One euro per day: German environmental aid calls for more expensive resident parking

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Parking zone for residents in Freiburg: environmental aid calls for price increases

Photo: Philipp von Ditfurth / dpa

Anyone who parks near their home will soon have to pay significantly more – at least if the German Environmental Aid has its way.

The association demands from the federal states and cities that the fees for resident parking nationwide increase to at least 360 euros per year.

In many places, huge SUVs are still likely to deliver public space for a few cents a day, said environmental aid.

Many states and municipalities put the brakes on "reasonable fees" for resident parking, and with them the mobility turnaround.

Fees must be so high that people who are not dependent on their car question their car ownership.

Freiburg and Tübingen as role models

The environmental aid sees regulations in Freiburg and Tübingen as worthy of imitation.

In Freiburg, an average fee of 360 euros per year is planned.

According to the DUH, 480 euros per year are due for particularly large SUVs and pick-ups.

Tübingen requires an annual fee that is 50 percent higher for particularly heavy vehicles than for small cars, namely 180 euros.

According to environmental aid, municipalities such as Erfurt, Cologne and Stuttgart have the option of charging higher fees, but would not do so.

In mid-2020, the Bundestag and Bundesrat overturned a nationwide upper limit of EUR 30.70 per year for resident parking permits.

Since then, states and municipalities have been able to regulate the fees for urban districts with a significant lack of parking space.

The state governments can issue fee schedules for this purpose.

Cheap parking in EU comparison

Nevertheless, resident parking in Germany is still comparatively cheap.

Many cities abroad charge significantly higher fees.

According to the Agora Verkehrswende think tank, for example, a resident parking permit in Stockholm costs around 1,300 euros a year.

"The fees reflect neither the costs nor the actual benefit," it said in a paper submitted in January.

In Berlin, the coalition agreement between the SPD, the Greens and the Left states that by 2023 at the latest, the fees for the resident parking vignette should rise to 10 euros a month.

A resident parking permit currently costs EUR 10.20 per year.

rai/dpa