Bettina Jarasch, Senatorin for Urban Mobility and the Environment
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Berlin's Senator for Urban Mobility and the Environment, Bettina Jarasch, wants to accelerate the expansion of bike lanes through closer cooperation with the districts.
"I will offer the districts a task force for bike lane construction in order to work together," the Green Party politician declared on Monday (January 17, 2022) to rbb Inforadio. "That sounds simple, but it has not been a given in the past." Jarasch's Senate Department, which is responsible for the approval of funds or traffic signs, among other things, wants to meet with the districts that want to participate, Jarasch explained. "We'll take on one project at a time and all parties will offer human resources as well. This way, we will be able to realize the construction of the bike lanes will be realized instead of spending a lot of time sending paperwork and applications back and forth, as we've done in the past."
Jarasch explained that the project builds on experiences in the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district, where pop-up bike lanes were put in place relatively quickly during the pandemic. "I think this way we can move more quickly into the implementation phase of the project." District participation in the cycle path construction project task force is voluntary, she said. The project is part of the program that the Berlin Senate decided on for its first 100 days in office at a closed meeting over the weekend. There is no shortage of plans and ideas for new cycle paths in Berlin, but the implementation of new projects has been rather slow in recent years.