display

Berlin (dpa / bb) - In the future, Berliners should be able to move around the city more safely and comfortably on foot.

To this end, the House of Representatives decided on Thursday with the votes of the red-red-green coalition and the FDP to amend the Mobility Act.

The law passed in mid-2018 was the first of its kind in Germany and gives local public transport (ÖPNV) and bicycle traffic priority over car traffic.

With the addition, Berlin now wants to create binding guidelines for pedestrian traffic, i.e. take another step away from the car.

Among other things, it should be possible to implement zebra crossings more quickly in the future.

Pedestrians should be able to cross all streets, including those with central islands, in just one green phase, instead of having to wait in between.

There should be more play streets and more streets or squares that become meeting zones.

The way to school should be safer.

display

Violations of traffic rules that endanger the safety of pedestrians and cyclists should be prosecuted more intensely than before - to name just a few examples.

From the point of view of the coalition, the change in the law is another building block for the traffic turnaround in the capital and for a transport policy that focuses less on the car than before.

"With this amendment, a German federal state is regulating its foot traffic policy on a legal basis for the first time," said Transport Senator Regine Günther (Greens) of the German Press Agency.

"This gives foot traffic a whole new role."

Walking is the most environmentally friendly way of getting around the city.

"The promotion of pedestrian traffic is therefore always a step towards a liveable city."

Around eight months before the House of Representatives election, Rot-Rot-Grün brings a project under the roof with the amendment that had been announced for a long time and has been improved in numerous areas in the past few months - not least due to pressure from the German Pedestrian Association (FUSS).

display

Board member Roland Stimpel sees the result as positive: After pedestrians have been pushed back for 100 years, pedestrians are being taken seriously again, he said.

It is good that there is now a separate set of rules.

In terms of content, the emphasis on more safety for pedestrians is particularly important.

From the perspective of the pedestrian association, it is also to be welcomed that more benches are planned in the city.

For older people, who can sometimes only walk a few hundred meters before they have to rest, this is very important, said Stimpel.

Stimpel also thinks it is good that there should be a pedestrian coordination point in the traffic administration in the future.

The FDP transport politician Henner Schmidt also assessed the law positively.

"But there are still points of criticism such as the exaggerated creation of additional bodies or the lack of really equal planning - that is, a priority network - for pedestrian traffic," he explained.

display

Most recently, skeptical voices were heard as to whether the goals of the amendment to the law will be achieved.

Roland Stimpel also sees a weak point here: "We know from laws, especially in Berlin, that many beautiful things are decided, but that implementation is often lacking," he said.

"We'll pay attention to that, and we'll have to fight there."

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210128-99-213466 / 3