Cornelia Brelowski: Live Cycles

Let’s talk about inner city transport. Berlin now has probably the cheapest monthly flat rate in Europe, yet a multitude of residents and visitors still prefer the fresh air adventure and ride bicycles and scooters to their hearts’ delight.

A little warning upfront: Berlin streets can be crazy and present a mix of known and unknown rules you will only decode over time. And don’t take this the wrong way, but when I spot one of those slow, chatty, and at times unexpectedly bulging cycling tourist groups on my daily travels, I usually try to surpass them at the first traffic light or circumvent them in a wide, generous arc. (Believe me, it is safer for all parties involved.)

However, I would still recommend cycling to any Berlin visitor, be it solo or en group, as it will give you the true Berliner’s perspective on – yes, slightly unpredictable, authentic street life. In any event, it is better than slumbering away on one of the sightseeing buses – or seeing nothing at all because you heard the subway is the quickest way to get anywhere. (It is, but you miss out on a lot of local colour.)

Green transport nowadays rocks European cities – Paris no doubt being the strongest runner-up. Even formerly smoke-struck London has caught up by installing so many ‘cycleways’ and the highest congestion charge ever that the impact initially enraged both commuters and supply drivers to the point of rebellion. And Berlin? Well, for the fact that everyone and their auntie uses bicycles, the city is still more than a little behind with its green policies.

Cycling the Wall Path. Photo: Morgana Bartolomei / Unsplash

It is hard to admit, but Paris has long surpassed us as a cycling-friendly city. The bumped-y-bump Berlin mix of cobblestone streets (where everyone risks charges by taking the pavement instead), deadly tram lines (best to be crossed at a 90-degree angle) and old narrow bike paths taken over by tree roots means that the situation is colourful at best and is only improving in good old German manner: Slowly. The cycling lobby however is growing, and so is the number of new cycling paths and bicycle roads. I for one have used that mode of transport for more than three decades.

Starting with the cold November rains though, some might want to take advantage of the new monthly ticket, which comes at a very democratic price of € 29 (subscribers only). The Berlin ticket includes all inner-city public transport, starting with subway and overground (‘S-Bahn’), via buses through to the well-kept tram lines, probably the most comfortable way of gently zooming through the city. For a short visit, the four-trip ticket is the best saving option.

Having said that, I still spot the jolly, chatty bulbous cycling tourist groups in the fall months, led and followed by their patient guides in traffic vests – with everyone clad in those transparent, tent-like raincoats. Despite the mild annoyance they might prove to a cycling resident in haste, they always seem to have the best of times, no matter the weather.

Photo: Coline Mattée