Pro and contra: Increasing road tolls in Germany

The German government intends to sharply increase the Autobahn tolls for trucks effective 1 January 2009. The expected increase in revenue will go to the Federal Ministry of Transport and be used for road construction and the railway network. Many have spoken out against the toll hike. Wolfgang Hahn, head of the department for principle affairs in the Federal Ministry of Transport, Construction and Urban Development, presents the proposal of the Federal Government. The planned toll increase is intended to achieve "an adjustment to the increase in transport costs, an increase in transport investments, a reduction in goods transport on the roads and a strengthening of the effect of environmental-policy in the transport sector". Emilia Müller, Bavarian State Minister for Economic Affairs, Infrastructure, Transport and Technology, emphatically opposes the planned increase of the road toll for trucks to take effect on 1 January 2009 and insists that this be postponed until 1 January 2010. She argues that the discussion is occurring in economically difficult times: The increased personnel costs and particularly the strong hikes in oil prices would lead to a perceptible financial burden on the German transportation and logistics sector; this sector should be spared further government-imposed financial burdens. A postponement of the toll increase must not however lead to a reduction of federal investments in the traffic infrastructure. The necessary funds for this should be taken from the federal budget. In the opinion of Claus Doll, Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, the danger that the toll increase will induce more trucks to leave the Autobahn and use the other highways will be offset by the positive long-term impact on what means of transportation are used (modal split) and the accelerated reduction of pollutants because of the expanded differentiation in tolls. This would give positive impulses to the motor-vehicle industry and their innovation activities. Bernhard Wieland, Technical University of Dresden, views the stronger differentiation in tolls, which is desirable under the aspect of traffic routing, as a possible "gateway for the influence of pressure groups". For this reason responsibility for determining the structure and amount of tolls should be shifted as much as possible from politicians to a regulatory body.