No turbo gyro for Kaufering

Created: 01/27/2022 15:34

By: Andrea Schmelzle

Despite reservations, the decision was made in favor of a traffic light system as the "most targeted junction".

The Hilti traffic light, which is currently still decoupled, must be synchronized again with the new system, according to Giampa, head of the building authority.

© Schmelzle

Kaufering – The decision has been taken regarding the Augsburger-/Viktor-Frankl-Straße intersection.

The most heavily used junction in the district will be reduced and controlled by traffic lights for cyclists and pedestrians.

The decision to do so was extremely close at last Wednesday's municipal council meeting.

No majority could be found for the turbo roundabout solution favored by the administration with around 50 meters of above-ground crossing aid.

It came to a stalemate - and to a second voting process, in which the "traffic light alternative" was finally decided with 12:11 votes.

The fact that there was no draw again was due to Mayor Thomas Salzberger.  

"We would have had to start all over again," says Salzberger (SPD) when asked by KREISBOTEN, why he ended up raising his hand for a solution that he does not favor.

New possibilities would have had to be sought, that would have taken time - and the crossing would initially have remained as it is.

Unsatisfactory, after a "year-long process", as the head of the building authority Andreas Giampa says, in which the intersection situation was dealt with extensively.

Ultimately, this is about safety.

And that is significantly higher for both variants compared to the current state.

node

There is talk of "expansion of the intersection LL20 with the district road LL22 south of Kaufering" - that's what the agenda says. A “highly utilized junction”, that was also the conclusion of the commissioned traffic report. Almost 25,000 cars and commercial vehicles as well as 240 cyclists on the west side and 272 on the east side are handled here every day. Pedestrians, on the other hand, "are to be seen as subordinate".

Four variants for safer traffic handling were left (KREISBOTE reported).

Two of them as turbo roundabouts (large and scaled-down versions) with an underpass for pedestrians and cyclists.

Both versions are at the forefront when it comes to traffic safety, but at 4.9 and 4.5 million euros they are also the two most expensive solutions, for which Kaufering would have to bear around one million euros.

The third option envisages reducing the junction, which is to be controlled by a traffic light for cyclists and pedestrians.

And finally, as a fourth variant, there was a one-lane turbo roundabout with a two-lane access road from the direction of Landsberg and a rear crossing for cyclists and pedestrians.

The topic was already discussed in the planning committee at the beginning of October. Its members recommended not building underground cycle paths. Since the district as the client has not yet made a final decision, "for the sake of completeness" all variants will be presented again at the meeting, Giampa explained. The two variants with an underpass would basically be omitted "due to unaffordability".

The solution with traffic lights, in which the cyclists are not guided together with the person turning right, but initially "own signaling", is overall very safe and also inexpensive at 1.8 million euros, but will already lead to further traffic restrictions, explained Giampa. And that means a tailback length of 228 meters to the south. This prevents development opportunities. In the long term, the solution is not efficient. If the forecast numbers continue to increase over the year 2035, the required track lengths for the storage space could not be realized due to the railway bridge. A different traffic light would then have to be switched on, in which the cyclists would be guided together with those turning right. And that again has potential for conflict.

The matter was therefore clear for the Kaufering administration: they suggested not pursuing the traffic lights any further, instead, for reasons of sustainability, implementing the last (turbo roundabout) variant and forgoing the possibility of crossing Augsburger Straße.

"Fortunately" this already has a cycle path on the east and west sides, according to Giampa.

On the street

About 50 meters to the west, a new crossing aid is to be created in order to be able to easily cross Viktor-Frankl-Strasse in front of the Aldi entrance.

A bicycle crossing is also possible on the east side (heating plant).

However, this solution requires a significantly higher level of marking and signage in order to avoid changing lanes, for example.

Markus Wasserle (SPD) pleaded for the “greatest possible security with simultaneously low costs”, namely the traffic light solution. For Gabriele Triebel (Greens), the solution favored by the administration was a "walking and cycle path prevention variant". The focus here is only on the performance of the gyroscope, not on safety. In addition, this leads cyclists "God knows where" - which ultimately means that "we have fewer cyclists". Which could not be the point and purpose, you want to be climate neutral by 2030.

On the other hand, Sascha Kenzler (UBV) wanted to end the “Never Ending Story” with a resolution for the turbo gyro solution.

The renovation of the station finally gives you another crossing option.

"Both variants already improve the current situation," said Salzberger in his closing speech - for the turbo-gyro solution, which he considered "high-performance and future-proof".

For him, the traffic light variant is a deterioration for drivers.

But in the end she 'won'.

That had already crystallized in advance, according to Salzberger.

Therefore, the alternative proposal was immediately ready - for which he finally voted himself in order to "move forward".

Giampa regrets that he is not entirely happy with the solution.

But it is a democratic decision.

He thinks it's a shame that a lot of energy and planning costs have been put into the turbo-gyro variant for many years.

"Now things are different - we have to deal with that." For the time being, however, the matter still has to go before the district committee.