– I think the municipality is very kind to us. It has been a dream of mine to have outdoor seating, so it is very nice that I got it this year. Isabel Abbedissen Dosthe says so. She is the operations manager for the two outdoor bars Bergen Brunsj and Vinbaren Vino Pinxtos in Kaigaten along Lille Lungegårdsvann in central Bergen. At its narrowest, there is only a little over a meter between the curb and the rope that delimits her outdoor dining area. A meter outside the pavement, the light rail thunders past every few minutes. – We have to make sure that there is a decent passage for everyone – young and old, the blind, or people with wheelchairs, prams, bicycles or running wheels, she says. – Traffic safety is the main task Kaigaten is a county road. The owner Vestland County dislikes Bergen Municipality’s practice. – Traffic safety for pedestrians and other road users is the main task of a pavement. It is unfortunate that the municipality grants a dispensation from the requirement for free pavement width. That’s what Mats Korneliussen, Vestland County Council’s manager for the administrative area of Bergen, says. When the summer heat is now about to take hold of the western capital, the catering establishments are allowed to spread more on the pavements in the center than what the municipality’s own rules actually allow. Namely, the regulations only allow outdoor dining up to one meter wide along the facade, and only if the rest of the pavement is at least three meters wide. But when the corona ravaged the economy of the nightlife industry and the social life of Norwegians, Bergen municipality decided in 2020 to give more space to let people “enjoy the outdoors”. City development councilor Ingrid Nergaard Fjeldstad (V) admits that cycling on narrow pavements is not ideal, but thinks it is fine to give outdoor seating more space than the rules require. Photo: Leif Rune Løland / news “Very unfortunate” For the fourth year in a row, the municipality has now granted dispensations for larger outdoor seating areas and free pavement widths of less than three metres. Vestland County protests in a letter to the municipality: “We believe that this provides a practice which means that it will always be possible to find a basis for continuing to grant a general dispensation from the requirement. This is very unfortunate.” The background is that the county is responsible for the buses and light rail, and for the safety of the parking lots and pavements along the county roads in central Bergen. Municipal director Ann Iren Fagerbakke in Bergen has argued that “larger serving areas can be permitted after a concrete assessment provided that all higher-level requirements are met”. “Vestland County Council cannot see that the municipality’s interpretation is correct,” Korneliussen writes in the letter. He points out that Bergen’s own regulations only allow for extended serving areas if the pavement width requirement is still met (see fact box). – If it is too narrow, people can start to move out into the carriageway. It can also be more difficult for people with wheelchairs, walkers or prams. We also have parking spaces where many people are standing. Then the area must be large enough, he says. Along the bus stops at Torget in Bergen, gentle traffic and the outdoor restaurants fight for space. Photo: Leif Rune Løland / news Will remove the 3-metre rule The county says this is the last summer they will accept the dispensation practice in Bergen. – When Vestland county does not want to participate in a new round of dispensations like this, the city council will make a permanent rule change, says urban development councilor Ingrid Nergaard Fjeldstad from Venstre. Outside the outdoor dining areas in Kaigaten, she believes there is enough space for pedestrians. But then suddenly there is a bit of a “traffic jam” with both pedestrians and several cyclists in both directions on the pavement. – With situations like this, it is a challenge. I admit that it is not quite ideal for cycling here. The city council now wants to formalize a liberalization of the area rules for outdoor dining. – We want to remove the three-metre requirement as the main rule and absolute limit. But there may be areas where we still have to stick to the three-metre limit, because it is too crowded and dangerous, says Fjeldstad. After four years of dispensation practice, the city council in Bergen would now rather remove the rule of at least three meters free width on the pavement in the city centre. Photo: Leif Rune Løland / news – Nice in the sun The aim is to make it more predictable for businesses where they can have outdoor seating and a liquor license. – We agree with the county council that it is a bad solution to give annual dispensations, says the urban development council. – The city council likes to call Bergen the “walking city”. Why do they make the pavements narrower and less safe? – It is not a given that there is a conflict as long as there is room to pass. The city council has just decided that outdoor seating must be everywhere in this city. It’s nice that when the sun first comes out in this city, it’s possible to go out.
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Dispute over the outdoor seating makes the pavement too narrow – news Vestland
