The Pontstrasse runs north from the old town through the university district and is the main artery of Aachen's student life. The street is lined with bars, cheap restaurants, a few good bookshops, and the city's quirkier independent shops. RWTH Aachen University brings 45,000 students into a city of 250,000 — the ratio of students to everyone else is among the highest in Germany — and the Pontstrasse is where they spend evenings.
The street has a deliberately unpretentious character: long-running Irish pubs and beer gardens mix with student pizza places and the occasional proper restaurant. It is busiest on Thursday evenings, which is the traditional student night out. In summer the pavement cafes spread onto the wide pedestrian section.