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RWI Survey: Declining Support for Climate Protection in Transport

(dpa) Fewer people support the expansion of bike lanes, free public transport, a kerosene tax, or the expansion of charging infrastructure: Climate protection in mobility is facing tough challenges. Support for transport policy measures is declining. But there are also counterexamples: A speed limit on highways.

Less support for the expansion of bike lanes – and other climate protection measures in transport are also losing support, according to a survey by RWI. | Photo: ADFC
Less support for the expansion of bike lanes – and other climate protection measures in transport are also losing support, according to a survey by RWI. | Photo: ADFC
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Johannes Reichel

Whether for the expansion of bicycle lanes, free public transport, or a kerosene tax: various traffic policy measures for climate protection are finding less support in Germany than they did five years ago. This is according to a study commissioned by the RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research in Essen. The results were previously reported by the «Zeit».

Accordingly, almost three-quarters (73 percent) and thus a large majority of respondents support the expansion of bicycle lanes in Germany. In the previous survey in 2022, it was almost 75 percent, while in 2019 it was nearly 81 percent. Free public transport, a kerosene tax, and the expansion of infrastructure for electromobility are also supported by fewer respondents in 2024 than five years ago.

Support for speed limit on highways grows 

However, there are outliers. Support for a speed limit of 130 kilometers per hour on highways has slightly increased by 1.2 percentage points to around 63 percent since 2022. “It’s the restriction on motorists with the highest acceptance,” said study author Mark Andor to the «Zeit». In 2019, around 55 percent of respondents supported the speed limit. According to the survey, a growing majority rejects a ban on domestic flights. The same applies to higher parking costs.

The respondents would like measures to promote sustainable mobility, according to the study. "Measures that restrict or increase the cost of driving, however, tend to be (still) more likely to be rejected." For the representative survey, the Forsa Institute interviewed 6,107 people online. The participants were at least 18 years old. Their approval of 25 traffic policy measures was recorded. The lowest approval rate was a cash bonus for giving up one's own car (19 percent), while the highest approval rate was 73 percent for the expansion of bike paths.

Translated automatically from German.
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