The 9-euro ticket for local transport expires at the end of August. What happens next is currently the subject of debate. The DGB in Baden-Württemberg advocates a successor solution – which should be a little more expensive.
Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) – From the point of view of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) Baden-Württemberg, a permanent successor plan is needed for the 9-euro ticket that expires at the end of the month. “As the DGB, we are in favor of a nationwide 365-euro ticket,” said country chief Kai Burmeister of the German Press Agency in Stuttgart. A start of such an annual ticket on January 1, 2023 is realistic. For the financing, the DGB in the southwest is planning a higher taxation of high wealth.
The 9-euro ticket brought relief to many people and had a dampening effect on the inflation rate, Burmeister said. Many people have been won over by the simplicity of the ticket. There have also been more tourist trips – but that is also a form of participation. “It has nothing to do with a free mentality, it’s a matter of political wisdom to use the momentum that has now been sparked.” Burmeister noted that people in metropolitan areas in particular who could reach their workplace by bus or train benefited from the ticket.
In the past few weeks, a nationwide debate has broken out about whether and how the 9-euro ticket could be continued. Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) had rejected funding from the federal budget. He was not convinced of a “free mentality à la unconditional basic income” in local public transport, he had said. These statements also met with criticism.
Burmeister made it clear that the 9-euro ticket revealed shortcomings in local public transport. There is a shortage of vehicles and the employees are often working at the limits of their resilience. In order to make the infrastructure fit for a permanent cheap ticket, the DGB proposed a credit-financed public fund at federal level. Burmeister justified the amount of 365 euros a year instead of nine euros a month by saying that public services should also be provided with a corresponding amount of money. In addition, good working conditions must be ensured.
