A familiar drama plays out every day in front of Kiel Central Station: students, commuters and tourists all weave their way between buses and cars instead of using the traffic lights. No wonder – the traffic lights are far away and it’s a detour to get from the main station building to the buses.
This situations shows that it is time for safer and more practical solutions in urban traffic in Kiel.

What are possible solutions for improving the pedestrian crossing at Kiel Central Station? To clarify these questions, I spoke to an expert, Prof. Dr. Brigitte Wotha – Professor at Fachhochschule Kiel with the focus on urban and regional planning.

“The structural situation at Kiel Central Station allows pedestrians to walk across the road without traffic lights – a circumstance that is tolerated by steps on the central reservation.” Wotha emphasizes. This lowering of the kerb is a temporary solution, but does not improve the uncontrolled situation.

The professor went on to explain that a bridge would be rather unfavorable from a structural point of view because the route is too short and therefore too high a height would have to be overcome. Hence the idea of removing private traffic, in other words all vehicles except buses, from this critical area and diverting it to Hopfenstrasse and Kaistrasse.

“From a traffic planning point of view, it would make sense to design the crossing at ground level, whereby individual traffic should be removed completely.” Wotha says.

“The main station is Kiel’s calling card – the welcome corner and an upgrading of the square would not only welcome commuters and Kiel residents, but also tourists such as cruisship passengers and improve the quality of stay. We should emphasize usability, improve the quality of stay and make our city center more attractive in general. We can’t continue with the current situation, we can’t treat our city center like this.” said Ms. Wotha in conclusion.

An urgently needed change

I think that the situation at Kiel Central Station is a prime example of the challenges of urban traffic planning. It is not enough to put up a traffic light and hope that it will be used. The needs of pedestrians, who are often in a hurry, must be taken into account, while at the same time safety must be a priority. With a better understanding of regional planning and construction measures, it may be possible to find a sustainable solution that ensures both safety and functionality.

For the many students at the FH Kiel who use this crossing every day, the hope remains that something will change here soon.