DUH: Berlin Senator's Kantstraße Bike Lane Removal Politically Motivated

German environmental organization Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) has released internal documents suggesting that Berlin's Transport Senator Ute Bonde pursued a politically motivated agenda in dismantling the bike lane on Kantstraße. The organization claims that the project, costing over two million euros, disregarded expert warnings and was pushed forward for political gain.

According to the documents, the responsible department initially recommended preserving the existing road layout in July 2024. When a proposal to swap the bike lane and parking spaces emerged in October 2024, the department issued warnings about increased safety risks for cyclists. Despite these concerns, Senator Bonde publicly announced the change as a decided solution just four days later, citing fire safety as the primary justification, though its validity was questioned.

DUH states that an alternative plan that would have maintained the protected bike lane was available in spring 2025. However, in May 2025, Senator Bonde officially directed the administration to proceed with the plan involving a parking lane and a shared bus and bike lane. Further issues arose in December 2025 when a planning office determined that the street's width was insufficient for the required bus lane standards. Nevertheless, internal documents from January 2026 emphasized, as a "political directive," the need to implement the changes before the Berlin elections in September 2026.

Jürgen Resch, DUH's federal managing director, strongly criticized the senator's actions and called for her to account for them in the transport committee. He stated that a decision burdening Berlin's budget with over two million euros was made against the warnings of technically responsible personnel. "This is a scandal," Resch said, adding that parking spaces were prioritized over the safety of cyclists.

DUH is supporting an urgent application by a cyclist to preserve the protected bike lane on Kantstraße. The Senate has agreed to maintain a temporarily protected cycle path throughout the construction phase. DUH continues to demand the permanent preservation of the Kantstraße bike lane and calls on the incoming government to revert to evidence-based transport policy.