9 Euro Ticket

The 9 Euro ticket was a policy which took place in the summer months of 2022 where riders could purchase a ticket for any regional public transit for just 9 euros per month. This meant unlimited access to most trains for a whole month for just 9 euros. It was not valid for high speed, long distance German trains, but was valid for just about everything else.

It drastically increased ridership on trains, but had a small impact on reduction of car use. A study called Mobilität.Leben conducted by the Technical University of Munich found that train ridership increased by 35% while car use decreased by 3%.

Some may argue that the policy was ineffective because of the small reduction in car traffic, while others may say that the goal was not just to decrease car traffic, but also improve accessibility. There are talks of a revised 9 euro ticket which would have the same coverage but cost 49 euros per month. I think this is a reasonable policy because it is still a good deal to costumers but will not overwhelm railways.

I believe that the AfD would be opposed to the 9 euro ticket and prefer less government subsidization.