9-Euro-Ticket

The 9-Euro-Ticket (German pronunciation: [ˌnɔʏ̯n ˈɔʏ̯ʁo ˈtɪkət]) was a German scheme through which passengers could travel for 9 euros (€) per month on local and regional transport in all of Germany. The tickets were valid for June, July, or August 2022. The offer aimed at reducing energy use amid the 2021–2022 global energy crisis.[1][2] Another aim was to ease the cost of living crisis.[3]

9-Euro-Tickets issued by Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg
9-Euro-Ticket issued by a Deutsche Bahn ticket vending machine

The 9-euro ticket was valid in the second class, throughout Germany for all local public transport and on regional trains. It did not include travel on Intercity Express (ICE), Intercity (IC) and Eurocity (EC) trains, and could not be used on FlixTrains or intercity buses.[4]

Funding

The ticket only applied to local and regional transport, which is owned by the states of Germany and municipalities. The German federation compensated these authorities for their foregone ticket sales. The federal government estimates the cost at 2.5 billion euros.[5]

Effects on traffic
Full train in Hamburg during the 9-Euro-Ticket campaign, 10 August 2022

How the 9-euro ticket affected mobility behavior is the subject of accompanying studies, including the study Mobilität.Leben conducted by the TUM with 1,000 participants in Munich.[6][7] Interim results for the period from June to mid-July showed that 35% of participants used buses and trains more, while 3% used their cars less. A traffic survey conducted by the city of Munich found that car traffic in Munich decreased by 3 percent from May to June instead of (seasonally) increasing by 3 percent. The TUM study continued for the duration of the 9-euro ticket and for a few weeks after it ended.[8] On 5 September 2022, the study group published its 3rd report (on arXiv).[9]

According to a YouGov online survey of 2,038 participants aged 18 and older, conducted in Germany from 22 to 24 August 2022, 28% had bought a 9-euro ticket at least once and 22% had a subscription to public transportation (which included the 9-euro ticket). 31% of participants said they frequently used the 9-euro ticket on routes they would otherwise have taken by car.[10]

Other effects

Since the cost of passenger transportation is a large part of the basket of goods used to calculate average household spending, this has reduced the increase in the consumer price index.[11]

Many people used the ticket's affordability and ease of travel for leisure getaways – according to some it enabled them to go on vacation for the first time.[12] On the other hand, especially in June, the 9-euro ticket also led to more overcrowded trains and a heavy workload for train and station staff.[13]

The 9-euro ticket was accompanied by a strong increase in excursion tourism by train to rural tourist areas: according to a special analysis by the Federal Statistical Office, trips by rail in June and July of 30 kilometers or more in rural tourist areas were on average 80 percent higher than in the comparable months of 2019.[14] However, there is also another factor: according to the Federal Statistical Office, consumers in Q2 2022 used the lifting of almost all Corona restrictions to travel and go out more again.[15]

According to an estimate of the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV), the 9-Euro-Ticket offer – of which around 52 million tickets were sold in the three months – saved 1.8 million tons of CO2, almost as much as a 130 km/h (81 mph) speed limit on the autobahns would achieve in an entire year.[16][17][18]

Debate and plans about possible successor
See also: Deutschlandticket

In August 2022, Alliance 90/The Greens co-leader Ricarda Lang and others proposed a regional ticket for 29 euros and a nationwide ticket for 49 euros a month as successor for the 9-Euro-Ticket after August 2022.[19]

Christian Lindner, the federal finance minister and party leader of the Free Democratic Party (FDP), initially expressed fundamental opposition. While his party colleague, the federal minister for digital and transport Volker Wissing saw the 9-Euro-Ticket as a success, Lindner rejected these low-price tickets also on ideological grounds, calling them part of a "Freebie mentality" (German: Gratismentalität) on Twitter.[20] The Saarland Ministry of Transport criticized Lindner's stance with reference to climate protection targets.[21]

Like the Federal Ministry of Transport, the SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag is calling for the federal states to contribute to the costs and its vice-chairman Detlef Müller proposed the elimination or reduction of environmentally harmful tax subsidies in the area of road transport as a feasible way to finance the federal share for a successor scheme.[22] Much of the debate focused on the "Dienstwagenprivileg", a €3 billion tax benefit for take-home vehicles, which primarily benefits high earners.[23]

On 31 August, finance minister Lindner also signaled his approval of a successor scheme to the 9-euro ticket on condition that the federal states contribute to the costs.[24][25]

After a closed-door meeting in Schloss Meseberg, the governing coalition of SPD, Greens and FDP announced in early September that, as part of the planned third relief package, it would also introduce a successor to the 9-euro ticket; the tickets are to cost around 49 to 69 euros a month. The governing coalition wants to make 1.5 billion euros available per year for this, but demands that the federal states contribute at least the same amount.[26]

49 euro monthly ticket

On 13 October 2022, the transport ministers of the federal states and Federal Transport Minister Wissing announced that they had agreed on a successor ticket dubbed Deutschlandticket, which is expected to be available from January 2023 and cost 49 euros per month. At this time, the financing scheme remained unclear, as the states demanded the federal government to contribute more money.[27][28]

At the end of November 2022, the transport ministers reaffirmed the commitment to the monthly ticket for 49 euros and it is planned to start in April 2023, an earlier start already in January was considered too timely for implementation.[29] But the planned start has been further delayed by one month as there was still opposition from the local and regional transportation services like the Munich MVV that wanted more refunding from the federal and the state governments.[30]

On 31 March 2023, the Bundesrat approved the bill passed by the Bundestag for a nationwide ticket for local and regional public transportation at a monthly price of 49 euros.[31]

The monthly tickets will start with May 2023, but can only be purchased by subscription. There will be no traditional paper cards for the subscription – with the possible exception of the start-up phase;[32] the users will have to authenticate digitally (either via smartphone app or chip card).[33]

Berlin successor

Berlin offers a €29 ticket for October, November and December 2022. It is only available as part of a one-year subscription, with right to cancel after three months. The fare reduction (from €86) is paid for by the state of Berlin.[34]

See also

References
  1. O'Sullivan, Feargus (28 May 2022). "Why Germany Is Offering a Summer of Cheap Trains". Bloomberg. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  2. Glucroft, William Noah (20 May 2022). "Germany introduces €9 ticket to offset the impact of the Ukraine war". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  3. Connoly, Kate (18 July 2022). "Germany faces calls to extend €9-a-month public transport ticket". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 August 2022. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  4. "Start der Sonderfahrkarten: Was man über das 9-Euro-Ticket wissen muss" [Start of the Special Tickets: What You Should Know about the 9-Euro-Ticket]. Tagesschau (in German). dpa/AFP. 1 June 2022. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  5. "Fragen und Antworten zum 9-Euro-Ticket ab Juni 2022" [Questions and Answers regarding the 9-Euro-Ticket starting June 2022]. Government of Germany (in German). Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  6. Weichselbaumer, Susi (21 July 2022). "Studie der TU München: Was hat das 9-Euro-Ticket gebracht?" [Technical University of Munich Study: What has the 9-Euro-Ticket Accomplished?]. Bayerischer Rundfunk (in German). Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  7. "Mobilität.Leben" (PDF). Technische Universität München (in German). 21 July 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 July 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  8. "9-Euro-Ticket: Mehr Menschen fahren Bus und Bahn" [9-Euro-Ticket: More people ride buses and trains]. Technische Universität München (in German). 21 July 2022. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  9. Loder, Allister; Cantner, Fabienne; Cadavid, Andrea; Siewert, Markus B.; Wurster, Stefan; Goerg, Sebastian; Bogenberger, Klaus (5 September 2022). "A Nation-wide Experiment: Fuel Tax Cuts and Almost Free Public Transport for Three Months in Germany". arXiv:2208.14902.
  10. "Umfrage: Viele 9-Euro-Ticket-Nutzer verzichteten auf Auto" [Survey: Many 9-Euro-Ticket users did without a car]. Die Zeit (in German). dpy. 27 August 2022. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  11. "9-Euro-Ticket dämpft laut Studie Inflation" [9-euro ticket dampens inflation according to study]. Die Zeit (in German). 3 August 2022. Archived from the original on 22 August 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2022. Die Einführung des 9-Euro-Tickets und andere preisstabile staatliche Angebote ... haben einer aktuellen Studie zufolge den Preisanstieg in Deutschland deutlich gebremst. Ohne solche staatlichen Eingriffe läge die Inflation noch um zwei Prozentpunkte höher, schreibt das Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft (IW) in einer Studie. [The introduction of the 9-euro ticket and other price-stable state offers ... have significantly slowed price increases in Germany, according to a recent study. Without such government interventions, inflation would be two percentage points higher, writes the Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft (IW) in a study.]
  12. "Public transit for nine bucks a month? Germany tried it". Vox. 27 August 2022. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022. Markus Siewert, managing director of the TUM Think Tank and member of the research team conducting a mobility study [Mobilität.Leben, ed. note] in and around Munich, said that they often received emails from people, seniors, or lower-income people, who said that the 9-Euro-Ticket meant they could go on vacation for the first time, or were able to send their children on a school field trip.
  13. "Germany's 9-euro travel ticket: Success or failure?". Deutsche Welle. 5 July 2022. Archived from the original on 6 July 2022. Retrieved 28 August 2022.
  14. "Verdopplung des Reiseaufkommens: 9-Euro-Ticket kurbelt Ausflugstourismus an" [Travel volume doubles: 9-euro ticket boosts excursion tourism]. Der Tagesspiegel. 11 August 2022. Archived from the original on 24 August 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
  15. "BIP im zweiten Quartal leicht gewachsen – Defizit sinkt deutlich" [Slight GDP Growth in Q2 - Deficit Sharply Declines]. Die Zeit (in German). 25 August 2022. Archived from the original on 26 August 2022. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  16. "Bilanz des Verbands Deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen: 9-Euro-Ticket spart fast zwei Millionen Tonnen CO2 ein" [Assessment by the Association of German Transport Companies: 9-Euro-Ticket saves almost two million tons of CO2]. Der Spiegel (in German). 29 August 2022. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  17. "52 Millionen 9-Euro-Tickets verkauft" [52 million 9-euro tickets sold]. Tagesschau. 29 August 2022. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  18. Connolly, Kate (30 August 2022). "Germany's €9 train tickets scheme 'saved 1.8m tons of CO2 emissions'". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  19. "Grüne schlagen zwei Nachfolger für 9-Euro-Ticket vor" [Greens propose two successors for 9-euro ticket]. n-tv (in German). 5 August 2022. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  20. Klöckner, Larena (8 August 2022). "9-Euro-Ticket und Lindner: Unfair für Reiche" [9-euro ticket and Lindner: Unfair for the rich]. Die Tageszeitung: Taz (in German). Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  21. "Saarland pocht auf Bundeshilfe für 9-Euro-Ticket-Nachfolger" [Saarland insists on federal aid for 9-Euro-Ticket successor]. Saarländischer Rundfunk (in German). 15 August 2022. Archived from the original on 15 August 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022. Es reicht nicht aus, dass die Bundesregierung verbindliche Klimaschutzziele festlegt, ihr Finanzminister aber nicht gewillt ist, dabei mitzuwirken, die entsprechenden Instrumente zu entwickeln [It is not enough for the federal government to set binding climate protection targets but for its finance minister to be unwilling to help develop the relevant instruments]
  22. "Diskussion um Finanzierung von 9-Euro-Ticket-Nachfolger" [Discussion About Financing of 9-Euro-Ticket Successor]. ZDF (in German). dpa. 6 August 2022. Archived from the original on 6 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022. [Wissings] Ministerium zufolge ist für ein Nachfolgemodell aber die Bereitschaft der Länder mitentscheidend, sich finanziell zu beteiligen.[...] Auch die SPD-Fraktion pocht auf eine Beteiligung der Länder an den Kosten.
  23. "So läuft die Debatte ums Dienstwagen-Privileg" [This is the Debate about the Firm Car Privilege]. ZDF (in German). 26 August 2022. Archived from the original on 28 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  24. "Preis noch unklar: Finanzminister Lindner gibt grünes Licht für Nachfolger des 9-Euro-Tickets" [Price still unclear: Finance Minister Lindner gives green light for successor to the 9-euro ticket]. RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (in German). 31 August 2022. Archived from the original on 2 September 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  25. Adey, Oliver (31 August 2022). "'A fraction of the cost': Lindner gives the green light for the 9-euro ticket successor". gettotext.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
  26. "Drittes Entlastungspaket: Die Maßnahmen im Überblick" [Third relief package: the measures in overview]. Tagesschau (in German). 4 September 2022. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  27. "The 49-euro ticket is coming: German states agree on 9-euro follow-up". www.iamexpat.de. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  28. "Nachfolge des Neun-Euro-Tickets: Verkehrsminister schlagen bundesweites 49-Euro-Ticket vor" [Successor to the nine-euro ticket: Transport ministers propose nationwide 49-euro ticket]. www.rbb24.de (in German). 13 October 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  29. "Verkehrsminister tagen zum Deutschlandticket: 49-Euro-Fahrkarte soll zum 1. April kommen". 2 December 2022 (in German). 30 November 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  30. "49-Euro-Ticket im MVV-Raum nur mit Finanzierungszusage" [49-euro ticket in the MVV area only with funding commitment]. www.br.de (in German). 2 December 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  31. "Letzte Hürde genommen – Auch Bundesrat stimmt für 49-Euro-Ticket" [Last hurdle cleared - Bundesrat also votes in favor of 49-euro ticket]. www.welt.de (in German). 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  32. "49-Euro-Ticket: Für wen sich das Deutschlandticket lohnt" [49-euro ticket: For whom the Deutschlandticket is profitable]. www.adac.de (in German). 31 March 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023. Das Deutschlandticket wird es als Chipkarte oder als Handyticket geben – übergangsweise ist es auch in Papierform mit QR-Code geplant. [The Deutschlandticket will be available as a chip card or a cell phone ticket - for a transitional period, it is also planned in paper form with a QR code.]
  33. "Bundeskabinett stimmt zu: 49-Euro-Ticket soll als Chipkarte oder per App erhältlich sein" [Federal cabinet approves: 49-euro ticket to be available as chip card or via app]. www.mdr.de (in German). 1 February 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  34. staff, E. X. B. (7 October 2022). "Berlin's €29 ticket explained". Exberliner. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
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