{"id":2473,"date":"2026-04-05T23:19:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T23:19:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/2473\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T23:19:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T23:19:19","slug":"berliners-furious-at-car-ban-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/2473\/","title":{"rendered":"Berliners furious at car ban plan"},"content":{"rendered":"

A campaign to curb car use in the centre of Berlin<\/a> has been met with criticism across the political spectrum in Germany.<\/p>\n

The \u201ctraffic referendum\u201d citizens\u2019 initiative wants to limit car use within the city\u2019s S-Bahn ring, a 34-square-mile area equivalent to the London Underground\u2019s zone one and zone two.<\/p>\n

Citizens would have to apply online for a maximum of 12 trips per year in the area.<\/p>\n

Verkehrsunterscheid, the group behind the plan, drafted a law which was ruled permissible by Berlin\u2019s constitutional court in 2025. A referendum will be triggered if 240,000 signatures are reached by May.<\/p>\n

But from Right to Left, politicians are disavowing the proposals, which are proving divisive in the German capital before Senate elections in September.<\/p>\n

Kai Wegner, the mayor of Berlin, has sharply criticised the initiative, saying the city \u201cdoesn\u2019t need lifestyle experiments\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cCar ban. Banned\u201d has already become a core slogan of his own reelection campaign.<\/p>\n

The Alternative for Germany party (AfD) opposes a car ban, despite acknowledging that the referendum must take place if sufficient signatures are collected.<\/p>\n

Even the Green Party<\/a> has stopped short of supporting a car ban and only the fringe Animal Protection party is helping to collect signatures.<\/p>\n

\"Berlin<\/p>\n

Berlin mayor Kai Wegner is aware congestion is a problem – Clemens Bilan\/EPA\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

The automotive industry forms a strong part of German identity, with carmakers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen remaining pillars of the economy.<\/p>\n

Peter Mair, a Berlin Christian Democratic Union (CDU) politician, told the Financial Times: \u201cGermany is an auto-nation. It\u2019s how people identify themselves \u2013 not just with their car, but with what it represents: the power of German industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Berlin has long been culturally distinct from the rest of the nation.<\/p>\n

Fewer residents inside Berlin\u2019s S-Bahn ring own a car than those in comparable areas of London and Paris, with the younger generation moving sharply towards public transport, a trend accentuated as fuel costs continue to rise with the conflict in Iran and Russia\u2019s ongoing war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n

\u201cInstead of bans, more offers are needed, especially in local public transport,\u201d Mr Wegner, a member of the CDU, said.<\/p>\n

\u2018City of freedom\u2019<\/p>\n

Having campaigned for the expansion of cycle lanes in the past, the mayor is aware that congestion is a problem.<\/p>\n

But a party statement pointed out that \u201cBerlin is the city of freedom\u201d, which includes freedom of choice on how to move around.<\/p>\n

If a referendum is triggered, the law under consideration would still permit inner-city road use for delivery drivers, emergency services and disabled car users.<\/p>\n

Those who rely on cars for work would have to apply for special permits to drive.<\/p>\n

Verkehrsunterscheid argues the ban is the most effective way to improve air quality and safety in Germany\u2019s capital.<\/p>\n

But Mr Wegner fears an outright ban would have a detrimental knock-on effect for Berlin\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n

The capital has struggled to compete with other German cities such as Munich and Frankfurt since Germany\u2019s reunification, and limiting car use could only hamper its growth.<\/p>\n

Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A campaign to curb car use in the centre of Berlin has been met with criticism across the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2474,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[18,2690,2691,2688,5,2687,2689],"class_list":["post-2473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-berlin","tag-berlin","tag-berlin-city-centre","tag-car-ban","tag-citizens-initiative","tag-germany","tag-kai-wegner","tag-mayor-of-berlin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2473"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2473\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}