First bus acceleration measure implemented in Waldstraße

In order to improve bus services and optimize journey times for passengers, Offenbach buses are to move more quickly in future. As a first measure to speed up buses, the traffic lights at the "Bahnüberführung Waldstraße" stop in the direction of the city center have been adjusted. Further measures will be implemented in the coming weeks. The bus acceleration is an accompanying measure as part of the concept to comply with the cost cap for local public transport, which the city councillors approved in 2022.

Mayor and Head of Mobility Sabine Groß: "With bus acceleration, we want to increase the punctuality of buses and make bus travel more attractive for passengers by keeping stops at traffic lights as short as possible. The switch to sustainable means of transportation can only succeed if citizens can use them easily, quickly and safely."

The concept for complying with the cost cap for public transport includes not only the adjustment of the transport services and the reorganization of Stadtwerke's Geschäftsfeld Mobilität in summer 2022, but also accompanying measures to help make public transport more attractive and convenient for passengers. In order to develop suitable measures in this area, a working group has been set up comprising members of Stadtwerke Offenbach's Geschäftsfeld Mobilität and departments of the City of Offenbach. One of the first measures is to speed up bus services.

At the "Waldstraße railroad overpass" stop, the bus signal used to change back to red after a short green phase as soon as private traffic turned green. Now the traffic lights have been adjusted so that the signal for buses remains green for longer, even when the green phase for private traffic begins. "This means that buses on routes 101, 105 and 108 can get to the bus stop much faster. That's a good first step," explains Anja Georgi, Managing Director of Stadtwerke's mobility companies.

In the coming weeks, public transport will also be speeded up on a test route in Waldstraße - between Stadthalle and Marktplatz. This will also be achieved through appropriate traffic light and traffic control. The traffic lights on this section were also modernized as part of the clean air plan. "The Office for Mobility and the Geschäftsfeld Mobilität are working hand in hand on this," says Ivonne Gerdts, Head of the Office for Mobility. The necessary adjustments were already taken into account when the systems were digitized. "We are currently 'feeding' the system with data so that the buses can request these controls. In October, we will then test the bus acceleration on Waldstraße in live operation," adds Anja Georgi.