Here's some additional background info made up during Steve's TCS campaign.
As usual, this is not by any means the final version of this article, and any
comments are welcome.
NeuBerlin (circa 5640 AD)
NeuBerlin is the major city of the planet Neubayern. It was settled in
4517 AD, one year after the _Van der Lubbe_ reached Neubayern. NeuBerlin
has a population of approximately 2.2 billion people--considerably higher
than the population thirteen years ago, due to the concentration of the
planet's population after the Serendip War of 5631. The population of the
city is presently growing at a rate of 4% per year, in response to the
government's policy of encouraging population growth.
The city has a population density of 6500 people per square kilometer.
This density is a bit higher than Tokyo in the late 20th century. The city is
spread across 340,000 square kilometers--an area slightly smaller than
the area of California on Terra. Despite the similarity in population
density, residents of NeuBerlin actually have considerably larger homes
than residents of 20th century Tokyo. Buildings in NeuBerlin are very
tall, giving residents around four times the living space that Tokyo
residents had.
Aside from being generally larger, most buildings in NeuBerlin would not
have looked too out of place in a major Terran city of the 20th century.
In recent years, though, there has been a trend towards buildings that
incorporate gravitic technology. Some examples are buildings that lean
over at a 45 degree angle and buildings in the shape of the owning
company's logo.
NeuBerlin is laid out in a grid pattern. Streets are laid out at 500
meter intervals, and run either north/south or east/west. These streets
include pavement and pedestrian walkways at ground level, and flight
bands above the streets for grav vehicles. Larger streets, placed at 5
km intervals, mark district boundaries. These streets have broad medians
which are covered by decorative vegetation.
Vehicles travel on the right side of the street (or flight band) on
Neubayern. Speed limits are generally low for surface traffic, never
above 100 kph even on major streets. The lowest flight band begins 30
meters above the street, and is 10 meters thick--it has the same speed
limit as the street. There will often be additional flight bands higher
up allowing faster travel, and travel along paths other than those
followed by surface streets.
In addition to the surface streets (and their corresponding flight paths)
there are many highways that facilitate rapid travel around NeuBerlin.
These highways are often two-level structures, often suspended above the
surface streets and buildings by grav generators. There are also
high-speed, high-altitude flight paths known as "flyways" that serve as
highways for grav vehicles.
There are broad spaces between each flight band. These spaces allow
access by government traffic, provide the equivalent of "turn lanes" for
grav vehicles, and give space for special traffic such as flying
billboards.
Civilian grav traffic is restricted to following designated flight paths
for the most part. Civilians with sufficient cause (i.e. political pull)
can get permits that let them fly outside flight paths. Also, these
restrictions do not apply to police and emergency services traffic.
Small spacecraft are allowed to fly over NeuBerlin, but they must first
pass a safety certification (basically, the same certification required
for ordinary grav vehicles). Many spacecraft are denied certification
because they are too large to navigate the flight paths, which often pass
between buildings.
NeuBerlin has a very efficient public transportation system which
combines a subway network for short-distance travel with a gravitic
bullet train system for long distances. There is also an extensive bus
system and many taxis.
Despite the availability of public transportation, many residents of
NeuBerlin prefer to own private vehicles. The high standard of living
enjoyed by citizens of Neubayern allows almost anyone who wants one to
own a vehicle. Unfortunately, the large number of private vehicles has
led to a rather severe traffic problem, both on surface streets and in
the flight paths. To counter this, NeuBerlin has a sophisticated traffic
control system which attempts to keep traffic moving by adjusting the
upper and lower speed limits, placing restrictions on ground or air
vehicles allowed through a district, and issueing traffic advisories to
travellers.
Ground cars remain very popular on Neubayern, largely because they are (on
the average) so much cheaper than grav vehicles. They are also easier to
maneuver in enclosed areas such as tunnels and indoor parking structures.
On the down side, they are slower and can be trapped by gridlock.
Grav vehicles have the advantage of speed, but they are more expensive
than ground vehicles and less maneuverable in some situations. Also, the
laws regulating grav vehicles are more strict, since an accident
involving a grav vehicle can cause much more damage than one involving
only ground cars.
A third type of vehicle which is popular on Neubayern is the spinner--a
hybrid vehicle that can function as both a ground car and a grav vehicle.
Spinners have become especially popular since the government began
placing restrictions on numbers of ground or air vehicles that can pass
through a district, since spinners can simply land or take off to avoid
the restrictions. Spinners also combine the speed of grav vehicles with
the close-quarter maneuverability of ground vehicles. They are slightly
more expensive than grav vehicles, and remain the least numerous of the
three types.
Sizeable areas of NeuBerlin were destroyed in the Old Islands War and the
Serendip War. Most of these areas have been reclaimed and now hold new
districts accomodating the increased population. Portions of the remaining
destroyed zone have been occupied by criminal elements (who are not greatly
alarmed by government warnings that they might suffer leukemia in 90 years)
and by an assortment of bums, misfits, and people to stubborn to leave
their damaged homes.
In 5630, the government began making long-term plans to build a beanstalk
in NeuBerlin, and a 100 square kilometer area was set aside for the beanstalk
complex. Construction began on Neubayern's beanstalk on January 3, 5636,
and is expected to finish in 5646. Although the beanstalk has not yet
been officialy named, it is widely known as 'Spirals.' This name
originated as an inside joke among project engineers, and gradually
caught on among the general public.
The destruction of the two wars and the resultant social and
economic upheaval has led to skyrocketing crime rates in NeuBerlin,
although during the Imperial Occupation crime stayed fairly low--during
this period, social unrest was directed mostly at the occupying forces. The
NeuBerlin Metropolitan Police Force has been steadily growing since 5628,
and has begun purchasing high-tech equipment from other Alliance worlds
to equip various specialist units.
Neubayern's technology is advanced enough to allow mobile
(grav-propelled) buildings to be constructed. This has led to some
unusual phenomenon in recent years. First is the "drive-by" fast food
restaurant. These fast-food buildings cruise along the flyways selling
food to commuters, who place their orders via personal datalink and dock
with the restaurant briefly to pick up their food.
A even newer development (within the past sixten years) is the commuting
building. Some companies have begun providing housing for their employees
in a specific housing development. Every day, the company's building
commutes to the housing development from it's normal location (usually
near the financial district or spaceport). The NeuBerlin government has
just decided to begin discouraging this practice, as it has begun to
aggravate the city's already terrible traffic problem.
Neubayern's center of government is located in NeuBerlin, in a huge
building which resembles a metallic volcano. Government Center is a tower
three kilometers high. It is three kilometers at its base, and tapers to
a diameter of 1.5 kilometers at its top, which is flat. Government Center
contains all the workings of Neubayern's government, although everything
is duplicated in other, less conspicuous locations.
The Museum of Terran Culture and History is a major tourist attraction in
NeuBerlin. The Museum contains copies of all information that was brought
from Terra by the original colonists, and has assorted displays of what
life was like on Terra throughout history, up until the colonists left.
In addition, the grounds of the Museum hold many reproductions of famous
buildings on Terra. Some examples are the U.S. Capital, Wawel Castle, the
Tower Bridge, and the Imperial compound in Kyoto.
The _Prussia_ Monument is another popular location with tourists. The
_Prussia_ was a sublight warship of the Neubayern System Patrol during
the period when the Serendip Belt first developed jump drive. It played a
major role in defending Neubayern against the Serendip Belt's initial
onslaught, and was the only armed Neubayern vessel to survive the first
attacks. The _Prussia_ was the first flagship of the NFN, although it was
retired shortly thereafter and placed in a park adjacent to Government
Center as a monument to those who had died in the fighting.
Neubayern University is located on a bluff overlooking the bay at the
center of NeuBerlin. Founded in 4580, the University is the oldest and
largest institute of higher learning on Neubayern, and attracts students
from all over the Cluster. The University presently has around 200,000
students enrolled.
Kenneth G. Hagler
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