Well....yeah.
N-TV discussed this late last night. A Green Party meeting concluded yesterday, and several things were voted upon (internally).
That idea of a big rise in the C02 tax for 2023? Gone. It'll be a rise of 60 Euro only.
That idea of making the speed limit on B-roads (regular two-lane type) down to 70 kph? Yep, that got dumped entirely.
That idea of phasing out gas/diesel cars earlier than planned (2030) to 2025? Gone.
That idea of the 130 kph speed limit autobahns? Still in the political agenda, but around the general public....it's a tough sale.
What you have are a couple of different elements of the Green Party.....some lean to the far extreme of 'control', and some are highly moderate with less belief in controlling.
If you go and look at two key factors in this election (set for September)....voters are NOT enthusiastic about raising taxes. That C02 and gas tax chatter? That really got pro-Green enthusiasts negative over the past month. As for the second issue...the Chancellor candidate (Baerbock) has lost some momentum. Her lacking ability to handle tough questions in a Q and A session are obvious now.
Do most Germans put this 130 kph speed limit in their top ten problems? No. The majority of Germans probably won't even rate it a top 100 problem. Now, if you are pro-Green.....you might get all tingly and happy about the 130 kph speed limit idea.
My view? If you actually sat and looked at autobahn speeds in high-traffic regions....it's already controlled down to 130, and in a number of cases...down to 100 kph. Example: the A61 between Bingen and Koblenz. The general figure on limits? Around 30-percent of the German autobahn system has a speed limit already assigned (for safety purposes).
But here's another 'curve' to the discussion. If you installed a black-box on each car and monitored speed limits of a hundred-odd drivers....the majority already drive less than 130 kph, and I would make a guess that a third of all drivers routinely drive around 100 kph already.
Autobahns with marginal traffic and 150 kph being the norm? If you take A63 between K-town and Mainz....particularly on a Saturday morning....I would take a guess that around 50-percent of drivers are going above 130 kph. But there's just not a lot of traffic at that time of the week, and it's a very well-built road.
What I see in the end is that the CDU-CSU wins this election now....with the Green Party as the partner in the coalition. What they agree to in the end....will be a state by state control of the speed....with half the states keeping unlimited speeds.
No comments:
Post a Comment