Of course, climate protection is also playing an increasingly important role in Schweinfurt’s local politics. One factor in this is traffic and here the question of how to get as many people as possible to prefer to take the bus, train or bicycle instead of the car. The new local transport plan now sets very specific goals and gives recommendations on how to get more citizens excited about PNV.
What is the city’s public transport plan about?
It is the framework for the development of PNV in the city and district and sets goals. For example, the city is committed to “improving the quality of the offer in a customer-oriented manner” and sees a well-developed PNV as an essential goal “to meet environmental and climate policy objectives.” The guiding principle of the local transport plan is: “One region, one timetable, one tariff, one ticket”.
What is the transport association and what advantages does it bring to customers?
The joint local transport officer for the city and the district, Michael Graber, is currently working on making the Mainfranken transport association a reality. As a customer, you would have the advantage of being able to travel from Stadtlauringen to Wrzburg for one price, for example, regardless of which means of transport you use (bus, train, etc.). In Region 3, the city and district of Schweinfurt as well as the districts of Rhn-Grabfeld, Bad Kissingen and Haberge will initially come together. The previous traffic associations Mainfranken (city and district Wrzburg) and districts Main-Spessart and Kitzingen are to be merged in the new large construct together with Main-Rhn with then one million people and 7000 square kilometers. It would be the third largest association in Bavaria. However, there are delays due to the corona pandemic. The introduction of the new tickets and tariffs is not expected until 2024 at the earliest.
Is the Romarkt suitable as a bus station in the middle of the city?
It has grown historically and, of course, also has a locational advantage. In few other cities there is a bus station so centrally located in the city center. If you want to go shopping, go to the theater or eat something in town, you can do so easily by bus, because the stops at Romarkt or Marktplatz are right in the middle. The radial alignment of the city bus routes towards the Romarkt is fundamentally a strength, according to expert Mathias Schmechtig. But there is also criticism: Too many lines for a city of this size, no uniform frequency, unfavorable changes at the Romarkt itself. The SPD has repeatedly called for a second bus station at the main train station and better networking of long-distance transport with the city bus. However, this topic will only come up once the transport association has been implemented.
Why are there no ring lines in Schweinfurt?
The fact that there have not yet been any ring lines is primarily due to the Romarkt bus station as the central hub. The local transport plan questions this, and the CSU city councilor Stefanie Stockinger-von Lackum has already applied for ring lines several times in budget consultations. “It’s hard for outsiders to understand why all the lines go through the Romarkt and you can’t get from one part of the city to another when they are close together,” she said. It is also important to her to integrate the new districts of Bellevue or Yorktown into the bus network accordingly, which has not yet happened.
Why do citizens who do not live here find it difficult to use the bus system?
From the expert’s point of view, the answer is clear. The timetables are far too complicated, as is the change at the Romarkt, and there is no standardized schedule. “In principle, the network can only be controlled by insiders and there is considerable room for improvement here,” says Mathias Schmechtig. Those who do not live in the city and have been using the buses for years find it difficult to find their way around straight away – this affects both new residents and tourists or business travelers. Another point: “Many older citizens have turned their backs on the PNV for decades and drive by car.”
Why should lines in the Schweinfurt bus system be deleted?
That is an option, but it is still a long way from being decided. From the expert’s point of view, it is better to concentrate on main bus routes and therefore no longer operate lines that are not well used. “You have to use the resources where the potential is,” emphasizes Schmechtig. There are two ways: invest more money and allow more buses to run or invest the existing money through a new line network so that more passengers are on the buses by concentrating on well-used lines: “A line runs every 10 minutes better than six lines every hour, “emphasizes Schmechtig.
How can you improve the image of PNV in the city?
Through a large-scale campaign, both in print and social media. According to the expert, the group of 20 to 40-year-olds is significantly more open to PNV than the group of over 60-year-olds “who have been weaned from PNV.” It is unusual that there are hardly any other offers in Schweinfurt, such as taxi buses or shared call taxis. In order to improve the image, tailor-made offers are important for the customer, especially via app on the smartphone. The way that the district is going to connect to the PNV for remote areas is also interesting for the city.
Will there also be electric buses from the Stadtwerke in Schweinfurt in the foreseeable future?
No, at least not if the costs for electrically powered buses and the funding conditions remain the same. Basically, however, Stadtwerke boss Thomas Kstner emphasizes that one is open to electric buses if they are economical for the Stadtwerke. “We have to bring economic efficiency and ecology into balance,” said Kstner in a city council meeting in June last year. In the past year, buses were extensively tested by various manufacturers for their suitability for everyday use
In what period do you want to achieve the very good passenger numbers of 2016 again?
Around eight million passengers used the bus in Schweinfurt in 2016, a record so far. Since then, the numbers have fallen continuously, even after the introduction of the eTicket on August 1, 2017 and even more so during the corona pandemic, where only 5.5 million passengers were recorded in 2020. According to the Schmechtig expert, the decrease in passengers due to Corona is on average for comparable cities. It is unclear whether the students using the bus in Schweinfurt are counted separately. The administration still wants to answer the corresponding request from Oliver Schulte (CSU).
Expert Schmechtig suggests that the 2016 figures should be achieved again by 2028. That is “ambitious”, but possible. Left-wing parliamentary group leader Frank Firsching could also envisage significantly higher goals for passenger numbers, “at least that’s not overambitious,” he said.
What criticism is there from city councils about the plans?
Not fundamental, but in the details it is. Frank Firsching (left) could not understand how one would like to get more passengers with fewer stops and fewer lines: “How does a better occupancy work with a scarce offer?”, He asked. Firsching also called for the express goal of “strengthening” the PNV in Schweinfurt and for sending a “political signal” in which one is prepared to invest much more money than before. Neither the administration nor the majority of the main committee wanted to go this way.
How realistic is the tram called for by the Greens in the 2020 election campaign?
Basically, the topic is dead, even if it was one of the most important for the green OB candidate Holger Laschka in the election campaign. The demanded a ring line around the city, with which not only the city center, but also the technical college and the school center west would have been connected. Ideally, there would have been a connection with a revitalized Steigerwaldbahn and in the direction of Bad Kissingen. The transport planner Robert Wittek-Brix had presented a corresponding concept once, but the city administration never pursued it any further, especially since it would cost millions of euros.
What role does a revitalization of the Steigerwaldbahn play for Schweinfurt?
Not a big one, at least for the moment. The city has taken note of the report on the passenger potential and is now waiting for the decision by the government of Middle Franconia on the de-dedication applications for the railway line between Schweinfurt and Gerolzhofen. So far, the city council has not dealt with the Steigerwaldbahn again, most recently in April 2020 the preparation of the report was approved by a narrow majority. In any case, the question of how the Steigerwaldbahn can be integrated into the existing system will only arise in the case of cases in a few years’ time and will then also be answered within the transport association.
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