Rostock: Citizen Participation for new cycle highway

On the 4th of April, 2013, a public participation workshop was held in the civil engineering department, in which the current state of the extant traffic links for cyclists between the northwest of Rostock and the city center was  discussed. The long-term goal is to create a cycle highway to make cycling more comfortable and faster.
The event was attended by citizens from neighbouring districts, everyday cyclists, representatives from the local councils as well as representatives from civil engineering, urban planning and the office for the Environment.

The event began with a bicycle tour along the possible routes. Pros and cons of the different routes were discussed, possible challenges were defined, ideas and visions were formulated. In mixed groups participants got together in order to take a closer look at specific options.

In a final session, results were presented and discussed. Many participants expressed their satisfaction about the event. Particularly, they appreciated the opportunity to fruitfully exchange ideas with people from different backgrounds and, more generally, were happy about being involved in the planning process.
The event was conducted by the local association Beteiligungswerk e.V..