Again and again the buses of the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) are stuck in traffic jams in the city and are therefore too late. The company has now announced which lines are particularly affected – these are mainly routes in the city center. Line 245 between Zoo Station and Central Station is the most affected, and line 200, which runs across the center between Zoo Station and Michelangelostrasse, is often stuck in traffic.
According to the BVG, the same applies to line 100, 300, line 247 between Leopoldplatz in Wedding and Nordbahnhof in Mitte, as well as lines 140, 248, 377, 147 and the M29 metro bus between Hermannplatz and Grunewald. The company announced this in response to a written request from MP Kristian Ronneburg (left).
The lack of speed on the BVG bus routes has been a huge problem for years. Despite announcements by the Senate Transport Administration that they want to speed up local public transport, the average speed has remained at a low level for years – and is even decreasing.
While the bus lines were still traveling at an average of 18.1 kilometers per hour in 2017, they only averaged 17.9 kilometers per hour last year. The BVG only attributes the fact that it was a little faster in 2020, at 18.0 kilometers per hour than in 2021, to the pandemic, since factors such as “passenger use and surface traffic changed for a short time,” explains the BVG. In other words: on empty roads and without passengers the buses are also on time.
A problem remains that the vehicles do not have their own bus lanes on many routes. The Senate, BVG and districts have been working on expanding the special lanes for years. Often, however, progress is slow. According to the Senate Transport Administration, six new bus lanes have been set up so far this year. Two of them on Eberstrasse in Mitte, on Reichpietschufer and Von-der-Heydt-Strasse in Mitte, on Alt-Blankenburg Strasse in Pankow and Birkbuschstrasse in Steglitz-Zehlendorf.
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However, many others are missing. A total of 25 bus lanes have been arranged throughout the city, but they are not yet on the road. In terms of numbers, most of them, with eight, are in Steglitz-Zehlendorf, for example on Ostpreußendamm and Hindenburgdamm. In addition, the execution has so far been the sole responsibility of the districts.
The funds for this would have come from general structural maintenance, which would also be needed for other important tasks, which led to the delay. Now the Senate wants to take care of some routes itself. “In order to speed up and support the implementation, the Senate will have a number of special bus lanes implemented in coordination with the district offices.” However, the prerequisite for this is that sufficient budgetary funds are available.
