Now it's final! The ruling of the Bavarian Administrative Court of 3 July on the cycling ban in the "Bannwald" forest near Ottobeuren is legally binding. Even narrower paths are not unsuitable for cycling from the outset and, according to the court, may not be closed as a matter of principle. The The complete judgement of the Bavarian Administrative Court can be found here read more.
The most important facts about the judgement of the Bavarian Administrative Court:
The Bavarian Administrative Court (BayVGH) has cancelled a ban on cycling in the so-called "Bannwald" forest in the market town of Ottobeuren (district of Unterallgäu). The BayVGH amended a previous ruling by the Augsburg Administrative Court on 1 April 2014, which had confirmed the cycling ban, accordingly. The market town of Ottobeuren had issued a traffic order in January 2014 banning cycling on the paths in the "Bannwald" forest to protect pedestrians. In the opinion of the BayVGH, this ban is not justified. According to the provisions of the Road Traffic Act, such a ban requires a dangerous situation that is attributable to special local conditions and significantly exceeds the general risk of an impairment of relevant legal interests. However, a dangerous situation in the "Bannwald", which due to the special local conditions considerably exceeds the general risk of impairment of recreational pedestrians by cyclists, could not be assumed.
Cycling in the great outdoors is protected by the Bavarian constitution as long as it is used for recreation and not for commercial or purely sporting purposes and as long as cyclists treat nature and the landscape with care. This applies in any case to the use of bicycles without an electric motor.
Even narrower paths are not unsuitable for cycling from the outset, nor is there always an increased risk of danger for pedestrians on them. At the narrower sections of the road inspected by the court during an on-site visit, the visibility for cyclists was still sufficient for them to be able to react to pedestrians in good time if they drove carefully. It could not be assumed from the outset that cyclists generally did not behave in a roadworthy manner.
However, the Ottobeuren market remains free to close individual paths if necessary, should it become apparent that there is an increased risk here. It could also post notices about the obligation to show consideration for pedestrians or use clearly visible barriers to make access to certain sections of the path more difficult and prevent cyclists from travelling at higher speeds.
BIKE reported on this in issue 9/2015:
Court rules in favour of bikers This has never happened before. For the first time, the Bavarian Administrative Court has clarified that mountain bikers also have a fundamental right to enjoy nature under constitutional law. However, this fundamental right only exists in Bavaria. The judgement was based on the case of Markt Ottobeuren. The so-called Bannwald forest had been closed there for decades in order to keep it free for hikers and pedestrians. A biker didn't like this at all. He took legal action against the prohibition signs and was proved right. Experts consider this judgement to be groundbreaking, and not just in Bavaria. Because a judgement from such a high court carries weight and can also help bikers in other federal states in discussions about trail closures. For example, prohibition signs (white sign, red border) can be called into question with this judgement. A recent report from the DIMB about a new draft law in NRW caused a furore. It states that biking in protected areas is only legal where it is expressly permitted. A decision on this draft law is to be made in the autumn. Experts believe that the judgement of the Bavarian Administrative Court can also be helpful in this discussion.
Helmut Klawitter from the DIMB commented on the judgement:
"The judgement carries weight because it comes from the Bavarian Supreme Administrative Court. It can therefore also help bikers beyond the borders of Bavaria."
