The summer break is coming to an end – Where is the Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport Headed Next?
From September, things will get busier again in political Berlin; the traditional summer break is coming to an end. As every year, a number of important and heated debates kept the federal government and the Bundestag busy even during the break. For a long time, the decisions needed to rescue Uniper and on the gas levy had even made a special session of parliament likely.
The Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) also had little rest. In particular, the question of a follow-up to the 9-euro ticket for local public transport has stirred strong emotions.
But which other topics will matter for the BMDV in the second half of the year? We are using the remaining days of the summer break for an outlook.
The debate about cheaper fares for local public transport will continue over the coming weeks. It will intensify within the federal government and the Bundestag, and especially in cooperation with the federal states, and will require a decision. Whichever concept wins out, it is already clear that the debate will continue to tie up considerable resources in the ministry and its leadership. As important as the discussion about simplifying and streamlining regional transport associations is in this context, it will overshadow other rail policy initiatives, for example on the expiring reduction in track access charges or the upcoming amendment to the Railway Regulation Act. The digitalization of rail to improve efficiency, on the other hand, will also be an important part of the BMDV’s upcoming digital strategy.
Within the ministry, the digital strategy is considered one of the most important planning documents for the coming years. The federal cabinet is expected to adopt it at the end of August, just before the summer break ends. In transport policy, it includes the following goals: promoting automated and connected driving, speeding up the market ramp-up of electric mobility, especially charging infrastructure, and building a mobility data ecosystem.
Some observers may point out that these plans are nothing new. However, actually implementing them in the remaining three years of the legislative term would be a major gain for Germany as a mobility location, especially since their implementation will also be linked to various other projects, above all in climate policy.
A possible amendment to the Road Traffic Act and the Road Traffic Regulations that takes climate goals into account alongside the flow and safety of traffic, as well as switching the toll to a system based on CO₂ emissions, are just two projects on the possible further agenda.
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