During the day, rush-hour traffic causes noise. At night the trucks rattle along the street An St. Katharinen. Opening a window to the street side – mostly impossible. “Actually, it’s never quiet,” says resident Manuel Braun. For four years he has been fighting against the traffic noise and fighting for 30 km/h in and around the small street near the Severins Bridge, which runs parallel to the B 55. His chances have never been as good as they are today.
The city has to re-examine applications to reduce the maximum speed on four streets in Cologne. The administrative court in Cologne decided that a week ago. For attorney Wolfram Sedlak, however, this is just the beginning. “14 streets in the city area are currently in legal proceedings,” says Sedlak. All interests must first be weighed against each other. “But if the noise pollution on these roads is too great, drivers can be expected to lose a few seconds by speeding to 30 km/h.”
Noise level is significantly exceeded
The streets on which residents are demanding a speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour include Jesuitengasse in Weidenpesch, Bergstrasse in Nippes, Siegburger Strasse between Deutz and Poll and Lindenstrasse in the city centre. Sedlak and the plaintiffs refer to the 16th Federal Immission Control Ordinance. In the 2007 noise protection directive, the noise level that is reasonable for citizens is given as 70 decibels during the day and 60 at night. However, the regulation sets the limit at eleven decibels less. Originally, the limit values were set in the ordinance for new construction or significant changes to a road.
With existing roads, however, the health risks cannot be assessed differently, explains Sedlak. “These are only guidelines, not guidelines. But if there are indications of pollution, the traffic authority must check.” The values are exceeded on all 14 streets, sometimes significantly. On the Clevischer Ring in Mülheim, for example, the decibel value is 79 during the day.
Attorney Wolfram Sedlak has specialized in environmental law.
–
–
So far, the city’s transport authority has not done so. She rejected all applications and justified this with the consequences of 30 km/h zones for traffic – backlogs, slow traffic, poorer traffic flow. The city cannot prove any of this, says Sedlak. “This behavior is not only unlawful. The city may even commit negligent bodily harm.” For Sedlak it is clear: It is unlikely that the traffic will shift. “Especially when the speed limit is 30 on the neighboring streets.”
Tempo 30 only applies to individual road sections
There is still a long way to go before the residents of 14 streets reach their destination. “The greatest difficulty is that only individual citizens can sue. No initiative,” said the lawyer. In addition, some of the speed limits introduced so far only apply to a few hundred meters, not to entire streets or the actual noise polluters. At St. Katharinen, for example, there is a speed limit. But there is none on the driveway to the Severinsbrücke, where the noise pollution occurs. “The fact that Tempo 30 only applies in sections – I’ve never experienced that nationwide,” says Sedlak, who has been suing for Tempo 30 in Berlin since the 1990s.
Sedlak considers a basic speed of 30 kilometers per hour in cities with exceptions to be feasible. Resident Manuel Braun also supports this step. But it is more important to him that cars no longer have the highest priority in city traffic.
–
