Over 200 cars use closed Jungfernstieg
Since mid-October 2020, the Jungfernstieg on Hamburg's Binnenalster has been closed to traffic. But many drivers still ignore this ban.
Almost one and a half years ago, the Hamburg Senate decided to close the popular promenade in Hamburg's city centre between Gänsemarkt and Ballindamm to vehicles. Only buses and taxis are allowed to pass through the street, and vendors are allowed to enter between 9 and 11 pm.
But only last week, during a large-scale traffic control, it turned out that most users of the Jungfernstieg do not have permission to do so. During the checks between 3 and 8.45 p.m., 207 drivers were caught in both directions, who now have to pay a fine of 50 euros. But this still seems to be too little to deter the traffic offenders.
Such traffic controls are not enough, says economist Ferdinand Dudenhöffer. He calls on Hamburg's traffic senator Tjarks (Greens) to be even tougher. He calls for two to three months of daily checks so that all those who use the connection internalise to look for another way. Secondly, he says, cameras that automatically record traffic offenders are indispensable. Finally, he proposes barriers that only open for authorised vehicles. Initially with personnel, later automatically. In this way, it might actually still be possible to enforce traffic calming on the shopping street and reserve the space for pedestrians and public transport.