In the garage of the Gullerström family, two vehicles belong to their daughters, who are minors. Big engines. An Audi A6 and a Porsche Cayenne. The owner of the latter is called Juni and is still in high school. It is also by car that she goes there every day. At 15, the teenager drives alone and without a license. In Sweden, it's called an "A-traktor" and you just need a scooter license. In the country, they are recognizable by the famous red and orange triangle hanging from the rear bumper. The other specificity is that these cars drive slowly. The top speed does not exceed 30km/h. A car restrained by an electronic box. "It's not trivial. Many may wonder why you want to turn such a beautiful car into an A-traktor but I find them quite stylish," says Juni with a laugh. And then, she finds it much safer than a car without a license or "a plastic box", as she calls it. And that's not the only benefit. In winter, in Stockholm, it snows. Sometimes a lot. And roads can quickly turn into ice rinks. No problem for Juni and his Porsche. She was able to go to school any day, unlike her classmates who ride scooters. "It's also a real freedom. If I have a race to do, I don't have to ask my parents to take me and I can drive my little sister to her riding lessons for example." It was also a way for her father, Patrick, to empower and independent his daughters. "It's also convenient for the whole family," he says.
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If this limitation to 30km / h does not bother Juni, who says she is anyway cautious, she is regularly honked because she drives too slowly: "but I can not drive faster!" she retorts. And then there are those who stop altogether to criticize his choice to drive this kind of vehicles. In Sweden, the phenomenon of A-traktor is now a hit beyond the countryside where they were traditionally used. They are also the result of an adaptation of an old rule on agricultural vehicles. Except, to date, they are at least 50,000 to ride in these machines that can now be seen everywhere in the city. And they are not always unanimous. Especially since they would be very numerous to tinker with the speed limiter to be able to drive faster. The authorities are concerned about the excesses of this system and deplore 5 times more accidents since 2020. For Juni, as for others, the problem is precisely this limitation to 30km/h. "An all-plastic unlicensed car has the right to drive at 45km/h and A-traktor cars, which are real cars much safer, can only drive at 30km/h. If they could drive at 45km/h too, I think many would not unleash their cars illegally. »
