Do you know what a diagonal lock is?

No?

Then I recommend a trip to the Oeder Weg in Frankfurt.

For a few months now, anyone driving their car from the city center towards Nordend has been denied access through the Oeder Weg with a red and white barrier.

This is known from forestry roads in the forest.

“Residential quarters for people, not for sneaking cars” is the motto.

Bicycles are very welcome.

After all, Frankfurt should become a car-hostile, but bicycle-friendly city.

Rainer Hank

Freelance writer in the economy of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.

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The tradespeople in Oeder Weg are not friends of being cordoned off.

The residents of the adjacent streets are also grieving: Because now the drivers are looking for other secret routes.

In the meantime, even the residents of Oeder Weg have become confused: The road, which is closed to car traffic, has quickly turned into an Eldorado for so-called outdoor dining.

Instead of car noise, happy revelers are now roaring.

Note: Urban regulation such as the driving ban here leads to undesirable side effects.

And even the beneficiaries, here the local residents, quickly turn from winners to victims.

The lack of housing in the big cities is one of the biggest problems in Germany. "Politicians" have to do something, they say. As to what to do, opinions differ widely. Most of the ideas are not very effective: Leftists and (many) Greens are flirting with rent caps, rent brakes and even expropriating larger housing groups. Climate politicians warn against the construction of new apartments, because this would lead to higher land consumption and spoil the CO2 balance of the cities. And the NIMBYs dominate the beautiful neighborhoods. That stands for “Not in my backyard”. Of course, new apartments have to be built, but not in my neighborhood, please. Our urban neighborhood should remain green, car-free and cheerful.You treat yourself to a huge undeveloped biotope like the Tempelhofer Feld in Berlin ("also protected for rare animal residents", as it says on the website) and at the same time protect yourself from rent increases with tightened price brakes. A paradise for those who are already inside. Unattainably expensive for those who want to get in.

The coalition agreement remains half-hearted

Nevertheless, the run on the cities continues.

Young families find the urbanity of the big city more exciting than the suburbs or the country life.

This is also related to the falling crime rate.

Man has never been as safe in the cities as it is today.

The core of the problem is not that the apartments are too expensive, but that there are too few of them.

If there were more, that would depress the price and put an end to the speculators.

The coalition agreement of the “traffic light” remains half-hearted.

Much prohibition, little departure.

400,000 new apartments are to be built annually.

A good idea.

If these are to be affordable, they shouldn't just be luxury apartments.

The solution is to standardize construction.

But an alliance of architects, milieu protectors and climate fans is already getting together and screaming “concrete blocks”, “tenement barracks” and, if that's not enough, “slab”.

Aesthetics and climate change are the advanced weapons with which the acquis can be defended well.

And politicians make themselves the bailiffs of those city citizens who do not want to be disturbed in their comfort.