Germany is lagging in its efforts to get air pollution under control, and it’s ready to try a radical idea to meet the pressure of EU environmental rules: Making all public transit free to lure people out of their cars.
The plan will be tested in five cities, starting later this year. The Environment minister notified EU regulators that “We are considering public transport free of charge in order to reduce the number of private cars… Effectively fighting air pollution without any further unnecessary delays is of the highest priority for Germany.”
Among the cities that will test the idea are Bonn, Essen and Mannheim, all mid-size cities; Essen and Mannheim are in industrial areas. The move is considered radical, and some transport authorities are skeptical. Obviously, also, the proposal is not popular with automakers, although they may be constrained in their response because part of the reason Germany has missed targets may involve diesel-powered cars that were falsely sold as non-polluting.
Obviously, if the tests are successful it will also require significant new investment in more buses and trains to handle the additional loads.
