Green way

Brief info

• Project: Redesign
• Objective: Structural and functional improvements
• Schedule: 2026
• Project phase: Implementation planning

Current

On 13.06.2024, the planning resolution for the redesign of the Grüner Weg was passed by a majority of the Mobility Committee.

Map

Occasion and goal

As a redistribution of the traffic area in Grüner Weg is urgently required to improve the traffic, structural, design and safety conditions for all road users, the administration obtained the necessary resolutions and drew up a plan.

At its meeting on November 6, 2019, the Aachen City Council endorsed the objectives of the cycling referendum. For the Grüner Weg, this meant that the preliminary planning that existed at the time had to be redesigned at the political request, as it could not meet the quality requirements demanded by the cycling decision.

The need for new planning caused a delay in the schedule, meaning that the expansion work could not take place as originally planned with the expansion plans completed and approved at the time directly after the work by Regionetz.

Today's situation

Grüner Weg is located in the north-eastern part of the city between the radial roads Krefelder Straße and Jülicher Straße. It is the main access route for the surrounding industrial estate.

Due to functional deficiencies and age-related damage to the roadway, parking lane, kerbs and sidewalk, renewal is absolutely essential. At the same time, the main access to the industrial estate is to be secured, visually upgraded and made safe for bicycle traffic as a link between the Aachen-Jülich railroad cycle path and the city center.
The area between the junction and Prager Ring has already been rebuilt. With the adapted planning decision of 02.09.2021, a cycle path is to be created in the side area in the section between Gut Lehmkühlchen and Lukasstraße.

For the area between Lukasstraße and Liebigstraße, it should be examined whether better conditions for cyclists can be created thanks to a one-way street regulation.

The area between the Grüner Weg junction and Prager Ring was already rebuilt a few years ago. For this reason, an as-built adaptation is proposed for this area, which provides a sensible and safe connection of the railroad cycle path from Schwarzer Weg to Grüner Weg.

Planning

At the expense of the parking lane and tree planting originally planned in the originally approved implementation planning, a structural cycle path is planned at sidewalk level. The cycle traffic facility consists of a 1.50 m wide red cycle path and a 0.50 m wide safety space to the roadway at the level of the cycle path or sidewalk, which separates cyclists from motor vehicle traffic. To secure the access roads to the properties, these are designed as narrow as possible and with ramp stones - taking into account the necessary trailing curves - in order to make entry and exit as slow and therefore safe as possible.

As the bicycle traffic is located in the adjacent area, the vehicle lane width is planned at 6.50 m to handle commercial and bus traffic in order to allow trucks and/or buses to meet. The footpaths are planned at a minimum of 2.00 m or 2.30 m in accordance with the previously approved planning. The fluctuations (approx. 14.80 m to 15.10 m) in the road width are absorbed in the sidewalk, so that the RVA and vehicle carriageway have the same dimensions throughout, while the dimensions in the sidewalk change. In the section from Lukasstraße to the Grüner Weg junction, the road width is reduced to around 12.00 m. In this section, the planning envisages a shared footpath/cycle path. Motor vehicle traffic will continue to be bi-directional.

Costs

The costs will be calculated in more detail as the planning process progresses.

Next steps/political consultation

The comments formulated in the public participation process were checked for their usefulness and feasibility and can be incorporated into the planning of the measure and taken into account in the implementation decision. The administration will then submit a draft resolution for the implementation decision for discussion in the political bodies.

As things stand at present, implementation is scheduled to begin in around 2026.

Council info template