247 is in the planning process. The Erfurt-Weimar Airport is situated 20 kilometres east of Gotha and in use for holiday flights to southern European tourist destinations. The next major airport is Frankfurt Airport, approximately to the south-west. Biking is becoming more and more popular since the construction of quality cycle tracks began in the 1990s. For tourists there is the long-distance Radweg Thüringer Städtekette (Thuringian city string trail). It connects points of touristic interest along the medieval Via Regia from Eisenach via Gotha, Erfurt, Weimar and Jena to Altenburg. The public transport system consists of a tram network with three lines, connecting the city centre with the main station in the south-east, the east station in the north-east and the hospital in Sundhausen district in the south-west. A peculiarity is the long (established in 1929), one of Germany's last traditional interurban tramway lines, to Bad Tabarz, Waltershausen and Friedrichroda. It is used both for everyday traffic and by tourists. Buses serve urban quarters and nearby villages lacking a tram or rail connection. Education and research There are three state-run Gymnasiums in Gotha, including the famous Ernestine Gymnasium. In addition, the Thüringer Fachhochschule für öffentliche Verwaltung (school of public administration) with 500 students has its seat in Gotha, as has the school of Thuringia's ministry of finance and the school of Thuringia's geodesy authority. Research with focus on early modern history is carried out by the Forschungsbibliothek Gotha, the state archive and the "Friedenstein Foundation", which also runs the museums at Friedenstein Castle. Politics Mayor and city council The most recent mayoral election was held on 15 April 2018, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2| Candidate ! Party ! Votes ! % |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Knut Kreuch | align=left| Social Democratic Party | 9,910 | 61.1 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Jens Wehner | align=left| Christian Democratic Union | 3,210 | 19.8 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Birger Gröning | align=left| Alternative for Germany | 2,015 | 12.4 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Joachim Thier-Ueltzen | align=left| Independent | 1,088 | 6.7 |- ! colspan=3| Valid votes ! 16,223 ! 99.2 |- ! colspan=3| Invalid votes ! 137 ! 0.8 |- ! colspan=3| Total ! 16,360 ! 100.0 |- ! colspan=3| Electorate/voter turnout ! 37,412 ! 43.7 |- | colspan=5| Source: Wahlen in Thüringen |} The most recent city council election was held on 26 May