Park ticket machines in Berlin: absurd or necessary for pedestrians?

Park ticket machines in Berlin: absurd or necessary for pedestrians?

In Berlin and Pankow, the discussions about the new parking ticket machines and the associated fees are increasing. In the Tempelhof-Schönefeld district, there are actually some parking ticket machines in the middle of parking spaces, which causes excitement. Ulrich Siegmund, an AfD politician and influencer on Tikkok, criticized this placement by claiming that the green mobility concept was led into an absurd situation. District City Councilor Saskia Ellenbeck from the Greens made it clear that the decisions about the location of the machines are made by the administration experts and are not influenced by the political leadership. According to the MDR Currently, only eight out of 30,000 parking spaces through machines are blocked in the entire Tempelhof-Schönefeld district, which is a rather negligible number.

changes in parking fees in Pankow

At the same time, the conversion of the more than 800 parking ticket machines to new fees has been carried out in Pankow since July 24, 2023. This measure follows the increase in parking fees, which came into force in early 2023 and has been the first of its kind for around 20 years. The new fees increase by 1 euro per hour, so that drivers now have to pay 2 to 4 euros for parking. These adjustments aim to make driving in the city less attractive and to promote switching to alternative means of transport. In addition, specific exceptions were introduced, such as the exemption from the obligation to take the parking fee for e-bikes and car sharing vehicles with reduced fees for emission-free vehicles.

The new fees are gradually introduced in several Pankow parking zones, which has far -reaching effects on the use of the parking rooms. In the meantime, the discussion about the meaningfulness of machine placement and the multicriterial decision on their location remains a hot topic. These developments illustrate the ongoing tension and the complex challenges with which cities like Berlin are faced with a balance between drivers and other road users, as well as Pankower Allgemeine Zeitung reports .

The reporting on the multitude of these changes clearly shows that the city administration in Berlin is faced with the challenge of reorganizing the urban space and at the same time taking into account the different interests of road users, while Currently also illuminated the technical and practical aspects of the parking ticket machines.