The municipal authorities are working on introducing a ban on riding bicycles and scooters into the Market Square. Such bans are to apply on all roads leading to the Market Square. The goal? Improving pedestrian safety.
In practice, this means that people travelling by bicycle or scooter will have to dismount and walk their vehicle across the Market Square.
The city wants to reduce the risk of collisions with pedestrians in this way. As Agnieszka Gergont, spokesperson for the Bolesławiec municipal authorities, pointed out, this problem was particularly visible in the summer, when more people were present in the city centre.
When will the new signs appear?
The city says that it will conduct an information campaign before introducing the new rules. Signs are to appear on roads leading to the Market Square so that bicycle and scooter users can learn about the planned restrictions in advance.
Why will the restrictions cover only the Market Square?
The planned solution is also related to legal restrictions encountered by the local government during earlier attempts to introduce broader bans concerning scooters.
During the September session of the Bolesławiec City Council, Deputy Mayor Robert Rzepnicki reported that the municipal authorities had previously prepared an order regulating public order, which was intended to identify places that scooters would not be allowed to enter. Restrictions concerning, among other things, the promenades, parks and areas along the Bóbr River were considered.
The city nevertheless asked the provincial governor’s legal supervision authority to assess the prepared regulations. Concerns arose about the possibility of introducing such restrictions across a wider area of the city.
Agnieszka Gergont explained that in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, the legal supervision authority had annulled resolutions concerning similar bans covering larger areas of cities or selected districts. Therefore, the current work of the Bolesławiec office is focused exclusively on the Market Square.
The legal status of this place is significant: the Market Square is an internal road, not a public road.
Will the ban on riding bicycles and scooters in the Market Square improve pedestrian safety? We invite you to discuss it in the comments.