Contents page 1 — “The whole city is designed on the car” page 2 — “Here Cycling does not exist in the minds of many is simply” On a page
Berlin, read was a pioneer, in the meantime, cyclists push also in other German cities, including Bamberg, Darmstadt, Hamburg and Frankfurt, a citizens ‘ initiative for a better Cycling policy. Thijs Lucas has initiated such a Radentscheid in Stuttgart – of all places in the city of Daimler and Porsche, with a green mayor.
Zeit ONLINE: Mr Lucas, the Green Fritz Kuhn is since 2013 the Lord mayor in Stuttgart. Since it is expected that the town hall of his own accord makes enough for a good Cycling in the city. You have pushed a referendum for better Cycling. Why?
Thijs Lucas: What Stuttgart for Cycling, is insufficient in view of the enormous problems in the city since the nineties known: traffic jams, bad air. While it would be wrong to claim that in the last few years, nothing for cyclists is happening. But very much fails in the municipal Council. For insubstantial items à la “We have more cyclists” want a majority can be found easily, but when it comes to concrete measures, a lot of the heads.
Zeit ONLINE: How is that?
Lucas: You want to create something, but, as the Status quo to change: “A bike path? Good idea … Oh, no, it would fall away then, Yes Parking! Let us an Alternative examine.” The municipal Council is the traffic turning out of your own way. In addition, people who have learned of city planning in the management of important, as the car-oriented city was the ultimate. Keep it for the Maximum, to brushes, wheel guard strip on the streets.
TIME ONLINE: The city wants to increase the share of Cycling to 20 per cent – it is currently five to seven percent. Why drive in Stuttgart don’t more people bike?
Lucas: The Problem, in short, a lack of safety for cyclists and the lack of Bicycle infrastructure, structure.
TIME ONLINE: a Lack of security? The accident statistics looks quite good.
Thijs Lucas
Thijs Lucas (32) is an engineer for vehicle engineering. In the master studies he worked with the Cycling and did not want to understand why the works in Stuttgart. In 2017, he founded in Stuttgart in an alternative Radforum, which he initiated with colleagues the Radentscheid Stuttgart.
Lucas: No wonder, because here only people Bicycle, which make the already very long and because of their experience dangers of driving fast, long before they occur. The Inexperienced do not dare even on the bike. You can also see comparatively few children on wheels. The whole city is designed on the car. Every major German city has at least a bad Bicycle infrastructure, structure, Stuttgart is not bad.
TIME ONLINE: The city writes, there is in Stuttgart, 180 kilometers of bike path.
Lucas: This number surprised us very much. The city could not explain to us what the number refers to. Someone on the Open Street Maps of the existing Bicycle infrastructure, structure, in Stuttgart, of all places: Real bike lanes there are in the range of about eight kilometers. It has been painted, any amount of wheel guard stripes on the road, but no bike lanes. Eight kilometres in a city with over 1,000 km of road network, this is a joke! In addition, these few cycle paths are not connected. They start somewhere and end suddenly.
Zeit ONLINE: in your citizens ‘ petition to bike paths?
Lucas: Which are, of course, crucial. If the Radanteil is expected to rise to 20 percent, you must create the city that is not only Experienced wheel drive, but the Young and the Old, children and the elderly in each level of experience. The Car has to be throttled in principle to 30 km/h and passing traffic can be reduced. There, where the Tempo 30 is to enforce, for example, on main roads, we demand from the car traffic separated cycle lanes, which meet at least the minimum standard. In addition, dangerous junctions and crossings need to be sorted by tag. Stuttgart is in need of thousands of new Bike stands. But it’s not just about the infrastructure.
