Bicycle Priority Pilot Program Set To Begin; City Nature Tour App Makes Debut; Tram Crack Up Snarls Traffic; Barge Traffic Suspended Due To Rhein Swell

News For 21 June 2016   Starting next month, and running through September 2017, Basel will test a program to designate two main thoroughfares bicycle priority roads.  As part of its expanding mandate to reduce automobile usage throughout the city, the Basel Office of Mobility in conjunction with the Swiss Federal Roads Authority will designate St. Alban Rheinweg between Muhleberg and Farnsburgerstrasse and Mulhauserstasse between Kannenfeldplatz and Elsasserstrasse priority roads for bicycles.  What this means is that the speed limits on the roads will be reduced for motorized traffic, the number of roadside parking spaces will be reduced or eliminated, and that bicycles can occupy the full width of the roads without having to yield to autos.  The pilot program is meant to determine the feasibility of a city-wide adoption of the rules, and ultimately a feeder system for the Velo-Ring, a bicycle-only ring-road envisioned for Basel.   ********************   A new App available for smartphones called Basler StadtNatour (Basel City Nature) developed by the Basler City Nursery in conjunctions with Syngenta and the software studio Gbanga aims to enhance children's access to and understanding of nature.  The app will lead its users on a fun-filled, interactive tour of the city where they will discover the biodiversity of city life.  The tours and information on the app have been made available in both German and English.  A typical tour using the app begins near the Munster Cathedral and leads the user to the Animal Park in Lange Erlen.  Included in the software are fun mini games and quizzes meant to enhance the guided experience.  You can find the app in the iOS and Android App stores.

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Just when rush hour traffic in Basel's Aeschenplatz was already snarled by tram-track and road work going on for the last few weeks, last Friday saw the collision of two trams at the epicenter of the construction, halting traffic all-together.  The cause of the collision has not been determined, however initial reports suggest one of the trams leaving the Aescheplatz station rolled backwards after releasing its brakes and backed into another stationary tram which hadn't departed yet.  Fortunately no one was hurt.  One of the trams involved in the accident was derailed and required a salvage operation that kept the intersection closed until the evening.  Construction was also halted during the clearing of the accident, and was resumed over the weekend.

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You may have noticed that the Rhein River is empty of the normal barge traffic that plows up and down the waterway.  Apparently, the level of the river has crossed the critical threshold of 831 centimeters high-water, which immediately requires a halt of river traffic.  At such a height, the waters of the river are dangerous to navigate due to their speed and the reduced margins of safety around the bridges and dams.  The Federal Office For The Environment expects in its latest forecast to see the river water level decline over the coming days, and become passable and safe for river traffic again by the weekend.