- Court: signs for voluntary pace 30 must be removed
Some residents of Lake Constance must remove signs for a voluntary 30 km/h speed limit from their properties. The self-designed boards could be mistaken for official 30 km/h signs, decided the Freiburg Administrative Court in three proceedings of a long-standing legal dispute. The court considered the overall appearance of the sign as it would present to a passing observer.
The signs were set up in different designs on the Lake Constance peninsula of Höri in the Constance district. Controversial boards display words like "Voluntary", an imitated 30 km/h sign, and silhouettes of running children. The usual speed limit of 50 km/h applies in the municipalities.
The Constance County Administration Office ordered their immediate removal in April, with each resident facing a fine of 800 euros. Residents' complaints and urgent applications reached the Freiburg Court, which has now ruled.
The decisions are not yet final. Citizens can file an appeal to the Administrative Court of Baden-Württemberg in Mannheim within two weeks of notification, as reported by the court.
The case was already in court in 2023
The Freiburg Court had already rejected three citizens' lawsuits against the Constance County Administration Office as inadmissible in October 2022. The plaintiffs from Lake Constance were supported by the German Environmental Aid (DUH) at a public hearing, aiming to achieve a precedent-setting ruling.
As the court announced in October, the local Green Party association called for a "private initiative for climate protection, more traffic safety, and less noise" in the fall of 2021. The signs were obtained and distributed in this context. (Case numbers: 6 K 2226/24, 6 K 2227/24, 6 K 2228/24)
The signs in question were set up on the Lake Constance peninsula of Höri, specifically within the Constance district, which is not far from Freiburg. In 2023, the Freiburg Court had another hearing for this long-standing legal dispute originating from Lake Constance.
