9-euro ticket "worked": "Follow-up ticket should include long-distance transport and a taxi ride"

The interim balance of the 9-euro ticket is positive.

9-euro ticket "worked": "Follow-up ticket should include long-distance transport and a taxi ride"

The interim balance of the 9-euro ticket is positive. "People enjoyed driving, and the liking for public transport has gone up," says Andreas Knie. The Berlin mobility researcher calculates how a generous connection ticket could be financed without any problems.

The 9-euro ticket has been around for a good two months. How much can you say about the success or failure of the ticket?

Andreas Knie: You can't say that much yet, because all our experience is snapshots. What is certain is that the ticket was on everyone's lips, that people who had turned their backs on public transport for a long time suddenly came back and, last but not least, that many families with low incomes were able to travel more than before.

The think tank Agora Verkehrswende (an initiative of the Mercator Foundation and the European Climate Foundation, editor's note) recently reported initial findings that show that the ticket does not lead to people leaving their cars at home. How do you classify that?

We can confirm that from the WZB (Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin, editor's note). But the purpose of the ticket was never that we could immediately see a shift in traffic. Especially since movement is routine and no drastic changes were to be expected after a three-month test run. But what we have noticed is that people are taking the train a lot more. This was certainly not only due to the price, but above all to the simplicity of nine euros across the board.

Full trains, especially at weekends, have become part of everyday life since the ticket was introduced. What other disadvantages are there?

There are several effects. At Pentecost, people were able to travel freely again for the first time in two years. In addition, hardly any trains actually had to be evacuated. Sure, some connections were overcrowded, for example trains from Berlin to the Baltic Sea. And they have also become fuller in width. But you also have to know that by the end of May, just 70 percent of the available capacities were being used in long-distance and local transport.

Unlike Agora, the navigation system manufacturer Tomtom reported that it measured fewer traffic jams in June, at least in Hamburg. What is it now?

Yes, I would also like to see it that way, but unfortunately it is not the case. The data situation is really very small in this case. Our measurements in many other cities cannot confirm this. But the same applies here: three months is far too short to expect significant changes.

How long will it be before there is serious data on this?

That's relatively quick. The ticket is still available until the end of August, and we will start collecting it in September. At the end of the month we should be able to present data.

And what do you expect in return?

We expect something like what we are already seeing. People who previously rode less trains rode more. Those who never drove now occasionally used public transport. But the 9-euro ticket has not led to any changes in behavior as far as the means of transport are concerned. No driver said: I'll leave my car at home from now on.

Still, you don't seem depressed.

A lot of things were good too. It was wonderful. The ticket was on everyone's lips. People enjoyed driving and the sympathy values ​​for public transport went up drastically. If there were a permanent offer of this kind, I am sure that more people would take the train again. An easy-to-understand ticket is very important for this.

They are asking for the ticket to be continued, albeit in a slightly modified form. So how exactly should things continue from September?

I would say we made three insights in total. Firstly, the modernization of public transport is possible. Many transport companies had previously said that such a ticket would not be possible. And yet it came and eventually worked. But that was only possible with external political pressure. The second is that we've seen that a single price that's attractive drives people to take more rail trips. And that's why, thirdly, we made the suggestion that a follow-up ticket shouldn't cost 9, but 29 euros each month. That would not only apply to underground and suburban trains and regional transport, but would also include long-distance transport. We also think it's important to simplify the last mile, for example the journey from the train station to work. A taxi ride would also be included in the ticket.

How can this be financed?

We have to talk about redistribution. The diesel gets subsidies of almost seven billion euros every year, which could be invested differently. Then the tank discount will soon be gone. And if we abolish the increase in the commuter allowance, which in any case only benefits middle and higher income brackets, and then end the tax privileges for the private use of company cars, then a sum of almost 14 billion euros will result.

And this suggestion would also be sufficient for long-distance traffic and the taxi for the last few meters?

Yes, the money saved by abolishing the privileges of the car would be enough to counter-finance a 29-euro ticket with this service package.

What is your proposal for the continuation of a unified train ticket?

It is important to let these projects run longer, at best a year. Firstly, that would be a good start to the traffic turnaround, secondly, we could then observe longer how the offer affects traffic behavior. After only three months, as is the case now, it is very difficult. Overall, however, there is still a lot to be done in terms of the search for a successor to the 9-euro ticket. But it's worth experimenting further.

How do you assess the influence of the 9-euro ticket with regard to the traffic turnaround overall?

It simply whetted the appetite for more public transport, a desire for more attractive and uniform fares. So it works if the political will is there. That's a start.

Adrian Breitling spoke to Andreas Knie.

The interview first appeared on Capital.de.