Weilheim bypass: This is how the citizens' initiatives are preparing for the citizens' survey
Created: 08/11/2022, 12:00 p.m
By: Magnus Reitinger
Clearly visible expressions of opinion from bypass opponents and advocates: left in Hardt, right in the Upper Town.
© Gronau
There are five citizens' initiatives in Weilheim on the topic of "bypass".
As different as they are: The fact that the city wants to start the long-awaited citizen survey on the bypass right after the summer holidays moves them all.
Despite the holiday season, some activities are planned.
Weilheim – Two are fighting for a bypass, two want to prevent it entirely, one doesn't want it in the east of the city: the spectrum of citizens' initiatives (BI) that deal with the topic of "bypass" in Weilheim is wide.
It is not only their content-related views that differ, there are also differences in terms of how visible the alliances are.
A BI does not plan any actions at all
While the three initiatives critical of the bypass have often drawn attention to themselves and have organized several large demonstrations in recent years, the "
citizens' initiative for Weilheim's future
“Little public action.
The group founded in 2018, which is clearly in favor of a western bypass (and also put up appropriate banners and stickers), still exists, assures Stefan Helmenstein, one of the initiators.
The website that was initially set up is no longer accessible, but posts are published on Facebook again and again, according to their own count of currently 197 followers.
However, this BI is not planning any actions for the upcoming citizens' survey of the city of Weilheim - "because we consider the citizens' survey to be correct in its current form," as Helmenstein explains in response to a query from the Tagblatt.
Use for "factual information"
Founded in early 2019, BI “
Relief Now
' - known for their yellow banners calling for a 'relief road' - are stepping up their activities.
According to spokesman Andreas Schalk, the further course of action could not be coordinated "due to the holiday season" until the end of August or the beginning of September at a meeting, but the website www.entlastung-jetzt.de would soon be used to "offer decision-making aids".
"In view of the emotionally overlaid debate about a relief road, the increasing polarization and the half-truths that are constantly circulating", the initiative - which also initiated traffic noise mapping in the Weilheim city area - is concerned with "providing factual and fact-based information on a bypass road", writes Schalk.
Don't position yourself on a particular route,
Additional long-distance traffic due to B2 expansion feared
The BI "Heimat 2030"
fights "for the preservation of nature, against a Weilheim bypass "
, the oldest of the five initiatives.
Because a meaningful decision in the citizen survey is "impossible without correct and balanced information", the website www.heimat2030.de is currently being expanded, says spokeswoman Karin Knöthig: "We show there that a bypass can hardly relieve the city center, however means a great loss of nature and local recreation areas.
The planned motorway-like expansion of the B2 from Munich to Garmisch (and to Austria), with the Weilheim bypass as a section, would burden our region with additional long-distance traffic.
It is also criticized that "without any need, a survey period was chosen directly after the summer holidays".
Vigil planned on the Oststrassen
These include the "
Marnbach-Deutenhausen citizens' initiative against every Weilheim eastern bypass
", which these days wants to set up large new banners in the east warning of "Brenner 2.0 - Autobahn construction through the back door".
According to Josef Niedermaier, one of the speakers, a vigil is also planned for September on the Oststrassen.
With torches, they want to make it clear that there would be a “blaze” around Gögerl, Hardt and Dietlhofer See with a bypass.
Actions are also informed on Facebook under "No Weilheim East Bypass".
In addition, the BI participates in an "action alliance against the B2 expansion in and around Weilheim", which was founded this week by numerous associations, parties and initiatives (own report follows).
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Larger actions on a broad scale
The “protection group Gögerl and Weilheimer Osten”
is also active in the latter
, reveals Sissi Windele, one of the spokeswomen, when asked by the daily newspaper.
It is important "to get together very broadly and to provide broad information", and there will certainly be "larger campaigns" for public surveys at this level - but these have yet to be discussed.
Although the initiative she represents is aimed at the East, Windele emphasizes that they are "against any bypass".
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As is well known, some activists criticize that the planned form of the citizen survey could tempt citizens to vote for a bypass in question 1 only in order to then be allowed to vote for what they consider to be the "lesser evil" in the variant question.
Windele does not want to get involved in such considerations: She hopes that when asked whether a bypass road should be built in principle, "as many as possible will tick 'No' - and not speculate".
