All posts by Gudrun Eickelberg

Women on bikes – There is a difference

„The bicycle has done more for the emancipation of middle and upper class women then all the struggles of the womens’ movement“. So wrote the Austrian authoress and feminist Rosa Mayreder (1858-1938).

Female English Racing Cyclists – Englische Radrennfahrerinnen ¹

The first female cyclists came from wealthy families, taking the opportunity to get away from their restrictive circumstances. In Bremen there were Ricarda Huch and Aline von Kapff, who fought for their freedom from the saddle of their bicycles more than 100 years ago. Continue reading Women on bikes – There is a difference →

A Never-Ending Story

The never-ending story about the illegally parked car of the key cutting company in Bremen’s Wachmannstraße rumbles on. Little has changed since our last post in summer 2017. The yellow car still sits day and night on the pavement directly on top of the guidance system for visually impaired citizens. Continue reading A Never-Ending Story →

A Visit to Amsterdam

The first thing you notice in Amsterdam’s inner city is that there are significantly fewer cars there than in Bremen – fewer cars on the roads and fewer parked cars. The latter appears to be the main reason for the lower number of cars in the city generally. Available car parking in the city is comprehensively are managed.

Continue reading A Visit to Amsterdam →

Creeping Parking Disease

We’ve got a short update on our story of the keycutter from Schwachhausen. As readers may recall, a key-cutting service on Wachmannstrasse was repeatedly parking its service vehicles right outside the shop, blocking the guiding system for visually-impaired tram users at the tram stop. At first the police didn’t recognise the problem, but when informed chose to do nothing. Continue reading Creeping Parking Disease →

The Key Stone Cop Out

In Bremen-Schwachhausen, or to be precise, Wachmannstrasse, there is a key cutting shop. On most working days, you’ll see its yellow or white company car parked outside. Very normal, right? Well no. The car is actually parked at a tram stop, right on top of a guiding system where visually impaired people can orient themselves with their sticks on a ripple. In other words, it’s parked illegally.

Continue reading The Key Stone Cop Out →

Illegal parking – Unavoidable Evil or Misplaced Tolerance?

The explosion in private transport is a major problem for our cities. A growing number of cars are increasingly dominating our public space, pushing cyclists and pedestrians to the edge. Bremen is no different. However, unlike a number of other European cities, here the struggle for space is left to people on the ground, inevitably benefitting the strongest – car traffic.

Continue reading Illegal parking – Unavoidable Evil or Misplaced Tolerance? →

Scharnhorststraße Cycle Street Plans – Who Benefits?

Last month, on 24th November, the Office for Road Traffic (ASV) made public its plans for the conversion of Scharnhorststraße to a Cycle Street. The project, part of the city’s Traffic Development Plan (VEP) 2025, was presented to the meeting of the Advisory Council Schwachhausen on 24.11.2016.

Continue reading Scharnhorststraße Cycle Street Plans – Who Benefits? →

Bremen Cycle Streets: Too Compromised?

Cycle Streets are an important issue in Bremen. Over the coming weeks we’ll be publishing a short series of posts on the theme. The first comes from Gudrun Eickelberg, a Green politician and artist.

In recent years, Bremen’s status as a Cycling City has been officially articulated by setting up a number of so-called Fahrradstraßen – Cycle Streets. For example, Bremen’s Transport Development Plan 2025 states that “Cycle Streets (…) are to be established in the main cycle network and in roads with an important connection function and high cycling traffic”.

Continue reading Bremen Cycle Streets: Too Compromised? →