Car versus train – the choice of mode of transport is often a fundamental debate.Image: IMAGO / Wolfgang Maria Weber
Germany
The trains of the Federal Republic are full, the streets are too. Motorists stopped altogether between June and September 2022 81,135 hours stuck in traffic. Also less than 70 percent of long-distance trains were on time in 2022. So the Germans are mobile – and they have to allow a lot of time to get from A to B. And often a lot of money too.
At the same time, Germany and the world are faced with the task of reducing emissions as quickly as possible. Every month of 2022 was too warm. And of course, in addition to industry, mobility is also a large sector in which carbon dioxide must be saved.
Hans-Peter Kleebinder teaches at the Institute for Mobility at the University of St. Gallen.null / private
Watson spoke to mobility expert Hans-Peter Kleebinder about exactly how mobility would have to develop in order to be more climate-friendly and future-proof. Kleebinder is the director of studies at the Institute for Mobility at the Swiss University of St. Gallen – and worked in the automotive industry for decades.
For him it is clear: people will always be mobile – but what needs to be discussed is the way in which this mobility is made possible.
Digitization for the rails
The 9-euro ticket last summer was a good experiment, says Kleebinder. For the first time, data could have been collected on how many people would actually switch to rail – and how the railway would cope with that. The result: many people used the train and the company was overwhelmed.
In the summer of 2022, the 9-euro ticket persuaded many people to take the train.Image: dpa / Arne Dedert
“Price is important. For many, simplicity is at least as important. For example, an end to the tariff zone madness,” says Kleebinder. This simplification – which should also bring the 49-euro ticket from spring – will help when switching from car to train. In addition to this simplification, the cooperation between the individual operating companies and bus companies must of course also be improved.
And there would have to be some optimization. “We are already in a traffic collapse today,” the expert clarifies. Because of the many delays, travelers who have to be in one place at a fixed time often have to set off with a large buffer. “This is a total fiasco for our quality of life and economy,” he says.
Overall, according to Kleebinder, infrastructure projects need to be implemented more quickly. And they would have to become independent of parties – because implementation usually takes longer than one legislative period. What also has to happen: Switching, the rail network and timetables have to be digitized. In this way, the capacities could be fully utilized because the timing could be adjusted more easily.
Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) has announced the massive expansion of rail.Image: imago images/mike schmidt
In the end, there is no point in expanding capacities if the railways are not digitized at the same time – and vice versa. It is therefore an advantage that Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) also holds the office of Digital Minister.
Kleebinder explains:
“I hope that the pace here will increase significantly. Of course, you can’t conjure up infrastructure, but it’s important that the right projects and measures are finally implemented.”
Wissing’s analysis of the nodes that needed to be addressed convinced Kleebinder. But now the transport minister has to deliver – just like his successors. “Without this cross-party mobility master plan, we won’t get out of our traffic gridlock,” concludes the mobility expert.
Rethinking towards micromobility and car sharing
Mobility on the road must also become more digital, says Kleebinder. For example, intelligent traffic lights could be installed or the lanes adjusted to the actual volume of traffic. “Traffic would be much easier to organize if our mobility data were used,” Kleebinder clarifies.
But also in the way cars are used. Because: “We have almost a full mobilization,” says Kleebinder. What he means by that: There are 48.5 million registered vehicles in Germany. In 2021, around 58 million out of 69 million adults had a driver’s license.
Car avalanches roll over city highways every day.Image: dpa / Sven Hoppe
“So we have too many vehicles that we actually use completely irrationally: A normal vehicle stands around 23 hours a day on average,” says Kleebinder. Extrapolated, the utilization of a product that costs an average of 5000 euros to purchase is very low. In the future, the question will therefore be: “How can we use existing sheet metal and asphalt more sensibly and intelligently?”
In addition, the cars are getting bigger and heavier due to subsidies – this means that the car manufacturers make higher profits, but they are not regulated in any way by the state. The end of the story: Purchase premiums for electric cars are available for large e-SUVs as well as for small e-vehicles. Kleebinder calls the environmental bonus, which promoted the purchase of environmentally friendly vehicles, one of the biggest mistakes of the past decades.
“We have to further reduce the total dependency on one’s own car.”
Instead, a political rethinking must take place, he says. Because large-scale car sharing offers make sense for cities in particular. Just like a conscious promotion of micromobility.
For example, light electric vehicles for one or two people that can drive up to 25 km/h. They require less space and less energy – and they are also more efficient to manufacture. However, Kleebinder explains, they have not been funded so far. The range of micromobility also includes e-scooters, larger e-scooters and rental bicycles.
“The politics should promote more sustainable use and not the purchase and ownership of cars,” says Kleebinder. This could work, for example, through tax advantages or through fast lanes and shared parking spaces, which are only for people who share their cars, for example. He adds : “We have to further reduce our total dependency on our own car, which is as large as possible.”
Car sharing offers like “Miles” could relieve cities.Image: dpa / Christian Charisius
More shared taxis, dial-a-bus services or car-sharing services are needed. So far, however, not much has happened. In rural areas in particular, people are still dependent on cars. In many cities – such as Munich – own parking spaces are so cheap that it is hardly worth changing.
Overall, the mobility sector, as well as the various drive options, is about a mix: e-mobility is currently the most sustainable form, but e-fuels could also make their contribution in the future. For example, for transporting heavy loads, on trains and on ships.
Mobility turnaround: more self-determination, less commuting
But it is also clear that Germany must say goodbye to the car as a source of prosperity. At least in the way the industry currently works. “We’re afraid to let go and stop milking this cow – but we have to accept that this cow has been milked and a new multimodal mobility industry will emerge,” says Kleebinder. This is due both to the climate goals and to the rethinking of many people of the younger generations.
It is therefore all the more important that politicians offer broad solutions and accelerate the expansion of the railways in order to avoid a disadvantage for Germany as a business location.
Kleebinder is convinced that our mobility will develop towards more self-determination through more freedom of choice and options. This can already be seen in the possibility of home office or online meetings. Instead of commuting to work or to congresses, mobility in the future could above all be voluntary. To go on vacation or to visit people.
