Red-Green-Red | Hoping for a new start: transport associations praise coalition plans

Cars everywhere. Will the new government create a lasting transition in transport? Photo: Photocase/Seleneos When it came to the outgoing Senate, transport and environmental associations largely bit the odds. Even the drivers' lobby around the ADAC criticized Senator Ute Bonde and her predecessor Manja Schreiner (both CDU) for the lack of speed in the traffic turnaround. The mobility law was hardly taken into account. The coming Senate can actually only do better. Several associations - the ADAC is not among them - have looked at what is known about the plans of the Left, the Greens and the SPD.

In a position paper sent out on Wednesday, the environmental association BUND, the bicycle club ADFC and the passenger association IGEB, among others, identified "both forward-looking perspectives for Berlin's mobility and undefined gaps." The exploratory paper from the future coalition partners has met with great approval. As a sort of nod to the ongoing negotiations, the associations are essentially just further spelling out the abstract goals there.

To expand mobility away from cars, the associations emphasize “quickly implementable and cost-efficient measures”. The expansion of the tram takes priority over the subway. Tram projects that have been stopped should be restarted. Ute Bonde, for example, had buried the plans to extend the M4 line from Alexanderplatz to Potsdamer Platz. Bus connections should be accelerated using special lanes and traffic lights with priority switching.

In the competition for public space, the associations are calling for the calming of neighborhoods to be promoted with so-called neighborhood blocks in each district. Children and schoolchildren in particular should be better protected in traffic. To this end, the associations suggest expanding 30 km/h zones and traffic controls, especially in school environments. With a view to road safety, routes to school on foot and by bicycle should be fundamentally improved.

The 871 kilometer long priority network should finally be implemented for cyclists. In May of this year, only 78 kilometers were completed. Sidewalks should be reserved primarily for pedestrians. To this end, parking areas for cars should be converted into multi-purpose strips. Delivery zones, bicycle parking spaces and unsealed and green areas can then be accommodated there.

When it comes to the A100, the associations are going further than the prospective coalition partners, who only want to stop the 17th construction phase. The 16th construction phase from Neukölln to Treptower Park should, if possible, be rededicated as a city street.

With regard to the Germany ticket, the associations' wishes go beyond the previous plans of the Left, the Greens and the SPD. They don’t just want a reduced social tariff for benefit recipients. In the Federal Council, Berlin should advocate “for an affordable general Germany ticket”.

However, the approach of the administration is also crucial: long-term and reliable planning on the one hand, and short-term interdepartmental action in the event of a conflict. The mobility transition must “pick up speed again and develop lasting momentum,” says the BUND.

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