Intelligent urban planning

The Bavarian capital has become one of the world’s most desirable cities to live in. With its many cultural attractions and excellent infrastructure, it regularly places near the top of global liveability polls and also rates highly for business investment and development prospects.

The urban regeneration spurred by the staging of the Olympic Games in 1972 helped make Munich what it is today. Redevelopment was also one of several factors that enabled it to switch to a service-based economy.

Plans were already in place for the city’s development before it had even bid for the Games of the XX Olympiad. The improvements set out in the Town Development Plan of 1963 would likely have occurred without the Olympic Games, but over a much longer period. The awarding of the Games provided the financial support and sense of urgency that accelerated Munich’s “great leap forward”, which touched on virtually every aspect of urban life, including culture, the local economy, transport, aesthetics, and recreational opportunities for residents.

Furthermore, Munich’s development in the years leading up to the Games was characterised by the idea of different urban functions operating harmoniously together and in proximity with each other. This informed the creation of pedestrianised areas and green public spaces between buildings and the introduction of fresh ideas and innovative strategies, such as the Olympic Stadium’s distinctive tented roof and the separating of pedestrian and motorised traffic in the Olympic Village.  

The venues built for the Olympic Games attracted events and championships after 1972 and have been widely used by the city’s residents. Like many other German towns at the time, Munich lacked a sufficient number of sports facilities for its inhabitants, as population growth outpaced the building of sports infrastructure. The Olympic Park, which continues to attract recreational athletes in their thousands, helped address this problem in the long term and injected new life into the city’s north.

The staging of the Games led to significant improvements to Munich’s road and public transport networks and reduced traffic congestion. The city’s S-Bahn suburban rail system, with its 12 separate lines and 134 stops, was completed. Stretching fully 35 kilometres from Munich’s historic centre, it made travelling into the city from outside far easier. Together with the completion of the city’s first two subway lines, including the link between Marienplatz and the Olympic venues four kilometres away, the S-Bahn helped cut individual car use by 40 per cent after the Games. The one drawback with the S-Bahn was its monocentric orientation, which increased commuter traffic between the city centre and the surrounding region, at odds with the vision of a city in which people should both work and live.

The construction of three new expressways and two ring roads – the Altstadtring and the Mittlerer Ring - also helped ease congestion.

Further improvements came with the provision of underground car parking, the development of a new shopping centre with hotels, and the building of three new schools for around 5,000 students. Meanwhile, Munich’s old town was restored and pedestrianised, greatly enhancing the appeal of this part of town.

The creation of modern new housing was another aim of Munich’s pre-Games development. Central to this was the Olympic Village, which added 1,000 low-cost housing units, around 5,000 apartments and 1,800 student rooms to the city’s housing stock after the Games were over. Offering high-density housing amid public green spaces – in line with the planners’ vision – the Olympic Village remains very popular with Munich residents today.

One downside of the city’s urban regeneration was an increase in the cost of housing. Munich’s desirability has also made it one of the most expensive cities in Germany.