New traffic regulations
Breaking the supremacy of car traffic: What the federal government is planning for road traffic
The new STVO is also intended to give cyclists more space on the road compared to cars
© Paul Zinken / DPA
So far, cars have played first fiddle in road traffic. But the Federal Cabinet has approved an amendment to the road traffic regulations that is intended to push back the supremacy of the car – in favor of the environment and health. The specific plans at a glance.
Climate and environmental protection as well as health should be In the future, road traffic will be given greater consideration than before and municipalities should be given more freedom to do so. The cabinet decided on a corresponding amendment to the road traffic regulations (STVO) on Wednesday. Urban planning issues will also be included as additional goals in road traffic law, as the Federal Ministry of Economics in Berlin announced on Wednesday. The Federal Council still has to agree to this.
With the new STVO, municipalities can order traffic restrictions solely for environmental, climate and health protection reasons, as the ministry explained. Traffic safety and rapid progress still need to be taken into account, but they are no longer the sole deciding factor. The effects of traffic on people’s quality of life, not least on children, could now be given greater weight in traffic planning.
New regulations in road traffic
According to the information, with the new STVO, municipalities can more easily give public transport priority through special lanes, expand cycle paths, set up play streets or more easily set a speed limit of 30 km/h in the area around schools and daycare centers. The changes in detail:
Speed 30
In the future, traffic authorities will be able to more easily impose a speed limit of 30, especially in the area of priority roads, playgrounds and school routes. Up to now, 30 km/h speed limits can also be ordered if the distance between two 30 km/h speed zones is 300 meters. In the future, “closing the gap” should be possible up to a distance of 500 meters.
Resident parking
Previously, resident parking was only possible in areas where “significant parking pressure” was to be prevented. In the future, municipalities will also be allowed to set up residential parking zones based on forecasts so that “the negative effects on the environment and the urban development situation are kept as low as possible.” However, according to the decision, safety and ease of traffic must be taken into account.
Special lanes
For a limited period until the end of 2028, municipalities can try out whether special lanes are worthwhile for certain forms of mobility – for example for carpooling, electric or hydrogen vehicles.
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Bus lanes
The new STVO makes it easier to set up bus lanes. “This better protects regular services from disruptions and promotes orderly, rapid operations in local public transport,” explains the federal government about the amendment.
More space for cyclists and pedestrians
Municipalities should be able to give more space to people on bicycles or on foot more easily. Because: “Practical experience in the countries shows that these measures can make a noticeable contribution to improving environmental and climate protection as well as health protection or supporting orderly urban development.” However, the road traffic authority must demonstrate that motorized road traffic and local public transport “are not unreasonably restricted” as a result.
Pedestrian crossings
In the future, municipalities will also be allowed to set up pedestrian crossings where there is no particular danger. With safe “crossing options for people with mobility restrictions, older people and children” traffic authorities should be able to act proactively to reduce dangers for road users.
Loading zones
In addition, loading zones should be marked uniformly because the different markings that are currently permitted have not “fully proven themselves”.
Emergency braking assistants
In addition, the new road traffic regulations will ban the switching off of emergency braking assistants for vehicles over 3.5 tonnes at speeds of more than 30 km/h. “With this technical assistance, the number and severity of rear-end collisions can be significantly reduced. Switching off the system poses a high risk to the safety of all road users,” says bundesregierung.de.
The federal government already had one in June Amendment to the Road Traffic Act decided – because the new goals of traffic planning must first be anchored in the law before they can be included in the STVO, as the ministry explained. Both legislative processes ran in parallel. It is planned that both will be discussed together in the Federal Council on November 24th. Then they could come into force one after the other.
Sources: AFP, “Draft of a Tenth Law to Amend the Road Traffic Act” (PDF) on “BmDV.de”, “STVO amendment” on “Bundesregierung.de”.