The focus of the evening was on cycling and the common conclusion was: bikes should be a much bigger part of the cityscape! Cycling is an essential part of the mobility transition - all participants at the Environment Day event agreed on this.

At the closing event of the klimafit series, the bicycle was not only actually in the middle of the room, but also the focus of the presentations. Prof. Jana Kühl from Ostfalia shed light on the dependence of our bicycle use on fundamental social acceptance: "Our values are in the process of changing. The car is becoming less important, especially in its perception as a symbol of prosperity that dominates traffic and transport planning." Cycling as an ecologically responsible and healthy means of transportation and thus its consideration in transport planning and implementation is gaining in importance. But: "Cultural change is slow and, in view of climate change, we don't have that kind of time," says Prof. Kühl. "The ease of driving competes with the safety of cycling. A lot has to change here in order to significantly increase the share of cycling from the current 11 percent in Salzgitter. This requires clever negotiations," continued Prof. Kühl.

She presented numerous successful examples of cycle path design. Michael Tacke, Head of Construction for the City of Salzgitter, was able to pick up on this. The current cycle path concept is from 2014 and a revision is planned for 2025. Some things have already been achieved or are in the concrete planning or implementation stage. He explained the cycle lanes marked in red at the Berliner Straße/ Neißestraße junction. All those involved still need to get used to this. However, the closure of the gap between Salder and Heerte, which is planned to start construction in 2025, is also about to be realized. The comments on the regional high-speed cycle connection to Braunschweig were met with great interest. "The currently favored y-route will involve a special approach in Thiede and also mean a reduction in driving speed," said Tacke. "This also shows the fundamental importance of a cross-regional cycling strategy. Linking different modes of transport is also essential," he added.

Richard Köhler from ADFC Salzgitter then addressed critical points in Salzgitter. Unsuitable hard shoulders on the road were one of them in particular. The course participants criticized the lack of consideration shown by motorists, the need for greater commitment from the police to enforce the rules, difficulties in using field paths after they have been resurfaced with large stones, but also the generally slow implementation of cycle path planning and the frequent lack of focus on children and families on bikes. Course leader Petra Wassmann emphasized that the city's reporting app is a good way of pointing out deficiencies. The planned citizen dialogs and, in particular, the city cycling scheme, which is already underway, were also promoted. After all, bikes should be a more prominent feature of the cityscape!

The VHS Salzgitter climate series "Climate change on our doorstep" consisted of six face-to-face and online events on the topics of climate change and local impacts as well as opportunities for regional climate protection.