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The federal government launches a banknote to combat inflation and high fuel prices
It is one of the measures with which he Government federal government intends to mitigate the effects of the inflationespecially from the exorbitant prices of the gasoline – which is close to two euros in Germany –: the so-called “9-euro ticket”, which has just come into force and is already part of the country’s collective imagination. From June 1st to August 31st, consumers can buy a ticket to use metro, bus, tram, urban and regional trains for only 9 euros per month and without restrictions. It has never been so cheap to travel by public transport in Germany.
The ticket, staff and non-transferable, it can be purchased at any terminal or through the different digital applications of the country’s public transport means. To avoid comparative grievances, those users who already have a monthly or annual subscription will receive the corresponding difference during the months in which the measure is applied.
The “9-Euro-Ticket”, as it is written in German, allows the particularity of cross Germany on regional and commuter trains, yes, always in second class. The measure does not include high-speed or long-distance trains, but with a little patience and several line changes it will be possible, for example, to travel from Berlin to one of the Baltic Sea islands without having to buy an additional ticket. The arrival of summer has unleashed euphoria among tourists and the hotel sector, which sees an opportunity to boost national tourism.
Overwhelmed transportation?
The Association of German Transport Companies (VDV) estimates that about 30 million tickets of 9 euros each of the three months. Some voices have warned of a possible saturation of public transport, something that in itself already occurred before the introduction of the measure in some railway sections and on designated festive dates. The different public transport companies have already announced, therefore, that they will reinforce the staff and the offer. The Deutsche Bahn, for example, will start up 50 additional trains for the duration of the measure. The federal government will also make €2.5 billion available to the federal state governments to cover the costs.
The measure is related to the high inflation that accumulates in Germany, which closed last April above 7%. However, the current Stoplight Coalition – tripartite of Social Democrats from the SPD, Greens and Liberals from the FDP – also see an opportunity to attract more users to public transport to the detriment of private vehicles, especially in urban areas.
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“If we want to reach the goal of doubling the number of train users, then we urgently need the results of the 9 euro ticket,” said Michael Theurer, federal government commissioner for rail transport. The signing of the coalition agreement of the current government had precisely as one of its priority objectives the promotion of public transport to reduce CO2 emissions and get closer to the goals of the Paris Agreement.
This objective will largely depend on the evolution of fuel prices, whose current level is turning the use of private vehicles into almost a luxury good. In addition to the 9 euro note, the German government has also temporarily reduced the fuel taxwhich has allowed the price of gasoline to fall below two euros per liter this week.
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Eddie is an Australian news reporter with over 9 years in the industry and has published on Forbes and tech crunch.