In the rear-view mirror, Fritz Kobi (75) explains why he sees the streets as an opportunity and how the “Berne model” has revitalized car-plagued city centres. Kobi was a senior engineer in the Bern region for 21 years.
At the same time as the cantonal road was opened in 2004 in the center of Köniz, a large Migros branch was also opened there. As a result, many more people crossed the road than we civil engineering department planners predicted. Cars were crawling, buses were stuck in traffic. We had introduced the concept of coexistence, i.e. the mutual consideration of all road users, to deprive the car of primacy. But the fact that the many pedestrians slowed down the cars was a “slip” for us, a planning flop. So we decided to test 30 km/h on a cantonal road for the first time, with scientific support. This made Köniz an internationally recognized success. “Learning from experience” has become my principle. We have carried out impact analyzes and have thus been able to constantly update our management of traffic and mobility in the settlement area. So we gradually developed the ‹Berne model›. This planning model includes much more than road space design. This also includes the participatory approach, a new understanding of the role of planners, specific tools for implementation, impact analysis and further development. Not to forget full disclosure. In the municipality of Zollikofen, for example, I initially suggested setting up a balanced and participatory support group within the road project. Or, before the renovation of Seglichenstrasse in Wabern, we went to the support group there without plans and asked questions: What’s your problem? what do you want to achieve Opinions differ immediately: some no longer want cars, others 40,000 a day. In further workshops, an agreement was reached and we set a revolutionary operational road. It all owes its name…
