Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal

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Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
Hendrik Klein / Markischer Kreis

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal

8th pictures

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
Police in the Markischer Kreis

1/8
The police checked motorcyclists who wanted to use the last opportunity to drive the popular mountain route before the closure.

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
Hendrik Klein / Markischer Kreis

2/8
After this renovation there was only one accident, which speaks for the effect.

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
Hendrik Klein / Markischer Kreis

3/8
The reason for the route closure is 14 motorcycle accidents in the last year, 13 of which in the first half of the year, before the time-reducing central guardrails were installed with beacons.

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
BVDM / Michaela Engelmeier

4/8
Probably because of this action, many more motorcyclists came to the demo than expected. The organizers counted on 500 bikers, in the end it was 1,800!

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
BVDM / Michaela Engelmeier

5/8
On Sunday, April 8th, 2018, the BVDM hosted the “Bergisch tempering” to Lindlar.

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
BVDM / Michaela Engelmeier

6/8
The BVDM called for stronger individual controls at the rally instead of general road closures.

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
BVDM / Michaela Engelmeier

7/8
In addition to the biker breakfast and church service, a protest drive against the Nordhelle route being closed was on the program.

Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal
BVDM

8/8
The route has been closed to motorcyclists since March 29th. However, April 1st was communicated. Since this fell on a Sunday this year, the route closure was brought forward at short notice.

counselor

traffic & business

Nordhelle route closure was illegal

Nordhelle remains open
Track closure was illegal

In the Markisches Kreis, the district administration blocked the L 707 route for motorcyclists in 2018. Now it is clear: the line closure on the Nordhelle (L 707) between Herscheid and Meinerzhagen was illegal.

Uli Baumann, Michael Schumann, Dina Dervisevic

07.06.2019

Update from June 2019:

The line closure on the Nordhelle (L 707) between Herscheid and Meinerzhagen was illegal. This has now been decided by the Higher Administrative Court for North Rhine-Westphalia (June 2019) and thus given the right to a motorcyclist who had sued the ban imposed in 2018. The general ban on motorcycles from April to September was then lifted again. But the Markische Kreis had lodged a complaint against the repeal. This has now been finally rejected by the current decision.

In its reasoning for the judgment, the court states that the blocking of motorcycles in general and for such an undefined period of time was disproportionate. The argument that the noise nuisance of residents and those seeking relaxation from motorcyclists was no longer reasonable and was not proven by measurements and was therefore too unspecific.

The verdict is a success for the Federal Association of Motorcyclists, BVDM, which stood behind the motorcyclist who made the complaint. The issue of the line closure on the Nordhelle is probably not completely off the table. Indirectly, the judgment of the traffic authority recommends closing the route on weekends and public holidays and at certain times such as late in the afternoon.

Message from May 2018:

On May 29, 2018, the administrative court in Arnsberg granted the urgent application of the Federal Association of Motorcyclists: The route closure on the Nordhelle (L707) must be lifted. The BVDM reports in its press release: “The court has granted the urgent application by Michael Wilczynski, the route closure officer of the Federal Association of Motorcyclists, and has ordered that the prohibition signs for motorcycles must be removed again. According to the court, the order issued by the district of Ludenscheid is obviously illegal. “

The message also says:

The BVDM sees its legal opinion confirmed by the court ruling that road closures for motorcycles are generally illegal. Around 1,800 motorcyclists responded to the BVDM’s call to demonstrate against the closure of the Nordhelle (L 707) at Bergischer An Lassen in April, thus sending a clear signal that they are unwilling to accept such behavior from politics and administration. The BVDM has expressly turned against the speeders and noise makers among motorcyclists and urged them to abide by the rules and drive sensibly.

Serious accident after the blockade was lifted

An accident that occurred on the first weekend after the road closure was lifted is likely to provide further discussion. A 21-year-old motorcyclist fell on Sunday afternoon (June 3, 2018) and slipped onto the oncoming lane. An oncoming motorcyclist could no longer evade and ran over the young man. He had to be taken to hospital by helicopter with life-threatening injuries.

Criminal complaint for illegal racing

As local media report, a motorcyclist was caught on the L707 at the beginning of June 2019, who was traveling between Herscheid and Meinerzhagen at 140 km / h instead of the permitted 50 – several times. The fast driver was caught by a police video motorcycle. The motorcyclist did not show any understanding. The motorcycle was confiscated and the driver’s license confiscated. A criminal complaint was filed against the driver for a prohibited road race under Section 315 d of the Criminal Code. In an illegal race, the driver faces a prison sentence of up to two years or a fine.

Our report on the protest drive from April 2018:

Instead of the expected 500, around 1,800 motorcyclists demonstrated against the blocking of the L 707 over the Nordhelle on Sunday (April 8, 2018). The starting point was the event “Bergisches An Lassen” with a biker breakfast and church service in Lindlar. From there it went via the L707 to Nordhelle in Herrscheid, where the final rally took place. In a fiery speech, Michael Wilczynski, spokesman for the BVDM (Federal Association of Motorcyclists), condemned road closures in general as “discriminatory church tower thinking that only pushes the problems onto other streets.” But motorcyclists are also responsible, “who think themselves and others through their own Having to endanger driving style, ”said Michael Wilczynski.

The BVDM is therefore calling on the police to “exercise more control in order to catch the black sheep. But the police were saved to death. ”BVDM spokesman Wilczynski called the checks before the publicly announced blocking date (see message below)“ annoying and very questionable. ”

BVDM lawyer already engaged

The actual blocking itself is not proportionate. As a result of the closure, motorcyclists would now have to make a detour of 23 kilometers for four kilometers if they want to cross the Nordhelle to Valbert and follow the signs. Wilczynski described the argument of the increased number of accidents as rubbish. Because the closure would be justified with 14 motorcycle accidents in the last year. “13 accidents happened in the first half of the year.” Then the road construction authorities installed the central guardrails with beacons to reduce the time. And then there was exactly one accident in the second half of the year. Apparently, those responsible are not concerned with calculating correctly. The blocking is about creating facts, said the association spokesman. Therefore, the BVDM has already hired a lawyer to take legal action against the blocking.

The motorcycle demo did not cross the route, which has been closed since March 29, 2018. Apparently the police and the local politicians responsible for the lock should not be provoked. The BVDM, which also organizes the elephant meeting in the Bavarian Forest, has already been successful several times legally against road closures in Germany.

Checks before the announced blocking date

The route closure for motorcyclists should apply between the access to the Robert-Kolb-Turm and the confluence with the L 696 near Herscheid-Reblin in the period from April 1 to the end of October. The reasons given for the route closure are varied: increasing numbers of accidents, increasing noise pollution for residents and the location of the route in the Sauerland-Rothaargebirge nature reserve.

Because the authorities were sloppy and motorcyclists had to pay for it, the route closure caused another dispute. For months, the Markischer Kreis has been communicating that the popular L 707 motorcycle route on the Nordhelle will be closed to two-wheelers from 2018 “from April to October” – both to the local press of the Markisches Kreis and to MOTORRAD.

Early blocking not communicated

BMW K 1300 driver Thomas M. from Bochum had read it in MOTORRAD and wanted to use the sunny Saturday, March 31, for one last tour there. “What irritated me”, he later emailed the editorial team, “was that the blocking signs had already been put up.” But he trusted the information that finally came from the responsible authorities. But apparently nobody there had looked at the calendar in time and found that April 1, 2018 fell on a Sunday. That is why, the Meinerzhagener Zeitung reported afterwards, the district had ordered the route to be closed as early as March 29 and to have signs put up.


Closure of the Nordhelle route was illegal


Police in the Markischer Kreis

At least 27 motorcyclists were given a warning.

The information about the early blocking went to the police, but no longer to the press. Result: In addition to MOTORRAD reader Thomas M., on Good Friday and Easter Saturday, March 30 and 31, 2018, at least 27 other motorcyclists felt the “consistent repressive persecution of disregard for the existing (motorcycle) ban” (original sound press release Police Markischer Kreis). Warning fee due: 20 euros.

MOTORRAD reader Thomas M. took it with gallows humor: “Maybe it was an early April Fool’s joke and the contribution will be booked back.” Rather unlikely. As the police also announced, they fished the most blatant tempo offender with 142 instead of the permitted 60 km / h from the northern light during the control. It was a driver.

Motorbike demonstration parade against road closures

The Federal Association of Motorcyclists in Germany BVDM is now planning a demo ride to counter the closure of the L 707 via the Nordhelle. It will take place on Sunday, April 8, 2018 and will start at around 12.30 p.m. after the annual “starting” with the BVDM service in Lindlar (North Rhine-Westphalia). From there, the motorcycle demo parade with several hundred motorcycles will lead directly to the route south of Ludenscheid, which will be closed to motorcycles from April 1, 2018. A rally should take place directly on the route (information: bvdm.de).

All measures so far ineffective

All previous attempts to make the road unattractive as a racetrack for motorcyclists from abroad have failed. The district administration had blocked a parking lot, had rumble strips built into the roadway, put up no stopping signs and finally placed middle thresholds in the “applause curve”. Even additional police operations, increased speed controls and information events on site could not have deterred the undisciplined motorcyclists.

The Nordhelle route around the highest mountain of the same name in the Ebbegebirge and Markisches Kreis is a popular destination for bikers from Soest, Gummersbach, Hamm, Essen, Unna and other cities in the Ruhr area.

The representatives of the Federal Association of Motorcyclists and the Biker Union have expressed understanding for the angry residents. They referred to the dB limit values ​​permitted for motorcycles, but spoke out in favor of persecuting the “black sheep” among two-wheelers.

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