International appeal for Berlin's automobile-free initiative?
Berlin Aims to Go Car-Free: A Major City Initiative
Berlin, the vibrant capital of Germany, is taking a significant step towards reducing car traffic within its S-Bahn ring. A citizens' initiative, dubbed "Berliner Volksbegehren autofrei," has been submitted for a popular vote, aiming to make the city centre more pedestrian and cycle-friendly.
The initiative, if successful, will allow only foot and cycle traffic, public transport, police, fire brigade, and waste disposal vehicles, mobility-needy individuals, taxis, and commercial and delivery traffic within the Berlin S-Bahn ring. For all other Berliners, car journeys would be possible with a permit, valid for a maximum of twelve times a year for 24 hours each.
The goal is to significantly reduce car traffic within the S-Bahn ring and create more space for cyclists, pedestrians, and a strengthening of public transport. The project is attracting international attention, with magazines like Common Edge and platforms like Yale Environment and YES! Magazine highlighting it. The British Independent has also reported extensively on the project, comparing Berlin's efforts with those of London.
The collection of the required signatures for the citizens' initiative has been accomplished, with 50,333 signatures collected. The application was handed over to the Berlin State Election Office in August 2021. The Senate Department of the Interior is conducting the legal review, with the Berlin Senate deciding in March whether to allow the initiative's application for the initiation of a citizens' initiative.
The new Minister of Transport, Bettina Jarasch (The Greens), supports a large part of the initiative's goals but considers declaring the city centre a car-free area by law as the wrong approach. The Berlin Senate Department for the Interior (Berliner Senatsverwaltung für Inneres) decides on the admissibility of the "Berliner Volksbegehren autofrei" application for the referendum in March.
Berlin's new city districts are increasingly being planned car-free, and the topic of making city centres more livable is a permanent issue in many European metropolises, with initiatives in cities like Paris, Madrid, Milan, and Oslo also being highlighted. Construction work has begun on Boulevard Unter den Linden, a significant area that will be part of the reallocation of public road space on an area of around 88 square kilometers.
The initiators of the project are preparing for the next signature collection phase, starting likely in July 2022. The review period ends at the beginning of March, and the Berlin House of Representatives has four months to engage with the "Berlin car-free" initiative and decide whether to adopt the proposal. The Berlin car-free initiative is a significant step towards creating a more sustainable and livable city, and its progress is being closely watched by cities around the world.
Read also:
- Is it feasible for nuclear energy to supplant coal-based electricity production in India?
- Pharmaceutical corporation to invest $30 billion in U.S. for increased natural gas production
- Demonstrating Carbon Capture in Agroforestry Through Digital Measurement Verification (MRV)
- Homeowners in Britain swiftly adopting eco-friendly home improvements
