Cycling and / or Trams Experiences from Bern, Switzerland Roland Pfeiffer, Departement for cycling traffic, City of Bern Seite 1
A few words about Bern Seite 2
A few words about Bern Capital of Switzerland 130 000 habitants 150 000 jobs many commuters Seite 3
A few words about Bern Not the best conditions for cycling many ups and downs UNESCO World Heritage cobble stones conservation is very important Seite 4
A few words about cycling in Bern Modal Split of trips 26 % by public transport 12 % by bike 32 % by foot 30% by car - there are more than 100 000 bikes - 20 000 public bike parkings - 46% of households in Bern have no car Seite 5
about public transport in Bern very good public transport system: 5 Tram-lines (33 km tracks) 19 Bus-lines Seite 6
about public transport in Bern Current project Tram Region Bern 10 km new tracks costs: over 500 Mio. USD Further projects: Second Tram through the city center Tram Länggasse Tram Nordring Seite 7
trams and cycling Bern, as many other cities, plans to expanse the tram system In Switzerland: Basel, Bern, Geneva, Zürich In France: Nantes, Grenoble, Rouen, Montpellier, Strassbourg the main discussions in Bern were: (and still are): tram stops and cyclists tracks and cyclists roundabouts with traffic lights traffic lights for trams Seite 8
tram stops and cycling Tram stop cycle way behind the tram stop: it s going up, cyclists are slow works very well best case but the only one in Bern (lack of space) Seite 9
tram stops and cycling Tram stop cycle way behind the tram stop: example from Heidelberg in Germany clearly divided between pedestrians and cyclists Seite 10
tram stops and cycling although there is quite a lot of space it s going down, only a small gradient => cyclists are too fast not clearly divided => conflicts with pedestrians Seite 11
tram stops and cycling New stops: not enough space behind the stop bikes are on the road for handicapped people => high curbs necessary compromise: height curb: h = 24 cm distance track curb: d = 90 cm The distance is most important! Seite 12
tram tracks and cycling crossing the tracks is challenging for cyclists => no track crossing under 30 degrees solution: => bikes go to the right and get a better angle but not always possible Seite 13
tram tracks and cycling - cyclists use the sidewalk - no problems when there are not many pedestrians - sometimes with a traffic light for cyclists Seite 14
special tracks and cycling Special tracks for bikes => System «STRAIL» no more grooves adjacent to tracks the only known system which works trial operation in Geneva good experiences until now => cyclists are happy with the system until now limited range (only on straight tracks, ) Seite 15
roundabouts with traffic lights roundabouts in Bern have traffic lights to speed up the trams often cyclists have to wait without reason «safest on red» => cyclists go on red passage for bikes works very well since years Seite 16
traffic lights and cyclists traffic lights for trams to speed up the public transport cyclists and pedestrians have to wait a long time Seite 17
traffic lights and cyclists and wait and wait and wait Seite 18
traffic lights and cyclists and then you go...it s still red Seite 19
Conclusion promoting public transport is necessary and good but don t forget the cyclists or Seite 20
Conclusion but Seite 21
Thanks for your patience! Seite 22