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Berlin: A car drives on Friedrichstrasse
Photo: Jörg Carstensen / dpa
Motor vehicle traffic is rolling again on a section of Berlin's Friedrichstrasse that has been car-free for more than two years - at least for a while.
Around midnight, the blocking of cars between French and Leipziger Strasse was lifted.
According to the environment and mobility administration, seating, planting, showcases and the marking of a cycle path had previously been removed from the street.
The blocking of the road section for car traffic is a hotly debated political issue.
It has many opponents and supporters in the capital, which is governed by the SPD, the Greens and the Left.
With the - at least temporary - reversal, the Senate and the Mitte district office followed a decision by the administrative court, which had declared the blocking illegal on October 24th.
The street is now to be converted into a pedestrian zone
Senator Bettina Jarasch (Greens), who is responsible for the environment, mobility and climate protection, among other things, decided not to appeal the decision to the Higher Administrative Court.
However, she made it clear that she was sticking to her plans for a car-free promenade on Friedrichstrasse.
To this end, the district office is in the process of converting the street into a pedestrian zone, which should be completed by the end of the year.
Then car traffic will be permanently removed from Friedrichstrasse and a new urban space will be created there, Jarasch recently explained.
Bicycle traffic has been running on the parallel Charlottenstraße since Monday, which is now designated as a bicycle street.
The traffic test on Friedrichstrasse, which has always been controversial, began in August 2020.
Since then, cars have been taboo on the affected section with many shops.
However, the hoped-for upswing for the shopping street – which at times even surpassed the Ku'damm, but later had increasing problems – has not materialized so far.
A wine merchant with a shop in Charlottenstrasse had complained about the ongoing closure.
She did not want to accept that no cars were allowed to drive on Friedrichstrasse, even though the year-long traffic trial ended in October 2021.
The administrative court agreed with her and found that there was no legal basis for the blocking in the road traffic regulations.
Authorities could restrict or ban the use of certain routes to improve traffic safety, but not to improve the quality of life.
wit/dpa
