More than a third of the population without adequate public transport offer: crisis of local public transport in Berlin
More than a third of the population without adequate public transport offer: crisis of local public transport in Berlin
The crisis of public transport and the illusion of equivalence
In the Federal Government's current report on the equivalence of living conditions, it becomes clear that public transport (public transport) is in a serious crisis. This was the result of a critical assessment by Christine Behle, the deputy chairman of the United Service Union (ver.di). According to the report, only half of the population find the public transport offer on site as sufficient. This means that the majority of people in many regions of the country are cut off from an attractive public transport. The reasons for this lie both in the insufficient funding of the municipal public transport and the lack of willingness to create attractive working conditions in order to gain sufficiently qualified staff and maintain traffic.
Another problem is that the expansion of public transport, which is urgently needed to combat climate change, is postponed to uncertain time. This is because the money is missing for the financing of the expansion. Although the federal and state governments agreed to ensure the financing of public transport by an expansion and modernization pact in 2021, there are signs that the current federal government no longer wants to edit this topic, although almost a third of the legislative period is imminent. This raises questions about prioritization and commitment of the federal government with regard to equivalent living conditions.
A particularly frustrating aspect of the report is that the public transport does not matter. When it comes to the accessibility of shopping, educational institutions and medical care, reference is made exclusively to the distance to the place of residence in car minutes. This represents a clear trivialization of the importance of public transport and shows that the federal government views the car as a benchmark for participation in society. However, this perspective is ignored by the fact that more than a third of the population does not have a driver's license or their own car. When it comes to equivalent living conditions, almost a third of the people in this country are ignored by the federal government.
It is clear that the equivalence of living conditions will remain an illusion without a functioning and attractive public transport. It is therefore time to seriously tackle the topic of public transport expansion and make the necessary funds available in order to enable all people, regardless of their place of residence or their possession of a car, to participate in our society. This responsibility is not only the federal government, but also the countries and municipalities. It is time to recognize the crisis of public transport and take measures to find a sustainable solution to this urgent problem.
v.i.S.d.P.
- Richard Rother
- ver.di federal board
- Paula-Thiede-Ufer 10
- 10179 Berlin
Tel.: 030/6956-1011, -1012
Email: pressestelle@verdi.de
Source: berlin