road pricing in germany

Dr. Andreas Kossak, Hamburg (D)

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International ConferenceInternational Conference““Roads of the Future”Roads of the Future”

Road Pricing in GermanyRoad Pricing in GermanyBackground – Status – PerspectivesBackground – Status – Perspectives

Athens - June 8-9, 2007Athens - June 8-9, 2007

Road Pricing in GermanyRoad Pricing in Germany


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Contents

I. Background / History

II. “Pällmann – Commission”selected findings (roads)

selected recommendations (roads)

III. Status / Political Handling

IV. Toll Collectkey figures

facts and figures after 2 years

selected impacts / non-impacts

V. DSRC or GPS / GSM or …?

VI. Outlook


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Congestion in 1957 Munich / Germany “Karlsplatz”


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I. Background / History

In the late 1980s first “official” considerations regarding distance- related tolling of heavy goods vehicles (HGV) using Autobahns.

In 1994 a test-site for tolling-technologies was established near Bonn.

In 1995 a time-based toll for heavy trucks on Autobahns was introduced in Germany and 5 other European countries (“Euro-Vignette”).

Early in 1999 the German government decided to introduce distance- related tolls for HGV using Autobahns, starting January 1, 2003.

Political goals stated: (1) Additional money for financing the Federal Transport Infrastructure (2) Shifting freight transport from road to rail and inland waterways (3) Improving the competitiveness of the German Logistics Industry


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II. „Pällmann Commission“

selected findings (roads)

(1) Germany faces a latent maintenance crisis and numerous bottlenecks. The longer it is left undone, the more costly the settlement will be.

(2) On the basis of the valid budget and long-term budget plans there is a financing gap of at least 4 billion DM (2 billion €) p.a.

(3) On the basis of the existing legislation there is no safe source for financing the Federal Highways.

(4) An essential relief of the Federal Highways by the Railways is impossible.

(5) The traditional tax financing has proven not to be suitable to achieve qualified maintenance and development of the Federal Transport Infrastructure. Private money cannot close the existing gap.


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selected recommendations (roads) - general

(1) The financing of the Federal Transport Infrastructure should gradually be converted to financing by the user, profiteer and / or causer

(2) The revenue from the user-charges is to be used exclusively for the sector of the infrastructure from which it was derived.

(3) The amount of the charges is to be oriented at the “internal” / direct costs of the infrastructure.

(4) The whole Federal Transport Infrastructure and all not originally governmental tasks associated with it are to be given into private hands.

(5) The existing (extensive) restrictions regarding the involvement of private financing are to be removed.

(6) The limits of responsibility between the Federal Government, the Federal States, Counties and Communities are to be redefined.


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selected recommendations (roads) – details 1

(1) A special “Highway Financing Agency” should be established immediately.

(2) The system for charging the distance-based toll on Autobahns should ensure upward-compatibility and interoperability.

(3) Heavy trucks (maximum laden weight 12 tons and more) should be charged an average toll of 25 Pfg. per vehicle-kilometer on Autobahns

(4) At the same time that the distance-based toll collection for heavy trucks using Autobahns will be started, time-based tolls for small trucks and passenger cars should be introduced

(5) Charging of distance-based tolls should be introduced step by step on all Federal Highways and for all types of cars,


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selected recommendations (roads) – details 2

(6) The charging should gradually include additional components with regard to traffic management (congestion pricing) and environment.

(7) Beginning at the time, at which the net-toll-revenue exceeds the financing-gap on the basis of the actual federal budget and budget plans, traffic-related taxes should be reduced (compensation tax to toll = 1:1).

(8) Private financing of Federal Highways should be allowed in all areas of highway-construction and maintenance.

In summary: The commission recommended a comprehensive, consequent and systematic change of paradigm in the financing and operating of the Federal Road Network.


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Federal Highways from tax-financing to user-financing

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3

6

9

12

15

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internal costs Toll

Trucks > 12 t BAB

Trucks < 12 t BAB

Cars BAB

Trucks > 12 t B

Trucks < 12 t B

Cars B

Transaction-costs

Financing gap

Budget

Compensation tax : toll = 1:1

Costs

Revenue

The principle of conversion

BAB: Autobahns B: other Federal Highways


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III. Status / Political Handling

(1) No official plans for a systematic conversion to user financing.

(2) Tolling heavy trucks on Autobahns started on January 1, 2005. (technology like recommended by the Commission).

(3) Average toll 12.4 Euro-Cent per vehicle-km, differentiated with regard to No. of axles and environmental standards.

(4) Net toll-revenue officially used exclusively for the transport sector > but only 50 % for the Federal Highways.

(5) In 2004 a “Transport-Infrastructure-Financing-Company” has been established for distributing the net-toll-revenue and for controlling its use.

(6) Restrictions in the “Private Financing Law” remained untouched.


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IV. Toll Collect

principles

No impact on the traffic flow, no special toll plazas, no compulsory toll- lanes, no speed-limit caused by toll collection, non-discriminatory access for foreign vehicles.

Dual tolling system (Automatic, manual), dual enforcement system (stationary, mobile)

A private operator runs the Toll-Collect-System (12 year contract). A governmental agency is responsible for the enforcement.


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Germany’s Autobahn Network

12,174 km

2,213 intersections

251 internal junctions

25 billion HGV - kilometres per year

200,000 HGV per day

> 35% accounted for by vehicles

registered outside of Germany


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key figures

Length of tolled Autobahns: 11,500 km (out of a total of 12,174 km)

No. of intersections (with the secondary road network) : 2,213

No. of internal junctions : 251

3,500 payment points for manual booking (points of sale - POS)

300 gantries for automatic monitoring (stationary enforcement)

150 checkpoints (stationary enforcement)

280 vehicles for automatic monitoring (mobile enforcement)

650 persons control personal (Federal Freight-Transport Authority)

150 beacons for additional determining the position of trucks


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Vehicle Device for automatic booking“onboard unit” (OBU)

Gantry for automatic monitoringGSM / license plate rec.(Stationary enforcement)

Point of Sale (POS)manual booking


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facts and figures after 2 years

About 120,000 companies and about 840,000 trucks are registered.

About 550,000 trucks are equipped with onboard units (35 % foreign).

Automatic booking more than 90 % of the transactions.

Gross-revenue in the first year of operation: 2.86 billion €;

Result 2006: 3.08 billion Euro; first results for 2007:further increase.

About 200,000 heavy trucks use the Autobahns every single day.

About 25 billion tolled vehicle-km per year (2006).

System reliability in 2006: 99.75 % (demanded by the contract: 99 %).

Toll-violator-rate: less than 2 %.

More than 2 million bills dispatched;

rate of complaints/appeals: 0.003 %.


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impacts / non-impacts

No traceable increase of the freight-charges.

No traceable impact on the consumer prices.

No significant impact on the structure of the logistic-industry.

No significant shift from road to rail or inland waterways.

Only a limited amount of trucks use alternate toll-free routes.

Significant tendency to buy trucks with higher environmental standards.

No significant shift from heavy trucks to light trucks.

But: more new trucks in the range of 10-12 tons total laden weight.

Significant tendency for a higher average load-factor.

Significantly less truck-kilometre without cargo on the Autobahns (15 %).


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next steps

3 secondary Federal Highways tolled since January 1, 2007

Variation of tolls by time and area announced

Increase of average toll: 14.0 Euro-Cent per vehicle-km

Removal of manual booking taken into consideration

Tolling of all trucks with 3.5 tons or more total laden weight



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V. DSRC or GPS / GSM or …?

selected criteria

Goals / objectives / purposes (financing, traffic management …)

Requirements to be satisfied (scope of contract…)

Boundary conditions (laws, regulations, traffic environment…)

Project-type / -size (city-pricing, highway tolling, network-tolling…)

Configuration (limited/ unlimited access, different road levels…)

Tolling scheme (distance related, cordon, multimodal…)

Conventional technology <> innovative configuration

Options / perspectives / potentials


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VI. Outlook

(not a bold) prediction:

Tolling heavy trucks using Autobahns is only a first step; a gradual expansion to all types of vehicles and all kinds of roads will take place in Germany within the next 2 decades.

Distance-based truck tolling on Motorways, Expressways and similar roads will become standard more or less Europe-wide (EU) within the next 5-10 years.

City-pricing / congestion-pricing in metropolitan areas will be introduced in numerous major German cities within the next decade.


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main problems and obstacles

Next election-/ ideology-/ and lobby-driven actions / non-actions of governments / politicians (road tolling is a politically highly sensitive topic in all countries).

Lack of harmonization regarding traffic- / logistic-related taxes and regulations in Europe (the boundary conditions still vary substantially from country to country).

Misuse of the revenue (the user must experience benefits – in terms of reduced taxes and/ or improved traffic conditions / options).

>>> A consistent, fair and long-term-oriented road pricing policy has a viable chance to be accepted by the public (even by the lobby). Prerequisite for the success is a consistent, convincing and reliable Transport Policy.


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Dr.Eng. Andreas KossakAndreas Kossak Research & ConsultingMoorweg 6D – 22453 Hamburg

Phone: +49 40 553 24 58Fax: +49 40 553 65 59E-Mail: [email protected]

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