In the metropolises of Europe, the picture is shining: thousands and thousands of cars push their way through the streets, park everywhere and consume a lot of space. Space that playing children, cyclists and fugngers often do not have. Other dangerous “side effects” of the car-friendly city are also tolerated: harmful exhaust fumes and Lrm, plus almost 19,000 traffic fatalities every year across the EU.
But some of the majority are radically changing course and want to initiate a “transport turnaround” also out of concern about the escalating climate crisis.
Whether in Paris, Barcelona or Berlin: “car-free oases” are set up as well as protected cycle paths and promenades. In this way, more quality of life and security are gained, as planners and politicians emphasize. Quite a few motorists, however, see their freedom and also cherished privileges in danger.
Copenhagen: Five times more Rder than cars
The Danish capital proudly and confidently calls itself “Verdens bedste cykelby” – the world’s best cycling city. The traffic turnaround in favor of the safety of cyclists has long been behind it. The result is cycle paths that are often almost as wide as the car lanes.
More drivers than cars drive through the city center every day, and just under half of the commutes to work, university and school are covered by bike. Every day, the people of Copenhagen cycle more than 1.4 million kilometres – and the trend is rising. The approximately 630,000 inhabitants had more than 730,000 drivers in 2020, but only around 130,000 cars.
However, this is not enough for the main Danish cities, the infrastructure is to be further improved. One goal: By 2025, no one should die in Copenhagen’s road traffic. Fittingly, the city also wants to become CO2-neutral by that year, which would be hard to imagine with loud exhaust fumes in the center. Copenhagen is already one of the cities with the highest quality of life in the world – also thanks to its cycling infrastructure.
Barcelona: More grn and silence with “Superblocks”
The metropolis with its 1.6 million inhabitants is to become quieter, safer and greener according to the will of the city administration – and has been relying on heavily traffic-calmed “superblocks” since 2016. Several huser blocks are always combined into a unit with around 500 meters of floodplains. In addition to the delivery traffic, only residents drive in. Parking must be done in underground garages, parking garages or, if necessary, outside.
Although the checkerboard-like streets are preserved, they are strongly traffic-calmed and bordered in the interior of these islands, which are called Superilles in Catalan. It is about nothing less than “the Rckeroberung der Strae” by the people, wrote the newspaper “El Pas”.
The fact that Fugnger jostle on narrow Brgersteigen and between parked cars should have an end. The maximum speed is ten kilometers per hour, which also applies to drivers and e-scooters, Fugnger have the right of way. The rest of the car traffic has to drive around the superblocks.
This will give the inhabitants of these islands, which look like little drfers, cleaner air, peace and plenty of space for social encounters, cultural events, playgrounds and more of the so far rare in Barcelona grn. Some superblocks already exist, so to speak, experimental laboratories, now the concept is to be pushed forward and extended to almost the entire city area in ten years.
But when moving from a car-friendly city to a living space for people, problems lurk. more people are being driven out of this attractive living environment. “Rents have been rising here since it is known that there will be a Supermanzana,” tenants in the Eixample district criticize in the newspaper “La Vanguardia”. Lden and restaurants complain about the lack of customers. In addition, individual traffic must be reduced if there is to be no widespread traffic congestion on the remaining thoroughfares.
Paris: “Coronapistes” and 30 km/h
The corona crisis gave a real boost to efforts to create more cycling routes across France’s metropolis. Many of the pop-up cycle paths provisionally created with concrete blisters called “Coronapistes” have since been converted into permanent cycle lanes.
In addition, 30 km/h was introduced in the city area in autumn almost across the board, with the exception of some main axes. Although the new rule is controlled and observed little and often car traffic stalls or jams anyway, the measure is considered a symbol of a traffic turnaround that Brgermeisterin Anne Hidalgo has been promoting for years. This also includes the blocking of some streets for Fugnger and the creation of more grnflchen.
Although the wheelTraffic has increased significantly thanks to the many rental bike stations, for example, the traffic turnaround is also due to resistance. Craftsmen and suppliers, for example, complain that they are often no longer able to park in the vicinity of their customers and hoo up traffic tickets. Hidalgo is accused of an anti-car policy and even in the Paris area, which is no longer accessible by the metro, measures such as planned restrictions on the city highway are met with resistance.
And Paris has not yet become a paradise for cyclists with more cycle paths alone. In case of doubt, motorists assert the right of strkeren.
Berlin: More birdsong thanks to bollards
In the Kreuzberg Krtestrae you can chirp the Vgel again during the day – thanks to the bollards, which have prevented car traffic from passing through since last spring. The highlight: Fire brigade and ambulance can sink one of the bollards in an emergency by remote control and drive through it in seconds.
Since the closure, the Gste can talk quietly in front of the cafes and restaurants in the Krtestrae again – because the car has fallen silent. Berlin’s new Transport Senator Bettina Jarasch (Grne) also wants many more such car-free “oases” in densely populated residential districts. From their point of view, more Berliners should voluntarily leave their car behind or abolish it altogether. A little pressure should also help: Parking must be charged in many places or made more expensive, she said last week in the rbb.
As in Paris, numerous cycle paths on main roads “popped up” in the course of the pandemic in Berlin, usually separating one of two car lanes. Often the cyclists, who are becoming more and more, now roll past long queues of cars: For example, on the Kottbusser Damm, whose one lane was always parked in the second row anyway. Or on the Kantstrae, where a model project for sustainable delivery traffic is now to start: The district of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf wants to have a large part of the shipments in the City West delivered by cargo bike. From May, cargo bikes will replace many vans and trucks on the Kantstrae.
London: Better air also as a question of justice
Brgermeister Sadiq Khan wants to reduce car kilometres in the British capital by a good quarter by 2030 – as part of the plan to make London climate-neutral by the end of the decade. Krzlich he said in a conversation with journalists, many national governments discourage effective climate protection. “But we are the doers!” Khan is currently chairman of the C40 initiative, which brings together ambitious cities around the world to fight the climate crisis.
A car commuter who is on the road every day spends an average of more than 150 hours a year in traffic jams, i.e. more than six days, Khan calculated. An expansion of the cycle paths should make car journeys abundant. In addition, the low-emission zones in which certain vehicles do not drive or are incurred for the fees are to be extended.
The Social Democratic politician has been campaigning for years to improve the quality of air in London. He also sees this as a question of social justice. The worst Londoners live in the neighborhoods with the worst air quality, Khan said – yet they have the fewest cars per capita.
(By Jan-Uwe Ronneburger, Michael Evers, Larissa Schwedes, Steffen Trumpf and Torsten Holtz, dpa/mer)
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