The demand for sustainable products can be increased through municipal procurement. Positive examples but also the problems of sustainable procurement are discussed in the article. Buildings and larger properties are not explicitly mentioned, but the principles basically apply there as well.
Photo: Peter und der Wolf Communications GmbH / LHM
At a press conference today, Lord Mayor Dieter Reiter, together with City Planning Councillor Professor Dr. (l) Elisabeth Merk, presented an overall plan for Munich's mobility in the coming decades.
Where could new underground and tram lines be built, where could the new cycling expressways run, and where can people switch from their cars to environmentally conscious means of transport? The mobility of tomorrow will be characterised by an optimal interlocking of different forms of mobility - first and foremost an optimised and broadly developed public transport system, a wide network of cycle paths, new offers for commuters in so-called HOV lanes ("High-occupancy vehicle lanes"), dedicated bus lanes and clever mobility concepts in settlement development with innovative means of transport.
Not only population and economic growth pose major challenges for transport infrastructure and settlement development, but at the same time the urban goals for traffic safety ("Vision Zero"), the political and legal requirements for environmental and climate protection (air pollution control, CO2 neutrality) and technological progress (digitalisation and networking) must always be taken into account.
Mayor Dieter Reiter: "Only with a well-developed and, above all, cleverly networked mobility will we be able to master the great challenges. The overall concept published today contains many good ideas for the further expansion of our transport infrastructure. The backbone is, of course, local public transport, which we not only want to greatly expand, but also create further tangential and ring connections in its network. I see this look into the future as a good basis and impulse for further debates. However, the mobility of the future can only be successfully developed in cooperation with the Munich region. In recent years, the city council has passed several groundbreaking resolutions for well-connected, environmentally friendly and space-saving mobility. We want to continue this".
City Planning Councillor Professor Dr. (l) Elisabeth Merk. "In the overall concept, we want to bundle all important measures for sustainable transport planning. It is important to us that we tackle it together. In dialogue with citizens and stakeholders from the region".
Expansion of local public transport (ÖPNV)
Public transport is the backbone of sustainable mobility. To encourage even more people to switch from their cars to public transport, the service will be significantly improved - through the new main station, the second main line, new bus lanes, underground and tram lines, increased frequency, more reliability and comfort. The existing network will be decentralised by tangents and, where sensible, supplemented by innovative means of transport such as cable cars or on-demand services. The result is less congestion and freed-up space that can be used, for example, for lanes for express buses, cycle paths or as amenity spaces.
Improving the cycling infrastructure
Cycling in the city is becoming much safer and more attractive. The continuous and safe "Altstadt-Radlring" (Old Town Cycle Ring) demanded by the citizens' petition is being implemented step by step; every quarter, the city council also decides on a bundle of further measures to make the road network significantly more cycle-friendly. This means that the demands of the second citizens' petition "Radentscheid" will be largely realised by 2025. Munich's first cycle path from the Stachus in the direction of Garching and Unterschleißheim as well as five further star-shaped routes will connect the city centre with the surrounding area; a cycle ring connects several city districts.
New offers for the city-countryside commuter traffic
Work-related commuting between the city and the region is made easier: modern Park & Ride facilities are being built on the motorways and main access roads at the gates of the city. From there, express buses continue on to the city centre on separate lanes without traffic jams and loss of time. The occupancy rate of commuting cars is increased by allowing the bus lanes to be shared by vehicles with several occupants. These "high-occupancy vehicle lanes" are already successfully helping to reduce car traffic abroad. For the "first" and "last mile" to and from public transport stops, more sharing and on-demand services will be provided, for example call buses.
Car-reduced city centre
New parking regulations, fewer parking spaces, traffic-calmed zones and sustainable logistics concepts will reduce car traffic in the old town and city centre. The space thus freed up will benefit cycling, walking and public transport as well as the quality of stay and the green and open spaces that are so important for the urban climate. Necessary, unavoidable car journeys into the city centre will still be possible. However, it is primarily emission-free, innovative means of transport that will shape mobility here. Efficient city logistics concepts make delivery and loading traffic compatible.
Mobility concepts
When planning new neighbourhoods and urban renewal projects, mobility concepts are considered from the very beginning. The focus is on a lively, balanced structure of uses in which as many everyday needs as possible can be found in the immediate residential environment. Short distances, good internal and external access to the neighbourhood by public transport, car and bike sharing services enable people to live without their own cars and increase the quality of life.
Innovative means of transport
Mobility is strongly influenced by digitalisation and innovations. The City of Munich takes these up, plans ahead and is open to trends. Automated and connected driving is currently being researched together with partners from business, science and research; a cable car over the Frankfurter Ring is being studied for the north of Munich, which has heavy traffic. With all new technologies, the focus is on user needs.
On Wednesday, 12 February, the City Council will deal with other important resolutions on mobility in Munich in the Committee for Urban Planning and Building Regulations in addition to the draft resolution "Mobility Plan for Munich".
5.3.2020 Munich: City Planning Councillor Professor Dr. (l) Elisabeth Merk has now symbolically handed over the key to the members of the building association "Der Kleine Prinz" in Prinz Eugen Park. Their new building ensemble of atrium and point houses on Jörg-Hube-Straße is part of the ecological model settlement there. In addition to flats, two guest flats, an ice cream café and a bicycle repair workshop were built.
"The ecological model housing estate is a kind of initial spark for further timber construction projects in the city, and with the 'Kleiner Prinzen' project, an outstanding showcase project for high-quality timber construction has been created - beyond the city's borders. This is due not least to the great commitment of all those involved and the successful cooperation as and with the building consortium," Merk emphasised at the handover of the keys, which was attended not only by the members of the building consortium but also by the architects involved from the architectural firm Dressler Mayerhofer Rössler.
Around 1,800 flats as well as a primary school, kindergartens and other facilities are being built in the new Prinz-Eugen-Park urban quarter. Among the developers are a total of six cooperatives and five joint building ventures. The ecological model settlement is made up of eight individual projects. Approximately 570 flats are being built here in timber construction, 407 of which are rental flats, and various community facilities.
Since 2012, the DGNB certification system has been a tool for municipalities that helps them to optimise neighbourhoods in terms of sustainability and to document this through an award. For this system, the DGNB has now specifically further developed the criteria catalogue and significantly reduced the scope through adjustments. According to the DGNB in its press release, this would reduce the effort and costs for building owners "without compromising on quality". New in the updated system version are topics such as light pollution, smart infrastructure, governance, resilience and adaptability.
The revision of the criteria that has now taken place relates to the use profiles for urban districts and commercial districts. The restructuring and the significant reduction in scope from 46 to 30 criteria are the result of a targeted process in which a large number of experts from the DGNB network were involved.
The innovations in detail
In terms of content, numerous adjustments were made. For example, the criterion "social and functional mix" - a core issue of sustainable neighbourhood development - was given a stronger weighting. On the other hand, some topics that previously had only a minimal influence on the overall assessment were dropped. These include, for example, the criteria "art in construction" or "building site/construction process". Numerous other criteria were combined with related topics.
Four criteria were newly integrated or fundamentally revised. The criterion "Emissions / Immissions", which was previously called "Noise and Sound Protection", was expanded to include the topics of air quality and light pollution. The criterion "governance" aims to create structures in the planning stage that will endure after the realisation of the neighbourhood. The entirely new criterion of "resilience and adaptability" aims to promote neighbourhood development that implies the highest possible flexibility and resilience to possible disruptive events. The "Smart Infrastructure" criterion has been greatly expanded in its approach. This includes, among other things, the question of the extent to which digitalisation is fundamentally integrated into neighbourhood planning and what infrastructural prerequisites there are for this - in the buildings and the open spaces alike. This criterion, which takes into account the topic of "smart cities", was deliberately formulated in an open manner, as there is currently a great deal of technological movement in this area.
In order to ensure the international applicability of the DGNB system for neighbourhoods, the content of some criteria was expanded. This applies, for example, to the criterion "environmental risks", in which internationally relevant risks such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions or tsunamis were added in addition to the environmental hazards that frequently occur in Germany, such as storms or floods.
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