New traffic jam for Munich threatens: large supermarket after "night and fog action" before problems?

Created: 05/10/2022Updated: 05/10/2022 05:23

By: Carmen Ick-Dietl

Construction work is currently underway on the overpass over Balanstraße.

© Goetzfried

The city council majority wants to turn Balanstraße into a one-way street – directly in front of the huge V-Markt.

Munich – On site, however, the project is not always well received.

Because the additional bicycle lane would cause problems for the busy supermarket.

In the future, the Balanstraße is to become a one-way street in the section between Haidhausen and Ramersdorf.

At the request of the Greens/Rosa Liste and SPD/Volt, the city's building committee decided to use the renovation of the Balanstraße railway overpass to convert it to favor cycling.

V-market slowed down by planned bike lane?

Since the street below has to be rebuilt anyway, the majority of the city council wants to give bicycle traffic significantly more space here than before.

Therefore there should be a one-way regulation in the north to Haidhausen, so that a common lane for buses and bicycles can be created to the south.

City Councilor Christian Smolka (Greens) was pleased that this would make cycling on this section of Balanstraße more comfortable and safer in the future.

At the same time, it is the first step towards the planned express cycle path to Oberhaching, which is to run through Balanstraße.

"Lost traffic in a cloak-and-dagger operation without the participation of the residents"

The Ramersdorf district committee chairman, Thomas Kauer (CSU), was stunned.

"In a cloak-and-dagger operation without the participation of the residents or even the district committee, a large consumer market was left behind in terms of traffic and the traffic flows were diverted without a concept."

The V-Markt on Balanstrasse in Munich.

© Klaus Haag

The V-Markt is located on the future one-way street, right next to it is a hardware store and one of the cheapest gas stations in Munich, including a car wash and tire service.

Opposite is also the entrance to the commercial area at Kustermannpark.

A few months ago, the city put in bicycle lanes on Rosenheimer Strasse, Kauer recalls.

"Now you don't connect there, but go to a parallel street several 100 meters away - a real zigzag course."

V-Markt branch in Balanstraße: Politicians fear "traffic jam"

Similar reactions come from the city council factions of the CSU, Free Voters, FDP and Bavarian Party.

"The government factions are deliberately creating a traffic jam here," believes Jörg Hoffmann (FDP).

According to Alexander Reissl (CSU), Balanstrasse is designated in the traffic development plan as a local main road with a decisive connection function and connects the districts of Haidhausen and Ramersdorf.

"It is not permissible to turn a street with this traffic importance into a one-way street, even temporarily, and thus into a dangerous traffic bottleneck."

Because not only the traffic to the supermarket, but also to the adjacent Ostfriedhof and the crematorium runs a lot through this street.

With the one-way regulation, drivers will have to accept detours via Rosenheimer- and St.-Martin-Straße or around the entire Ostfriedhof.

The effects this will have can already be experienced during the construction phase.

In autumn, the Balanstraße will be closed for several weeks because the existing bridges will be demolished and the new bridges will be put in place.

Road construction work will start in 2023.

The Balanstraße is basically only one-lane passable.

Out of town, all vehicles are diverted around the Kustermannpark.

Further full closures are planned for 2024.