum along emitting no fumes, and even the ferries that cross the waters are powered solely by electricity.

Welcome to Oslo, Norway, where electrification has become a way of life. Oslo is on a mission to achieve a nearly 100% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 2009 levels. They're electrifying everything from construction sites to scooters, with a focus on the construction and transportation sectors, which contribute the most to emissions. Electric cars have become the norm, thanks to government policies that incentivize their adoption. Oslo's ferries are now the world's first all-electric passenger ferries.

The city's determination to tackle climate change is not only inspiring but also raises an intriguing question: Can a single city's electrification efforts ignite a global movement toward a cleaner, greener future?

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Read more of our stories on clean energy:
New battery tech boosts EV range by 20%
The biggest myths about electric vehicles
Making electricity from wastewater
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Watch our original series:

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About Freethink
No politics, no gossip, no cynics. At Freethink, we believe the daily news should inspire people to build a better world. While most media is fueled by toxic politics and negativity, we focus on solutions: the smartest people, the biggest ideas, and the most ground breaking technology shaping our future.
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[freethink]

How do you think cities should switch off fossil fuels?

[Sator]

As someone living in Oslo I would say the really noticeable difference is in the reduction of noise pollution.

Even in the suburbs the noise of a summer weekend used to be the noise of lawn mowers, now it is a lot more quieter that almost everyone has electric autonomous mowers.

[klaudelu]

01:45 - Dude... 😳 you did not have to go so hard with the effects so early in the video, but I absolutely love that you did. I applaud you.

[demotter]

I have a hybrid. Love it. Some of the things not mentioned about EVs is that 99% of the time I charge at home. No more waiting in line at gas stations. I rarely drive to a gas station except on long trips. My gas bill is no longer $250/month. Technology is just going to get better. Look how long it took to get the automobile to where it is now.

[tomern]

Freethink: Next time you want to count, just count any numberplates that start with E (EL/EV... etc). All types of vehicles that are electric, bus, motorcycles and cars, have numberplates that starts with E 👍🏻

BTW, we've already swapped out all the city buses (red ones) to electric ones earlier this year 💪

[scipionyx]

So much quieter, I was super surprised by the construction equipment being so quiet

[bibhushansaakha]

The editing of this video is so cool tho! Great Content, with cool Animations and sound effects. Sweet!

[unfazedgeorge]

In California where I live, the prevalence of electric cars is quite comparable, but that's where the similarities end. The absence of early investments in clean energy solutions from both public and private sectors has created a stark contrast in our public transit and infrastructure. What truly astounds me is the capability of construction vehicles to plug directly into a DC power supply. This type of infrastructure, however, has yet to see significant investment in my area. The electric charging infrastructure for consumer transport has been predominantly established by just one private company. Despite corporations spending exorbitant amounts to alter consumer preferences, the infrastructure necessary for a sustainable future, as indicated here, relies on more than just our daily commutes.

[damiandavies]

I thought it was funny that the guy was amazed he was in the countryside 10 minutes outside the city. That's the entire world when you don't suburbanize and sprawl cities out. You have the city and quickly you have the countryside. It's closer and makes a tons more sense. Even Latin America is this way...

[zupermaus]

01:58 Fact check - Norway has the most electric vehicles per capita, not overall (for example China has 23x more)

[dalecorne-new-mtv]

I love how you did the interactive text within the video. That was awesome.

[abhishekaphale]

Love your videos. As a Philadelphian who loves this city I appreciate your videos a lot, those about philadelphia AND those about other cities. Thank you for promoting public transportation.

[BertoLaDK]

I think the ferry charging for the Fanø Færge in Esbjerg, Denmark also is very smart, it made to line up with the cables when it docks so it can just attach the charger directly without having to drag cables around.

[romangladiator]

If anyone is wondering, around 96% of Norway's energy production is hydroelectric.

[ttopero]

Thank you for your effort in putting these videos together! Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs) is a betting way to describe the small vehicles that are similar in scale to what’s used on the golf course. The words we use to describe things are as important as the things themselves when trying to shift people’s perceptions & behaviors. Please consider this in your speech patterns. It doesn’t mean being PC, but it does mean being conscientious about communicating effectively.

[kaspernielsen]

"What if there is a power outage?"

... This is Europe... we barely ever have power outages.

[dijikstra]

0:40 This is common for people who ski to keep up their skill when there's no snow. We have them in Sweden as well.

[mr_clean]

Really interesting video, and I appreciate how honest it was about everything. Giving praise where praise is due, while not sugarcoating safety concerns, practical problems, or the fact that all the funding for the infrastructure is from selling oil to be used for emissions.

While all this probably technically results in a net increase in emissions(because everything is funded by oil, and electric adds a middleman that reduces efficiency), it's good to have someone doing wide-scale testing like this to help solve a lot of the engineering and supply chain problems that come with trying to be 100% emission free.

Hopefully we can see more progression in reducing emissions through more increased production of clean energy throughout the world(instead of just burning coal to power electric cars lol), and then this technology and processes could become more widespread and impactful.

[The_Cyber_System]

This is a fantastic video. I'm saving this for later to show friends. I've not been impressed with the channel for a while, but you were saving for something big. I look forward to more like this. Great format, great editing, loved the realness of taking opportunities in the moment like the truck dumping aggregate. It felt very real and grounded, but had a focus and narrative and surprised me with lots of new information.

[laurainalmaty]

Thank you for nice infotmation from Norway Liked Norway !💚