The alcohol ban at Munich Central Station was expanded in August 2019. The measure is being put to the test by the new town hall government. A serious mistake?
- A whole-day alcohol ban has been in effect at Munich Central Station since August 2019 .
- The new city hall government of Munich puts the concept to the test.
- Bavaria's interior minister then expresses violent criticism - new statistics speak volumes.
Update from June 16, 2020:
Crime around Munich Central Station has decreased. This emerges from the security report of the police headquarters in Munich, which was presented yesterday in the district administration committee. According to this, the police recorded exactly 6,633 incidents in 2019, 1525 fewer than in 2018. For the CSU, the decline is also a consequence of the alcohol ban and controls by the city's municipal field service. However, both are politically controversial.
As reported, the new Green-Red City Council majority wants to put both the KAD's area of application and the alcohol ban to the test (see below). CSU City Councilor Thomas Schmid thinks little of the idea. “The alcohol ban has led to a significant decrease in crime. We should keep the regulation and not try to jeopardize security. ”
On January 21, 2017 , the alcohol ban was initially imposed for the night hours (from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.). As of August 1, 2019, the city council extended it to the entire day . This may have contributed to the decrease in crime, but the effects of the renovation of the main train station, which began when the counter hall was closed in May last year, are also conceivable. Overall, the Munich police record is positive: the crimes in the city and district in 2019 fell below 100,000 for the first time in 40 years - to 97,628.
"Better do less for the safety of Munich residents": Central station plans meet with strong opposition
Update from May 8, 2020: The alcohol ban at Munich Central Station is coming to the test . "We will look at the results openly and evaluate them," said the Vice-Chairman of the SPD City Council Group, Christian Vorländer , on Friday. This was agreed by the SPD, Green, Pink List and Volt in their coalition agreement. The "Bild" newspaper had previously reported on this.
The alcohol ban at Munich Central Station has been in effect all day since August 2019 (see declaration of origin). The corresponding regulation will apply until January 2021. Alcohol has been banned at the main train station since January 2017 between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
"We will make an appropriate decision as to whether it is necessary to continue this alcohol ban," said Vorländer. "Bans in public space can only be the last resort." He emphasized that it was open as to what the decision would be: "It is not at all certain that this should be abolished."
Munich: end of alcohol ban at the main train station? Home Secretary expresses harsh criticism
Bavaria's Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) sharply criticized the plans in a guest commentary for the “Bild” newspaper. "Obviously, it is part of the plan of the green-red city strategists to do less instead of more for the security of the people of Munich," he wrote. "This coalition agreement is based on the naive guiding principle: if you want security, then the criminals stay at home."
Vorländer rejected the criticism. "I have no understanding for the attack by the Minister of the Interior," he said, speaking of "inappropriate scaremongering." The interior minister should rather "do his homework" and concentrate on getting Munich more police officers.
Large-scale operation in Munich: The police arrested a 36-year-old at Sendlinger Tor. Before that, he had been terrifying on the subway.
Radical alcohol ban at the main train station: this is how much the most expensive beer in the city costs
Update August 2nd, 7.50 a.m .: It has been official since Thursday: alcohol consumption is prohibited around the clock at the main train station. According to the police, the extension of the previous ban is aimed primarily at the “drinking and standing scene”. In the long term, the all-day ban on alcohol should reduce the number of crimes at the main train station.
As in many large cities, social problems accumulate around the main train station. An all-day alcohol ban has been in effect since August 2019.
© Bodmer
First of all, the municipal field service (KAD) draws annoying drinkers to the new regulation during their inspections. Anyone who delivers their beer gets away with a warning for now. If it is unintelligible, it becomes really expensive: First, 75 euros, with further offenses, the penalty increases. Anyone caught by the KAD several times in violation of the new ordinance can be given a permanent reprimand.
Strict ban on alcohol at the main train station - criticism of measure: "But the well-dressed businessman ..."
Update, July 31: From Thursday, Munich-based main train station will be banned from drinking all day - also for the surrounding streets and the Paul Heyse underpass. So far, both drinking and carrying alcohol have only been prohibited at night from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. It is checked by the police and the local field service. The system has proven itself, according to the security authorities , alcohol-related crimes at the main station have decreased in the late hours.
Munich: Alcohol ban at the main station should prevent crime
In December 2018, the city council decided to extend the time. According to the Munich Police Headquarters and the district administration, the 24-hour ban on alcohol is an effective tool to counter alcohol-related crimes and administrative offenses around the clock, which further improves the security situation at the main train station. Nevertheless, the decision is not without controversy. The opposition in the city council in particular is rather skeptical.
Green Vice Dominik Krause said: “We fundamentally reject the ban. It doesn't solve problems, it just shifts them. People don't go away, they just go to other places. ” FDP City Councilor Jörg Hoffmann also sees this and cites the term junkie jogging, which was once established around Ostbahnhof. “At that time, the Free State had used the police there to combat the drug scene. Whenever the officers showed up, the addicts moved to other places. ”
Alcohol ban at the main train station: Are there two standards for enforcement?
The FDP OB candidate is also critical that the control of the alcohol ban has so far "followed its own rules. We have observed that tough measures are taken against people who are visibly drunk. The well-dressed businessman who is enjoying an after-work beer remains undisturbed. ”The ban on the night may be justified, says Hoffmann, but the expansion does not make sense. "It will be even less enforceable."
The SPD and CSU are now defending their decision. SPD City Councilor Christian Vorländer said: “We cannot ignore that the main train station is a problem area. Now that the serious criminal offenses have decreased noticeably as a result of the nightly ban on alcohol, we believe that the expansion is correct. ”Especially since the SPD coupled the ban with an offer. A drinking parlor is being built at Dachauerstrasse 3. There, the sick should receive help, but also be allowed to consume alcohol in a controlled manner. "It is important to us that we not only work with bans, but pursue active social policies."
Alcohol ban at the main station ensures relaxation
CSU City Councilor Sebastian Schall underlines the importance of the ban for business people. "The expansion will further relieve the shop owners and passers-by." The argument of displacement should certainly not be dismissed. "You have to keep watching and make sure that the police and local sales force keep checking."
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Our news on May 27, 2019:
Strict ban on alcohol at Munich Central Station: where to go with the drinkers?
Munich - The main train station is just a transit point for most people. For marginalized social groups, however, it also represents a place to stay. From August 1st, alcohol is banned around the clock at the main train station - even in the surrounding streets. The city hall government from the SPD and CSU had decided against the votes of all other parties last year. So far, drinking has only been prohibited between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., which, according to the security authorities, has already caused a significant decrease in crime at this hotspot. The city hopes for further positive effects from the 24-hour taboo zone.
Munich Central Station: Drinking scene is only ousted
At the same time, however, the SPD had asked for solutions to prevent the drinking scene from being simply pushed to another location. This would require alternative offers of help for people with increased alcohol consumption. The social department, together with the charities, has thought about facilities for alcohol and drug addicts as well as homeless people. The social council of the city council discussed the concept on Wednesday.
Alcohol ban at the main train station already has a crowding-out effect
The Social Department admits that there were crowding out effects after the alcohol ban in the night hours. Marginalized groups stayed more and more on Schützenstraße and at the Old Botanical Garden, according to the city council. This also has to do with increased police controls. When - as required by the SPD - a place to stay to allow alcohol consumption is unclear. The social and health department believes that such an institution represents a major technical and organizational challenge and requires careful planning and consideration. Regardless, the city is already looking for a sponsor for this project and a suitable property. The results will be presented to the city council in July.
The SPD's social policy spokesman, Christian Müller, assumes that a sponsor will be found. "The formal start can be as we wanted it to be," Müller told our newspaper. Another question is whether the necessary staff for a “drinking parlor” can be acquired on August 1st. "The intention of the application was to create a facility that binds this clientele and curbs violence." Otherwise addicted marginalized groups would continue to be displaced somewhere. This also underlines Marian Offman, social policy spokesman for the CSU: "We want to get people off the street - which is also in the interests of business people and hoteliers." In the past, they often complained about intolerable conditions in the vicinity of the main train station.
In principle, the social department submits, the social infrastructure around the main train station is good. The station mission is mentioned as an example. Street workers and a Prop drug emergency service also take care of addicts. There are advice centers for the homeless and contact points for migrants from Bulgaria and Romania, such as the "Schiller 25". The migrants from the Balkans mostly work as day laborers. The Schiller 25 also serves as a central instruction point for cold protection. This overnight option for the homeless in the Bayernkaserne has been available for the first time in the summer months since May 1st.
The Social Department rejects the use of the Elisenhof bunker at the Old Botanical Garden for sleeping places, as suggested by free porters at a meeting. The bunker would only be put into operation if the 850 bed spaces in the cold protection program of the Bayern barracks were not sufficient, the city council said.
Munich still has some catching up to do here
There is a need to catch up on long-term residential projects for drug users. In particular, there are no gender-specific institutions. Social and health departments are currently looking for suitable properties to change this situation. According to the city, drug consumption rooms would also help relieve public space. However, the city has no handle here. The Free State would have to change the legal provisions for a model project. The state CSU resists drug consumption rooms.
"Drinking room" at Munich Central Station: That's what the police say
The SPD's idea of a “drinking parlor” is viewed with skepticism by the police. Stefan Kastner, head of crime-fighting at the police headquarters, said at the city council meeting: "We don't want to attract the drinking scene, we want to improve the security situation." According to district administration officer Thomas Böhle (SPD), positive experiences were made in Augsburg with a similar pilot project. In principle, it is important that the drinking scene be banned from the public space, the KVR boss explained. "This benefits all travelers, business people and residents."
The beginning of May was a big day of raids in the Bahnhofsviertel in Munich. The police took action against alcohol abuse, drugs, beggar gangs and prostitution. In 2018, a huge terrorist exercise took place at Munich Central Station:
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