“I can’t see a cathedral here”.
New chief of the Düsseldorf traffic police from Cologne
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“I just can’t see a cathedral here”
Dusseldorf Frank Stötzel is a true native of Cologne. Since the beginning of June he has headed the traffic department of the Düsseldorf police and is the head of 600 free. What he sees as the central themes of his work and whether he has already drunk an Alt beer.
Frank Stötzel is a true Cologne resident and policeman through and through. “I went to the police to ride a motorcycle 37 years ago. And that worked out.” The 55-year-old has been the new head of the Düsseldorf police traffic department since the beginning of June. “This closes the circle,” says Stötzel on Wednesday at a press conference at the police headquarters.
For five years he led the special units in the cathedral city. And why now Dusseldorf? “Well, a chief post in a traffic department doesn’t become vacant that often, so I grabbed it.” His new boss, Düsseldorf’s police chief Norbert Wesseler, is enthusiastic about the new appointment: “I’m sure that we will benefit from his experience and enthusiasm .”
Stötzel sees four central themes for his work. In the first place he mentions the protection of vulnerable road users. There he emphasizes children and seniors in particular. “In the case of accidents involving children, we have already reached the pre-corona level again,” he says. Here he is increasingly focusing on traffic education, such as the bicycle pass.
“It’s much stronger in seniors,” says Stötzel. People have to die here to reach you at all and to do a lot of persuading to wear a helmet on e-bikes, for example. “The number of injuries is very high.”
Another field is cycling in general. The number of accidents here is at its highest in five years. The good weather in spring also contributed to this this year. “People were then on their bikes much earlier than usual.”
Stötzel also monitors exploding accident figures for e-scooters. You often see several people on a scooter, and drivers are often under the influence of alcohol. This needs to be clarified and controlled more.
The tuning and posing scene is another topic. “This is clearer here in Düsseldorf than in Cologne, for example,” says Stötzel. He was able to take part in the control at Corneliusplatz in early June. “It was frightening how the cars were manipulated.” He has nothing against beautiful cars and nothing against tuning. All of this should only be within the limits of what is permitted.
When asked where one of the main differences between Düsseldorf and Cologne lies, he says: “I simply can’t see a cathedral here. Just a TV tower like that.” By the way, he hasn’t drunk an Alt beer yet. Actually, he doesn’t like beer at all, neither Kölsch nor any other kind. “But in the long run I probably won’t be able to avoid a glass of Alt.”