Senate is planning new cycle paths and expansion of the rapid cycle connections. The cycle path network should then cover 3,000 kilometers.
A new cycling plan, which was discussed in the Senate this week, is intended to make Berlin “a cycling city with a level of quality that is unique in Germany”. That is at least the idea of Environment Senator Regine Günther (Greens). The new bicycle traffic plan (RVP) builds on the Mobility Act and the urban development plan for mobility and traffic and replaces the Berlin bicycle traffic strategy from 2013. Above all, the bicycle traffic infrastructure is to be strengthened and expanded in the coming years. “With its stipulations on high standards and a dense network, the cycling plan is an important prerequisite for systematically promoting the expansion of the cycling infrastructure and building a stringent cycling infrastructure in Berlin,” says Günther.
3,000 kilometers of cycle paths
The existing cycle paths are to be widened (2.50 meters) and new cycle paths are to be added. There are also the planned rapid cycle connections, which, according to current plans, should bring cyclists quickly through the city over a total length of 100 kilometers. Three-meter-wide cycle paths are provided for these quick connections. The system of the seven long-distance cycle paths and the Wall Trail as a cycle and hiking path is also part of Berlin’s cycle infrastructure.
In the future, this should expand to a total length of almost 3,000 kilometers – twice as much as previously planned. “All twelve Berlin districts and a large number of experts were involved in the development of the bicycle traffic plan and the Berlin bicycle traffic network, for example from the field of bicycle initiatives, the FahrRats, environmental associations and road safety work, among other things in the context of thematic workshops and working group meetings.” According to the Senate. Criticism came from the CDU, which sees the outskirts at a disadvantage when planning the expansion of the cycle path network.
Date: September 10, 2021, Text: SEK / red, Picture: IMAGO/A. Friedrichs
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