Haggart for the car-free main square and more space for cyclists on the Nibelungen Bridge

Linz. once before it was Tested and postponed to a later date: The main car-free plaza. Now the new mobility officer, Deputy Mayor Martin Haggart (ÖVP) is in favor of creating a car-free main plaza after the completion of the Fourth Danube Bridge.

A car-free major yard has been discussed for years, and an attempt was made in 2020, but was canceled soon after. A car-free main square was promised once the Fourth Danube Bridge was completed. Now, Linz’s new mobility officer, Martin Haggart (ÖVP), is making people sit up and note: If it were up to him, there would be no more traffic through the main square in the future – after the launch of the Fourth Danube Bridge. Deputy Mayor Haggart will also discuss his position with other members of the city senators: “The main plaza should become a place where people can feel comfortable and stay. This holds new opportunities for tourism and business. In my view, the time must now be used to deal with further development in a well-established manner. To essential uses of the main square, such as gastronomy and commerce, tour groups, events or the location of taxis, it is important to talk about future design in relation to the new objective.”

More space for cyclists on the Nibelungen Bridge

Haggart also supports the evacuation of additional bicycle traffic areas on the Nibelungen Bridge after the completion of the Fourth Danube Bridge. This is currently the most famous and perhaps one of the most dangerous bottlenecks in the Linz cycle path network. This change will bring convenience: it is expected that the number of cars per day will be reduced by 20,000. Close coordination with the state of Upper Austria is important for Haggart. A timely discussion with state traffic officer Steinkellner is required.

Greens: “a promising approach”

Lenz Greens evaluated the proposal favorably. Because: For the mobility transformation to actually work, the budget must be shifted away from car projects toward walking and cycling projects. “Vehicle traffic is still a priority in our city. That is why it is so important to get people back to where they live and, for example, make the main square car-free. However, implementation can certainly be done a little faster,” says President Green Club Helge Langer. This also applies to the bottleneck of the Nibelungen Bridge. After all, the past two years in particular have clearly shown that more and more people are turning to bikes. The infrastructure must now be expanded accordingly. Additional wheel hubs are essential to ensure that Linz residents can get to their destination gently, safely and cleanly by bike.”