Local Governments - In contrast to a diesel ban, Landshuter Allee will now have a speed limit of 30 km/h.
In Munich, a 30 km/h zone has been set up on the heavily congested Middle Ring. Since this week, this speed limit applies to around 2.5 kilometers of the Landshuter Allee, with appropriate signs being installed, a spokesperson for the mobility department shared on Tuesday. By Wednesday, all the entrance signs should be set up too.
Additionally, the five fixed speed cameras situated along this stretch will need to be reprogrammed to acknowledge the new speed limit. As of the first day, no violations of the lower speed limit were reported by police headquarters' spokesperson.
The city council reached this decision favoring a 30 km/h zone on this part of the highway in a turbulent council meeting with a narrow margin in April, during which they rejected calls for extending the diesel driving ban in Munich's city center advocated by environmentalists and the Greens, who are part of the red-green government alliance.
German Environmental Aid has threatened legal action against this decision, while the Greens would have liked to adopt Christine Kugler's proposal to widen the driving ban within Munich's city center to include diesel vehicles of emission standard 5. Although there was no consensus on this topic, the majority of the council voted in favor of the 30 km/h speed limit.
A Bavarian Administrative Court decision from March that gave notice of tightened driving bans influenced the debate. This ban, in effect since February 2023, only covers vehicles with emission standard 4 or worse. However, limit values were exceeded on the Landshuter Allee and another major traffic artery, prompting the court to insist on immediate action to ensure that these values are considerably lower and Munich's air quality improves.
Preceding this decision was an intense debate within the red-green government coalition, as revealed by the SPD-led city administration and partner Volt voting for 30 km/h, thus overruling the Greens and other parties like the ODP and the Rosa List.
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- Despite advocating for a wider diesel ban in Munich's city center, the municipalities within the red-green government alliance did not achieve a consensus and instead adopted a 30 km/h speed limit on the Landshuter Allee.
- Bavarian municipalities, including Munich, are taking steps to improve air quality, with a recent example being the implementation of a 30 km/h zone on the heavily congested Landshuter Allee, following a narrow council vote.
- In response to exceeded limit values on the Landshuter Allee and other major traffic arteries, the Bavarian Administrative Court issued a decision in March, enforcing tightened driving bans for vehicles with emission standard 4 or worse, starting from February 2023.
- In the neighboring city of Landshut, a complete diesel ban has not been implemented, but municipalities like Munich within Bavaria are taking proactive measures to minimize traffic-related environmental impact, such as implementing speed limits on heavily congested roads.
