The Mitte district is growing and with it the challenges of everyday life together. In order to sustainably improve the quality of life in the neighborhoods, the Berlin Mitte district office is investigating the feasibility of so-called Kiezblocks – traffic-calmed residential areas between the main roads. The first phase of public participation is now starting, in which residents and interested parties can contribute their needs and ideas.
Why Kiezblocks?
The population of Berlin Mitte has grown by 80,000 people over the past 20 years, but the amount of space on streets, sidewalks and in parks has remained the same. At the same time, the use of delivery services and sharing offers is increasing, which puts further pressure on public space. The consequences include more traffic, less peace and quiet and poorer air quality. Neighborhood blocks offer a solution here by reducing through traffic and thus creating safe, quiet and liveable neighborhoods.
The project aims to identify 12 neighbourhood blocks that are best suited for implementation in the district. To this end, several steps are being taken to investigate where there is particularly heavy through traffic and which neighborhoods are suitable for traffic calming. In a first step, all neighborhoods in the district were analyzed and 28 residential areas were selected that have the highest potential for improving the quality of life through traffic-calming measures.
Now the public participation begins!
District councillor Christopher Schriner: “The design of public space is a matter of public interest and the redesign must be a collaborative process. The participation of people who live, work or visit the Mitte district is therefore a central component of the project.”
Everyone has until April 7, 2025 to get involved in an initial online participation.
The results are incorporated into further planning.