Rombachstraße RVR Brand Upgrading of cycle traffic facilities

Brief info

What: Upgrading of cycling facilities

Objective: Expansion of cycling infrastructure

Current project phase: Preliminary planning

Latest news

 On 24.08.2023, the Mobility Committee passed the planning resolution for the redesign of Rombachstraße in accordance with variant 1 (priority at the Schagenstraße and Wolferskaul junctions). A suitable funding program for implementation is currently (February 2025) being determined.

Map

Occasion

The Brand priority cycle route is the third route of the planned priority cycle network to be implemented. The section of Rombachstraße between Brander Wall and Wolferskaul is part of the Brand priority cycle route and is to be redesigned accordingly.

A corresponding planning order for the expansion of the ancillary facilities was issued by politicians in September 2021. Subsequently, a digital public consultation on the redesign of Rombachstrasse took place on 28.03.2022. The input from interested parties was incorporated into the plans where possible and appropriate.

Goal

It was decided that the RVR should be designed without interruptions and with right of way throughout. It is therefore planned to widen the secondary facility to approx. 6.00 m.

Today's situation

Along the Brand cycle priority route, Rombachstraße connects Wolferskaul street (cycle lane established) with Brander Wall (footpath and cycle path; already upgraded) and thus creates the link between the districts of Brand and Mitte. It is located within a 30 km/h zone and in the section under consideration between Brander Wall and Wolferskaul it has been developed according to the separation principle (structural separation of traffic types).

The width of the roadway is approximately 5.50 m to 9.50 m. The northern sidewalk is approx. 2.00 m wide. On the southern side of the road, there is a structurally constructed cycle path not subject to mandatory use with approx. 2.00 m wide paving next to an approx. 1.30 m wide footpath. This means that the sidewalks do not meet the space requirements for two pedestrians meeting in accordance with the guidelines for the design of urban roads (RASt 06). The guidelines stipulate a minimum width of 2.00 m - preferably 2.50 m. The cycle path does not comply with the guidelines either. According to the recommendations for cycle traffic facilities (ERA 2010), one-sided bidirectional cycle paths should normally measure 3.00 m. In addition, there is a 0.50 m safety separation strip to the roadway.

There are approx. 106 parking spaces available along Rombachstraße (excluding the parking lot at the swimming pool and tennis court) between 7 am and 7 pm. There are 38 parking spaces at the swimming pool and 48 at the tennis court. The roadside parking is currently mainly used in the 2nd section opposite the buildings at the level of houses 20-16.

Along Rombachstraße, bus routes 5 and 45 run every 15 minutes, route 55 every 30 minutes and routes 50 and 173 with individual trips. There are also additional trips for school transport.

The traffic volume in the peak hour for motor vehicles (motor vehicles) was 719 vehicles and 114 cyclists at the Vennbahnweg junction in June 2021. In comparison, in May 2022 during a traffic test with a bottleneck at the Vennbahnweg crossing, there were 525 motor vehicles in the peak hour and 155 cyclists. The proportion of heavy traffic/day was approx. 2.6% in 2021 and 2.4% in 2022. As this is a priority cycle route, the count was carried out in the summer months. Since August 2022, the city of Aachen has been using so-called thermal imaging sensors to permanently record the bicycle traffic volumes (in compliance with data protection regulations). The permanent counting station on Rombachstraße recorded up to 11,000 cyclists per month in 2022. The busiest month was September with up to 600 cyclists per day.

A parking space survey was carried out at different times and on different days in March and May 2022. Full occupancy was not recorded on weekdays. A maximum of 51 parking spaces were occupied (including caravans, trailers and motorhomes). On Sundays, during the clubs' main match times, very high parking space utilization was recorded. In addition, there was an increase in illegal parking on footpaths or in driveways. At the same time, however, around 40 unused parking spaces were available at the tennis court and between Heussstrasse and the tennis home.

Planning

Standard cross-section
In September 2021, the Aachen-Brand district council and the mobility committee decided to extend the southern side facilities for the section from Brander Wall to Wolferskaul. It was also decided that the RVR should be designed without interruptions and with right of way throughout.

It is therefore planned to widen the side road to approx. 6.00 m. The sidewalk should generally be 2.50 m wide (including a 0.30 m wide ball plate/separator to the cycle path), not least due to school traffic. In 30 km/h zones, no roads with mandatory cycle paths are permitted. Therefore, a wide, high-quality two-way cycle path that is not subject to mandatory use, a so-called "other cycle path", must be provided. A high quality cycling facility should increase usage. A standard width of approx. 3.50 m (including a 0.50 m safety separation strip from the roadway) is planned for the two-way cycle path that is not subject to mandatory use. Between Brander Wall and Schagenstraße, the safety separation strip is omitted, as the cycle path is separated from the flowing traffic by the accompanying greenery. It is planned to lay out the cycle path in asphalt and coat it with a red epoxy coating (see Brander Wall).

The carriageway between Schagenstraße and Wolferskaul will be narrowed to at least 6.00 m in order to allow public transport and motor vehicle traffic to continue to meet. In this section, there will be no curbside parking on the southern side (see Annex 6-9). For the conversion of Rombachstraße, around 48 of the 106 parking spaces along Rombachstraße will be removed for variant 1, whereby the parking spaces between Brander Wall and Heussstraße will not be changed. The northern side of the street remains largely unchanged.

Replacement parking spaces
In order to replace some of the parking spaces that will be lost on Rombachstraße, the creation of a parking lot on parcel 973 is being examined. A corresponding application by the CDU and SPD parliamentary groups dated 14.04.2021 has been submitted (see application no. 017/WP18 "Construction of replacement parking spaces for the loss of parking spaces due to the planned Brand priority cycle route on Rombachstraße") and was discussed by the Aachen-Brand district council on 07.12.2022. It was decided to create short-term parking spaces and to examine a mobility hub with various types of use (bike and car sharing, e-charging, bicycle parking). The site plans therefore include an access road to plot 973.

In addition, the use of the school parking lot of the comprehensive school was discussed and investigated by the administration. At present, unauthorized persons are not permitted to enter the parking lot according to the signage. In practice, the area is already being used by the local clubs outside of school hours. After consultation with the head teacher of the comprehensive school and various specialist departments, it was agreed that the parking lot of the comprehensive school should be officially opened for use by the school and sports clubs on Rombachstraße. Appropriate signage is being drawn up. Around 85 parking spaces are available in the parking lot. This will help to relieve the parking situation in the near future.

Variants
There are two variants for the conversion of Rombachstrasse, which differ at the prominent points of the Schagenstrasse junction and the Wolferskaul junction.

Option 1:
In September 2021, the Brand district council decided that the RVR in Brand should be designed without interruptions and with right of way throughout. This decision was followed by the Mobility Committee. The planning for variant 1 is therefore based on this resolution.

In order to give priority to the RVR at the junction with Schagenstraße, the right of way situation must be changed. Together with the RVR, the Rombachstraße lane also has right of way over Schagenstraße. In addition, the administration recommends raising the entire intersection area by means of elevations in order to reduce the speed of flowing traffic and increase safety for cyclists on the two-way cycle path, which is not mandatory.

At the Wolferskaul junction, option 1 provides for the cycle lane to be routed from Wolferskaul into Rombachstraße with right of way. This is made clear by red coloring and markings. In order to make it safer and clearer to give priority from the side road into the Wolferskaul cycle lane, in option 1, cycle traffic is turned as far as possible in the side road. This junction will also be raised.

Variant 2:
Based on the comments from the police and ASEAG, a second variant was developed that does not give the RVR priority at Schagenstraße and the Wolferskaul junction.

Costs

Implementation was no longer possible as part of the #AachenMooVe! funding program due to the time limit.

The costs are currently calculated on the basis of the area and are estimated at € 3.0 million (variant 1) and € 2.5 million (variant 2). A significant increase in construction costs must be expected in the coming years. Therefore, the costs for variant 1 are estimated at € 4.4 million and for variant 2 at € 3.8 million. Decisions on the implementation of measures with costs and financing are reserved for the implementation decision.

The implementation of the measures is only possible if the provision of the necessary funds is secured by a future, legally binding budget. The administration is endeavoring to finance the conversion using funding from the FöRi-Nah (local mobility funding guidelines). A corresponding application will be submitted by 31.05.2023. Funds for the conversion could then be available from 2024/25. Conversion is planned from 2025.

Rombachstrasse has not yet been finally completed in accordance with the provisions of Sections 127 et seq. of the German Building Code (BauGB), as its development falls short of the stipulations of development plan no. 648. Therefore, no development contributions can be charged for the planned expansion in accordance with the NRW Municipal Charges Act (KAG). It can be assumed that the future expansion costs cannot be taken into account as a contributory expense when settling the development contributions.

Conclusion and recommendation

Variant 1 takes into account the political decision to give priority to the RVR throughout. While both variants result in a high-quality cycling facility, the design according to variant 1 invites cyclists to switch from the cycle lane to the cycle path not subject to mandatory use in the secondary facility of Rombachstraße due to the right of way as well as the red coloring and markings at the two junctions Schagenstraße and Wolferskaul. On the other hand, the design according to option 2 - without visual guidance on the side road and without priority - could encourage cyclists to continue cycling on the road.

The administration therefore recommends adopting the planning decision for the redesign of Rombachstrasse in accordance with variant 1 (priority at the Schagenstrasse and Wolferskaul junctions).

Political consulting

08.09.2021: Consultation in the Aachen-Brand district council (commission for the preliminary planning of variant 1; based on the proposal of the project workshop, the priority cycle route without interruption and with right of way throughout)

30.09.2021: Consultation in the Mobility Committee (order for preliminary planning of variant 1; based on the proposal of the project workshop, the priority cycle route without interruption and with right of way throughout)

14.06.2023: Consultation in the Aachen-Brand district council (planning decision according to variant 1; priority at the Schagenstraße and Wolferskaul junctions)

24.08.2023: Consultation in the Mobility Committee (planning decision according to variant 1; priority at the Schagenstraße and Wolferskaul junctions)

Council info template