Status: 01/22/2023 3:10 p.m
Fewer cars for more climate protection? Transport Minister Wissing does not believe in government measures to restrict traffic. On the other hand, he wants more electric cars and CO2-neutral fuels, but also investments in the road network.
In the discussion about climate protection, Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) rejects government measures aimed at reducing road traffic. “The solution cannot be that we restrict road traffic in Germany,” he told the “Bild am Sonntag”. “We must enable climate-neutral traffic on the road, with more e-cars and CO2-neutral fuels, also in freight transport.”
Because Wissing emphasized the importance of the car: “Driving a car means freedom, flexibility and privacy, in rural areas and in old age also participation and self-determination,” he told the newspaper. “The Germans therefore rightly expect our roads to be in good condition.” Wissing added: “Even if not everyone likes it: There will be more traffic on German roads and we have to deal with it. Otherwise the economy will soon come to a standstill and we will lose jobs.”
Expand congested highways
Wissing confirmed his plan to expand motorways that are particularly heavily used and to close gaps in the motorway network. Motorways would have to be widened by additional lanes. Last year, 3.7 billion tons of goods were transported on the German autobahns, “ten times as much as by rail”. This year it would be another 50 million tons more. “The rail can’t take that on its own.”
He therefore warned that the roads in Germany could soon be as congested as the railways are today. “If we don’t want to experience similar conditions on the road as with the rails, we urgently need to take countermeasures here as well,” he told the “Bild am Sonntag”. “In Germany, not only the number of cars, but also freight traffic has risen constantly over the years. However, this has not been followed up either by rail or by road.”
Road construction in the overriding public interest
With his statements, Wissing followed up the dispute with Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (Greens), which is about faster planning processes in the transport sector. Wissing would like the construction and expansion of roads in the future – like renewable energies – to be in the overriding public interest. This should make it easier to implement a project when the authorities and the courts weigh it up. The Ministry of the Environment is against it. It is feared that this will harm the environment. New motorways do not serve to achieve the climate goals, the opposite is the case, it said. The heads of the coalition are to deal with the topic next Thursday.
Against the background of the dispute within the coalition, Julia Verlinden, Vice President of the Greens, reacted indignantly to Wissing’s statements. “When Transport Minister Wissing talks about freedom when driving, I wonder whether he has understood the extent of his task in climate protection,” she told the AFP news agency. “He must now finally present sufficient measures to drastically reduce CO2 emissions and close the gap to the climate target in his area.” Among other things, it is necessary “to reduce numerous environmentally harmful subsidies and to shift a large part of freight traffic away from the road to rail and ship,” said Verlinden.
Rejection of a general speed limit
Wissing also renewed his opposition to a general speed limit on Autobahns. “The pace is the personal responsibility of the citizens, as long as others are not endangered,” he said. “The state should hold back here.” In addition, the high energy prices “already mean that many people drive more slowly”.