Graffiti Bridge - Part II; Bike-Safe Tram Track Test; Drought Conditions Threaten Trees and Safety

News For 18 August 2020

The bare concrete walls of the Black Forest  Bridge spanning the Rhein river between the Wettsteinbridge and the dam have been receiving a facelift over the last few weeks.  The walls had been a favorite tagging target of graffiti vandals and the city decided to beat them at their own game.  Sponsors and private donors contributed financial support and materials to the selected artists.  The effort has rankled the greater graffiti community who responded by defacing completed works with "tags" of their own.  In an escalation of what has now come to be known as the "graffiti wars", an anonymous letter confessing the vandalism has appeared on a website representing the greater graffiti artist community of Basel.  In it, the authors claim that graffiti is meant to be a free form of art and that the city's response via the latest art effort represents an effort to control and maintain the illusion of security.  The city in turn has responded that the artists selected for the project were drawn from the same community which is trying to destroy the art.

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Basel intends to be the first city in Europe to test a system that will protect bicyclists against accidents with tram tracks.  The system being tested provides a rubberized filling for the tram track grooves which is sturdy enough to keep bicyclists tires from getting trapped, but flexible enough to freely allow tram wheels to pass unimpeded.  The BVB has been testing the new tracks at its facility in Füllinsdorf for the last year. Plans for the first installation of live, infilled tracks is scheduled for late 2021 starting at the Bruderholzstrasse tram stop in the direction of Bruderholz on the #16 tram line.

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The managers of Basel's forest districts have a warning for those visiting the trails in the woods: Be aware of falling branches.  Apparently, drought conditions have led to dangerous conditions where large falling branches threaten the safety of passers-by.  Trees, and especially the prolific number of Beech trees (according to the forestry management service) are especially vulnerable to drought damage.  The trees, responding to the dry conditions, tend to maintain moisture closer to its roots and trunk, leaving branches to die and fall.  Hikers are advised to be aware of damaged trees and especially to not linger under them.