Bonn's Lord Mayor Katja Dörner, the mayors of Alfter and Bornheim, Rolf Schumacher and Christoph Becker, as well as representatives of politics and administration, the companies involved and the German Cyclists' Club (ADFC) came to the "Alfter - Alanus Hochschule" stop for the symbolic ground-breaking ceremony on Tuesday morning. There is already a cycle path there, but at the moment it is still an uneven, stony track. Cycling there is no fun, especially if you have to get to work in a hurry.

But that is about to change. From the centre of Bornheim, a well-developed cycle path is to be built along the city railway tracks into Bonn's city centre - even if it is not completely free of crossings. For example, cyclists will still have to cross the tram tracks in Alfter. The first considerations for the cycle commuter route were made a few years ago - as a result of the failure of a high-speed cycle route project in the region in 2013/14 (see info box).

Now comes the cycle commuter route. For Bonn's mayor Katja Dörner, the project is an "important element of the mobility turnaround". The route will be a good alternative for leisure and everyday traffic, she said. The project will now begin with a 1.7-kilometre section, which in turn will be divided into three subsections: from the district road 12n or the border between Alfter and Bonn to the street Im Benden (stop "Alfter - Alanus Hochschule"), from the stop to the Bornheim city border and from there to Brunnenallee in Bornheim. Those responsible estimate the costs for the three sections at around 1.1 million euros, with a large part of the sum being covered by subsidies from the state. Work on this section should be completed by the end of October.

And what about the rest of the cycle commuter route? Among other things, it is to have its own bridge over the K12n, which is being planned by the city of Bonn. According to Dörner, the city wants to be clearer about this construction project in the autumn. But further construction is also still open on Bornheim territory. For example, the city of Bornheim has the problem that it does not own land in the Bornheim centre, which the city says is essential. This land is privately owned. Sales negotiations have been unsuccessful for the city so far.

On Tuesday, Bornheim's mayor, Christoph Becker, became undiplomatic. He said it could not be that special interests prevented such a project. He appealed to the politicians to create other instruments to make land available. Andreas Erll, head of Bornheim's town planning office, said that the town had initiated a formal development plan procedure for the area. This means: in the last resort, the city could seek expropriation of the land.

In addition, the section in the centre of Bornheim is also a so-called protected landscape feature and cannot be converted into a four-metre-wide cycle path without further ado. In this respect, Becker advocated joint consideration with environmentalists. After all, he said, it is about a safer and better developed cycle path network. "If we create such opportunities, they will be used," Becker said.