Petition is addressed to: Senator Ute Bonde, senat administration für Mobility, Transport, Climate Protection and the Environment, Berlin

Torstraße, one of the most important streets in Berlin's Mitte district, is to be renovated and redesigned. The Berlin Senate plans to spend over €10 million on the first construction phase between Chausseestraße and Rosenthaler Platz alone. It is rare for an existing street to be renovated across its entire width, from house to house. This offers a unique opportunity to design the future street in a sustainable way, as the way the street is rebuilt now, must function well for the next 50 to 80 years. And that's in the face of heat, drought and heavy rain, changing mobility and a city that continues to grow.
As citizens, parents and grandparents, business owners, restaurant owners and other users, we demand better planning that takes the needs of all stakeholders into account. We want a functioning Torstraße that is safe and sustainable, environmentally friendly and attractive for everyone.

Our demands:
Preserve the trees on Torstraße!
Preserve all existing trees and hedges for a liveable neighbourhood, for heat protection, improving air quality and protecting species. Comply with the requirements of Berlin's Climate 2.0 urban development plan and the new Berlin Climate Adaptation Act. Where trees must be felled due to poor vitality, appropriate replanting must take place on site. Replacement of trees lost in recent years and compliance with Berlin's biodiversity strategy. Effective protection of existing habitats and integration into planning.
 
A sustainable and functional street!
Our city is changing rapidly and at the same time facing major challenges. The city needs public spaces that can cope with these changes. The current plans do not meet these requirements in any way. Thanks to its extensive renovation, Torstraße offers a real opportunity to become a model for a future-proof Berlin street. This means:

• Reduction of lanes for motorised traffic to a reasonable level based on the requirements of relevant planning guidelines and actual current traffic counts. Consequently, compliance with the quality standards of the Mobility Act without deviations: With current traffic volumes, only one lane per direction for motorised traffic is required, thus providing sufficient space for safe cycle lanes within the existing road profile while reducing emissions and noise
• Consistent design for 30 km/h speed limits that does not suggest that fast driving is permitted here. Permanent enforcement through speed checks and speed-reducing elements.
• Maintaining at least the current width of sidewalks and tree/green strips without interference from moving traffic. With sensible planning, there is enough space within the current car lanes for safe cycling without taking up sidewalk space.
• Safe pedestrian crossings at all relevant locations to provide the necessary safety, especially for children, the elderly and people with reduced mobility.
• Continuous, safe cycle lanes, separated from both pedestrian and car traffic.
• Routes for emergency vehicles that, unlike the current Senate plan, truly ensure that emergency services can get through quickly. An extra-wide cycle lane as a ‘safety lane’ has proven effective for this purpose. Too many and excessively wide motor vehicle lanes do not solve the problem, rather create new ones.
• Side areas of the road organised for everyday use, which provide clearly understandable options for delivery traffic, necessary parking, disabled parking spaces, Jelbi stations and school bus stops.

 
Immediate involvement of affected parties, users and other experts in the planning process!
An area that is so important for our city must be planned with consideration for the diverse life on Torstraße. Principles for participation in Berlin and the Mitte district must be observed, public participation must be carried out, and transport and planning associations must be involved. We therefore want the planning of the street to be put on hold until comprehensive participation has taken place, in which all stakeholders (residents, educational and health institutions, parents, senior citizens, business owners and users of various modes of transport) can express their opinions and discuss them with each other without being played off against each other, as is the case today. The diverse requirements for this important public space in Berlin Mitte should be reconciled as well as possible.
 
We demand that the Berlin Senate Administration for Mobility, Traffic, Climate Protection and Environment rethink its transport policy and redesign Torstraße in line with the above requirements.
 
We demand an immediate halt to all decisions by the Senate regarding the tendering and awarding of contracts for the redevelopment measures based on the current, inadequate plans for Torstraße.