Revolution in local transport: Free bus and rail transport for the region!

Revolution in local transport: Free bus and rail transport for the region!

In the Peine, Gifhorn and Wolfsburg region, a lot is happening in the area of ​​local transport. A recently carried out online survey has shown that there is a strong interest in improved and even free transport offers. Surprising 73.1% of the respondents want better local transport, while 56.1% favor free public transport (public transport), such as paz-online reported. However, financing remains a challenge. Gisela Noske, spokeswoman for the regional association Greater Braunschweig, expressed concerns about the feasibility of these free offers.

The survey also showed that 76.8% of the 2,406 respondents cannot do without the car. Commuters in particular suck the traffic jams in the region - 44% of the 1,299 participants stated that traffic jams represent a considerable difficulty on their way to work. "The situation can be diagnosed with a functioning local transport," emphasizes Noske.

structures and challenges in local transport

The financing of local transport is difficult because rail traffic is mainly financed by the federal government and the state, while bus traffic is the responsibility of the municipalities. The region currently has a deficit of around 22 million euros annually with the regional bus lines. These lines are of considerable importance for professional, school and leisure traffic- around 1,500 trips are on the plan every day. To cover the deficit, increases in the association levy and household savings are under discussion.

Thanks to the mobility compass, traffic planners will find new approaches to improve urban traffic. This data -based model, which combines commuter flows and traffic sensors, not only offers cities, but also the citizens the opportunity to reflect on their own mobility decisions and to understand their effects. With the amendment to the CO2 emissions in traffic until 2030. Destatis , the Federal Government emphasizes the importance of this data recording in German cities.

The role of public transport providers

In the further context, we observe that the demand for public transport has increased again since 2022. Around 26 million passengers in Germany use buses and trains every day - public transport is thus increasingly appreciated as an environmentally friendly alternative. According to vdv , the providers in local public transport make an enormous contribution to reducing traffic by saving 18 million car trips every day and thus also reducing CO2 emissions by ten million tons per year.

The relevance of bus and train is undisputed: In 2023, VDV member companies promoted over 9.4 billion passengers. This is a clear sign that sustainable mobility is very popular and that the industry plays a valuable role in combating traffic problems and promoting environmentally friendly alternatives.