'Bike Autobahns' Could Be Coming to Munich

Munich has a new plan that could totally reshape how cyclists access the city: so-called bike Autobahns. To be launched tomorrow by the city’s planning association, Munich’s proposal imagines a new 14-path network of broad, two-way, entirely segregated bike highways that have neither crossroads nor traffic lights to hold up circulation. While still at the blueprint phase, Munich’s plans could well represent the shape of things to come across Northern Europe. As the provision of roadside bike paths is increasingly being accepted as a civic obligation rather than a perk, cities and regions are moving on to create a second wave of bike infrastructure that is heavier, more highly protected,and considerably more expensive.

Calling a bike path an autobahn might sound grandiose, but what Munich’s plan proposes is certainly heftier and more ambitious than what it provides cyclists with at present. Currently, German cities’ bike lanes are typically single-file affairs that are marked out by special paint or paving but not necessarily protected from cars by barriers. Where possible, they are carved out from sidewalk rather than road space.