In view of climate change, there is a nationwide discussion about how the number of cars in cities can be reduced in favor of pedestrians and cyclists. In Thuringia, however, such considerations are not at the expense of resident parking spaces.
Erfurt (dpa/th) - In the larger cities of Thuringia, there are no concrete plans for the next few years to give cyclists or pedestrians more space at the expense of resident parking spaces. Rather, the city planners in Weimar, for example, are anxious to "avoid the reduction of resident parking spaces," said a spokeswoman for the administration of the classic city of the German Press Agency.
However, there are no plans to increase the number of resident parking spaces in the city. As a rule, this is only possible if the number of public parking spaces is reduced. A spokeswoman for the city administration of Gera made a similar statement. There are currently no such plans in the city.
Against the background of climate change, there has been a discussion for years about how the number of cars that are on the road or parked in larger cities can be reduced. More space for cyclists and pedestrians is often required. In Erfurt, for example, a busy road was redesigned so that cars can only use two lanes instead of four. Green areas have been created on the vacated areas. Pedestrians now have more space.
According to the city administration, there are currently no concrete plans in Jena to give cyclists and pedestrians more space and to reduce the parking spaces of residents. In the draft of a climate action plan, which aims to make Jena climate-neutral by 2035, it is only proposed to increase the fees for resident parking permits. "This plan has not yet been passed by the city council and is the subject of extensive debates," said a spokesman for Jena's city administration.
Only from Erfurt it was said that in the case of more complex planning for the reorganization of traffic in the state capital, it could happen in individual cases that resident parking spaces were eliminated in favor of cycle paths or sidewalks.
The fees for resident parking permits are very similar in Erfurt, Jena and Weimar. According to the respective city administrations, they are around 30 euros a year - and have been for a long time. "The last adjustment was made in 1999," said the spokesman for the Jena city administration, for example.
The situation in Gera is different. There was an increase in fees for residents' parking permits at the turn of the year, said the spokeswoman for the city administration. This means that residents would now have to pay 90 euros per year for a parking permit. "There is no staggering of the fees, for example according to vehicle size," she said. There are currently no plans in the city in eastern Thuringia to further increase the fees.
