One-way street: first wait and see

For seven weeks it has only been possible to drive in Dachau's old town in one direction.

And already there is the first public protest, a list of signatures and a lawsuit against the new regulation.

In the city there is “either emptiness or chaos,” complains a local resident.

But there are also proponents of the one-way street.

Dachau

- Jeweler Ludwig Stöckl is one of the earliest and most dogged opponents of the one-way street regulations through the old town that have been in effect since the beginning of October. Now, after seven weeks, he sees himself confirmed in his concerns, which have been expressed for months: “In the meantime I was able to observe either an emptiness or total chaos”, he now writes in a first balance sheet of the one-way street regulation “to the dear Lord Mayor”. The chaos arises because drivers find it difficult to find a parking space; Customers - especially from the hinterland - need their car: if you can avoid it, you simply won't visit the city anymore, says Stöckl. Since the city would also go through business taxes with this business-damaging decision,"The deeper meaning of this half-baked action with the aim of a pacified old town" simply does not open up to him.

Stöckl, who also sued the city for the allegedly "illegal" one-way street, found 114 signatories for his letter.

They would all ask themselves the question: What does the city intend to do to ensure the survival of the shops and their status as “jewels”?

But there are also other voices in the old town.

For example, those who find that the one-way system has made life less stressful.

And that thanks to the “loopholes” at Burgfriedenstrasse, Wieninger Strasse and Färbergasse, there is still the possibility of getting through the old town by car.

What many citizens do not understand, however: the "ghost buses". The buses, which are mostly empty through the city, are still allowed to travel in both directions. Before the introduction of the new one-way system, those responsible for the city's public transport company had emphasized that a lead-up would be needed to change the route of the buses. Heinz Riedlbeck, who does not live in the old town but in Ostenstraße, believes he knows: “NASA is changing its rocket launch plans faster than the MVV is changing the bus plans for our little old town!” That there is still an exception for buses is in in his eyes "an unfortunate decision".

Mayor Florian Hartmann has been following the discussion about the one-way street for months. He himself - like the great majority of the city council - had endorsed it. He also emphasizes that now, only seven weeks after its introduction, “the effects of traffic regulations are difficult to assess seriously”. In principle, apart from the letter from Ludwig Stöckl, he had "not yet received any complaints from resident dealers". He therefore had "the impression that business people as well as residents and road users are waiting patiently and interested to see how the trial phase develops".

Nevertheless, people in the town hall are also thinking about how one or the other could be improved, as Hartmann explains when asked.

For example, many citizens recently suggested creating “more parking spaces at an angle, if possible even on both sides of the lane”.

According to Hartmann, this has already been checked “in some places”. The only problem is: “We don't gain a lot with sloping parking spaces.” And parking at an angle on both sides of the lane is hardly feasible anyway: “The street is too narrow for that. "

He can also dispel the fear that the city will close the "loopholes" Wieninger and Burgfriedenstrasse: "We do not plan to change anything in the current situation." After complaints, Färbergasse alone will soon only be accessible to residents be.

What many Dachau residents - citizens and tradespeople alike - have wanted for years is a climbing aid from the Thomawiese up to the old town.

This should now be implemented as part of the so-called integrated urban development concept (ISEK), explains the mayor.

There would be a meeting with the planners early next year.

Hartmann's great hope in times of tight budgets: "That we might even get funding for it."

Maximilian Lernbecher, who runs his Obere Apotheke in the old town, hopes that the city politicians will recognize the value of their “individual, non-digitized shops in the old town” despite their desire for a traffic turnaround.

In the long term, the old town should “not only offer gastronomy”.