After residents of the southwestern city of Eppelheim
complained teenagers always sat on the top of benches, rather than on the seat
itself which they dirtied with their shoes, Mayor Dieter Moerlein came up with
the idea of putting the seat on top.
The first of Moerlein’s benches was installed last week and
he is already fielding calls from interested cities in Germany, he told Reuters
on Tuesday.
“The reception has been overwhelming,” Moerlein said.
“Whoever wants to build one, be my guest.”
The mayor of 17 years calls them “no-interest” benches
because teens have “no interest in following etiquette. They all sit on the new
benches like sparrows on a branch,” he said.
In a country reputed for its orderliness, putting your shoes
on a public seat often earns a quick rebuke from passersby.
In one extreme case, a 69-year-old pensioner wounded an
18-year-old man with a knife on Sunday after the teen would not take his feet
off of a seat on a train.
But in Eppelheim the bench has been a sufficient solution
for all parties in a city best known for strudel and global food ingredient
maker Rudolf Wild GmbH.
“Kids are happy because there are no rules against sitting
on the back of benches,” the mayor said. “Others are happy because they now
have a clean place to sit.”
