Autobahn project in central Berlin causes stir among government parties
Berliner Morgenpost / Der Tagesspiegel
An announcement by Germany鈥檚 federal transport ministry (BMDV) to expand a motorway in the centre of Berlin has caused a stir among local politicians and could also lead to controversies in the federal government. The state secretary in the transport ministry, Daniela Kluckert from the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), told Berliner Morgenpost in an聽聽that Autobahn A100 would be expanded several kilometres into Berlin鈥檚 eastern center. 鈥淲e need the motorway to ease the pressure on inner city traffic and connect East and West. Businesses need to get through the city fast to do their jobs,鈥 Kluckert said. Planning for the new segment of the A100 should be finished by 2025, she added. The announcement by the FDP-led ministry was rejected by Berlin鈥檚 city government, which has no say in motorway projects managed by the federal government. Berlin鈥檚 mayor, Franziska Giffey from the Social Democrats (SPD), said her city government with the Green Party and the Left Party had agreed in their coalition treaty that plans to expand the motorway should not be continued until at least 2026, newspaper Der Tagesspiegel聽. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a binding agreement,鈥 Giffey said, arguing that she expected the federal government to enter into a dialogue with the city even though the city of Berlin formally has no influence on the autobahn鈥檚 construction. The current A100 motorway still is partly under construction and there would be no final concepts how to integrate the latest segment already under construction into city traffic management, she said.
Berlin鈥檚 transport minister, Bettina Jarasch from the Green Party, said the motorway was a relic of 鈥渢ransport policy from the day before yesterday,鈥 and that Berlin needed a real mobility transition rather than a new autobahn. 鈥淚nstead of destroying inner cities with multi-lane roads, we need to invest in public transport, in trains and buses, in bicycle and pedestrian lanes, in connected mobility.鈥 Jarasch said the space taken up by the motorway could be used for many other and more urgent purposes instead. 鈥淚 expect the transport ministry to ultimately come up with a better idea.鈥 The city鈥檚 Left Party said it mulls litigation with Germany鈥檚 constitutional court to halt the autobahn鈥檚 expansion. The project could also become a bone of contention for the federal government coalition of the SPD, Green Party and FDP. The Green parliamentary group鈥檚 transport politician, Stefan Gelbhaar, said the federal government had agreed to jointly debate motorway projects. 鈥淪uch a debate did not take place regarding the A100.鈥 He said the move by the FDP-led ministry would be regrettable and that his party would oppose 鈥渢his infrastructure disaster from the last century鈥 by all means possible. The conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), opposition leaders in Berlin, welcomed the announcement, arguing it would bring citizens 鈥渕any advantages.鈥