Bönnsche Viertel - Living spaces for people

Photo: © Franz Heinbach

Together for sustainable mobility in Bonn: What will my neighborhood look like when it is no longer dominated by cars? The city of Bonn and citizens discussed these and other questions about sustainable mobility together in the participatory process "Bönnsche Viertel - Living spaces for people". Various activities took place in two model districts - the Innere Nordstadt and the Combahnviertel - in 2023 to engage in a conversation with local people about active, safe and barrier-free mobility in their neighborhoods.

The aim of the project is to gradually relieve residents of through traffic and parking pressure in the future, strengthen alternative forms of mobility and use the space gained to create new opportunities for people to meet and socialize.

The participation process has now been completed and the results have been published in comprehensive documentation. With the help of these results, the city administration is currently drawing up a neighborhood concept for the Combahnviertel and the Innere Nordstadt, which will contain concrete measures for both model neighborhoods.

Parking space concept for Nordstadt

The parking space concept for Nordstadt, which was introduced in 2024, is an important step on the way to the Bönnsche Viertel Innere Nordstadt. This is because the new parking space concept means that fewer cars will be driving through the narrow residential streets in search of a parking space. In addition, some parking spaces will be converted for alternative purposes: for wider sidewalks, car-sharing spaces or bicycle stands.

This is what the campaigns and events were about

How can I make the journey to school safer for my children? Is my practice accessible for patients? Can my guests and customers, young and old, reach me easily? Where can I sit on a bench to take a break, talk to my neighbors and enjoy my neighborhood?

The activities and events were part of the participatory process "Bönnsche Viertel - Vibrant spaces for people". It took up such questions and involved the people in the neighborhoods directly - because they know best what they need in their neighborhood to be more mobile and to create an even more liveable public space. After all, if through traffic and parking pressure in the neighborhood decrease, the space gained can be used for places of encounter and social participation - which ultimately benefits everyone in the neighborhood.

The findings gained from the "Bönnsche Viertel" will be embedded in measures that have already been decided and planned, such as the parking strategy or the Inner City Master Plan.

Events in the Bönn districts in 2023

The picture shows an employee of the city administration explaining ideas for new mobility to around 30 people in the inner Nordstadt.

Inner Nordstadt: Sunny events in the model district

The picture shows a poster on which people have written down their wishes for the Innere Nordstadt, such as more greenery and fewer cars.

Wishes of residents in the inner Nordstadt district

Mayor Katja Dörner and a presenter spoke on stage at the Bönnsche Viertel kick-off festival.

Kick-off party: "Help shape the future!"

The picture shows a miniature model of a street.

Miniature model: big wishes for the neighborhood in miniature

The picture shows a citizen hanging a note on a pinboard.

Ideas wanted: Residents' wish lists

The picture shows around 20 people in a seminar room in the city talking about commercial transport.

Workshop on commercial transport with experts

The picture shows people on a street in the Combahn district who came to the Day of the Bönn Neighborhoods.

Model district Combahnviertel on the day of the Bönnsche Viertel

The picture shows around 10 people sitting at a table and talking to each other about their neighborhood.

First participation in the kick-off party

The picture shows a sunlit old town street with stalls and people on the day of the Bönnsche Viertel.

A different way of using the road: Bönnsche Viertel Day

The picture shows an employee of the city administration explaining a poster on a pinboard about climate change in the city to a visitor.

Kick-off party: City administration explains its ideas

The participation process aimed to provide Bonn residents with comprehensive information about the city's planned and ongoing mobility projects, to create spaces for experiences, to bring experts from the specialist administration, initiatives and citizens together and to try out alternative mobility options.

Activities in the Bönn neighborhoods: Review

Here you will find much more information and a review of milestones in the participation process.

From the model district to the city: Bönnsche Stadtstraßen

On September 23, three streets in Bonn were completely transformed for one day. With the "Bönnsche Stadtstraßen" day of action, the city of Bonn, in cooperation with the "ARTpolis - Community Arts & Music Lab" association, brought the idea of Bönnsche Viertel to the city. Three streets in the city were closed to traffic and together, residents and artists developed a creative program for neighbourhood use and cultural performance.

The action days were used in a variety of ways by various initiatives and Bonn residents and the streets were well frequented throughout the day. There was music, home-baked goods, cozy seating areas and discussions on mobility in Bonn. Residents got talking about their neighborhood and topics such as car sharing and bicycle lanes.