Plans for road, rail and housing: This is what future traffic will look like in the Munich district

How will we live in the future and what needs to be done with traffic development?

"Housing and transport are the central issues for the Munich district," says Bavaria's Transport Minister Kerstin Schreyer (CSU) in an interview with Münchner Merkur.

Fuel prices have now reached record levels, and the new federal government is unlikely to make driving any more attractive.

Are buses and trains well enough equipped as alternatives, especially in rural areas?

Between 2018 and 2020, the Munich district received over 8.5 million euros in public transport allocations, more than any other district in Bavaria;

plus a good six million euros from the program for barrier-free and low-emission buses.

But: The topic of transport connections has many facets, we must not play the transport providers off against each other.

The question “road or rail?” Does not arise - we need both.

However, we have to create more and more incentives to reduce private transport.

+

Motivated into the new year: Kerstin Schreyer.

© Martin Becker

How is that supposed to work?

My goal is that, due to the climate debate, we can ensure that as few as possible drive a car.

But that does not mean that I am against driving, but that I have to offer very good and attractive public transport.

That distinguishes me from the Greens: I don't want to forbid or make driving a car impossible, because that would lead to social imbalance - some can still afford it, others no longer.

Everyone should have freedom of choice with any income.

In terms of ecology, however, I can create such an attractive offer that the choice automatically falls on public transport.

Is the public transport ready?

The timing of buses and trains is crucial;

In rural areas, shared taxis and on-call buses can also play an important role.

The Expressbus Ring is just picking up speed.

An example: From Putzbrunn to Hohenbrunn you currently need 27 minutes and have to change once - with the express bus it takes five minutes and you no longer have to change.

That's exactly the difference: If the offer is attractive, I think about whether I really have to get into the car or whether I take this bus because it's fast.

We need many tailor-made solutions on how we can quickly connect places with one another and not stop at every watering can.

There is often a problem with intelligent networking because a quick connection is missing for part of the entire route.

In the professional world, we talk about combined transport.

We will not always arrive at our destination by means of transport from the front door.

But maybe by bike to the S-Bahn, then the last part by e-scooter or bus to your destination.

The trick is that all of this meshes well with one another in terms of time.

It often bites its backside that you can't do the last bit.

Like in Martinsried?

Exactly, a good example - and a reason why I am fighting for the subway extension.

Scientists from all over the world can be flown to Munich and should then walk the last stretch from the Großhadern underground station across the field?

That doesn't seem very realistic to me.

Munich is the gateway to the world;

In Garching, Taufkirchen and Martinsried we have world-class research and economic institutes that I cannot connect with the cargo bike.

Speaking of international audiences: It's difficult with the complicated tariff system in this country.

Why is there no simpler solution in the greater Munich area such as the Oyster Card in London?

We are currently developing the “One click, one ticket” system and want to launch it nationwide in 2023. My dream for the future is that I go to the S-Bahn in Unterhaching with my smartphone, pay with it to go to Würzburg - and the mobile phone tells me immediately what it will cost and how long it will take and where I have to change trains. In the road sector, we are already one step further with the “Bayern Info” app: With it I can plan - construction sites, when is where what heavy traffic, how full are the rest stops, what are the webcams showing, how many free parking spaces are there at the destination ? We also want the same in public transport, but it's more difficult because we have over 50 providers in Bavaria. That is why we are founding alliances with the aim of being able to travel across the whole of the Free State with one ticket.

Cable cars are always in conversation. What are they supposed to do?

According to feasibility studies, there are many factors that speak for it. In many places in the greater Munich area we no longer have space for classic means of transport, so we inevitably have to go up - cable cars can be a very smart addition. As a cross connection via office complexes or natural areas - our S-Bahn spider web could be cross-connected very well with cable cars as a supplementary system. A second and very exciting system is the Ottobahn, my baby to a certain extent. The vision: If I want to get on in Taufkirchen, I let them know that I need a gondola at so and so o'clock - it will only be sent for me, I can take up to four people with me without standing in line; are several exit points. I took a test drive with the Ottobahn and I can imagine, in perspective,To connect Taufkirchen with the Brunnthal industrial park. The cable car and the Ottobahn are "add on" - but I spray for things that are innovative and everyone says: Wow, that's something!

+

Very promising: The Ottobahn GmbH wants to let their gondolas whiz above the streets.

© Otto GmbH

What will traffic look like in ten to 15 years?

I believe that we are becoming more diverse - society was very car-fixated for a long time.

Suddenly e-scooters and cargo bikes were added, we have car sharing and bike sharing.

The traffic of the future means diversity: that we will take other routes, for example using drones to fly drugs to the scene of an accident.

And two companies are testing air taxis, both for longer distances and in rural areas.

Let's move from traffic to living.

Housing, construction, traffic: you have to think it through!

Residential areas require shopping centers - some of them consume huge parking spaces, such as on Grünwalder Weg in Unterhaching.

Is this form of surface sealing still up-to-date?

There is a rethinking of the generation that is now getting their driver's license.

For them, environmental protection is more important - that's why the e-charging stations in Unterhaching work so well.

And if the e-charging stations are closer to the supermarket than the normal parking spaces, that can be a message.

In general, we have to rethink, need more parking garages or underground parking spaces.

+

Important housing construction: According to Schreyer, every local council must consider where there is space for it.

© Sven Hoppe

But above all, affordable apartments are needed, right?

Housing has top priority, housing is the social question of the future par excellence - the pressure on the greater Munich area is huge, but the plots will come to an end at some point.

Every councilor will have to think about how far they are willing to build one floor higher or to designate something or to build closer, otherwise it will not work.

We have to build, build, build - only then does the price regulate itself.

We will also have to discuss the housing benefit issue: whether we should raise it and whether we should expand the circle of those entitled.

This is a federal matter, we are fighting for majorities in Berlin.

How does building become more ecological?

We have to be more courageous and look around for alternative building materials: clay, wood, straw - it is not suitable for everything, but we have to get more involved in regenerative construction methods and dare to do new things.

Infrastructure is needed for living.

In Neubiberg there is resistance to the planned subway depot Perlach

.

I can understand the Neubiberger well, even if I only followed the discussion through the media, but apparently the city of Munich pulled off its project very brutally.

When it comes to transport projects, you have to talk to each other.

If I understand correctly, the communication channels from the state capital have not gone well.

That is why I understand the displeasure - you have to talk to the district municipalities on an equal footing, then you can usually achieve very good results.

What is not possible has to be regulated from top to bottom.