Skip to main content

Germany’s toll plan could ‘generate US$540 million’

Germany's Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, has passed a law which would see the introduction of a road toll for cars registered abroad with prices linked to environmental criteria, according to Reuters. Under the toll, cars that pollute less will pay a lower rate. The maximum annual cost for a foreign vehicle would be US$141 (€130). Originally proposed in 2015, the law was disputed by the European Commission and other European countries, which claimed it would be discriminatory towards non-Germ
March 28, 2017 Read time: 1 min
Germany's Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, has passed a law which would see the introduction of  a road toll for cars registered abroad with prices linked to environmental criteria, according to Reuters. Under the toll, cars that pollute less will pay a lower rate. The maximum annual cost for a foreign vehicle would be US$141 (€130).

Originally proposed in 2015, the law was disputed by the European Commission and other European countries, which claimed it would be discriminatory towards non-German drivers and against EU rules. After the German transport minister agreed to compromises, the Commission eventually cleared the way for the law.

The German government expects the toll to generate around $540 million (€500 million) per year in revenues from foreign drivers.

Related Content

  • July 26, 2013
    DG MOVE’s Christos Economou on the EU’s vision for road transport
    Christos Economou, Deputy Head of Unit dealing with land transport within the European Commission’s DG MOVE, describes a new framework for road charging in Europe to Jason Barnes. Within the European Union (EU), two Directives shape the legislative framework on road charging. Directive 1999/62/EC sets up a number of rules to make sure that national road charging schemes do not distort competition on the internal market or discriminate between hauliers. It is misleadingly called ‘Eurovignette’ after the comm
  • January 15, 2016
    German transport minister clashed with EUI over road tolls
    During a visit to Brussels on 12 January, German Transport Minister, Alexander Dobrindt criticised the European Commission's infringement procedure against the German road tolls, expected to be introduced in 2017, reports EurActiv. “I'll tell Ms Bulc that her vision for an EU toll system, that clearly serves to burden German car drivers more, could break the German system. I have no support whatsoever for that proposal,” Dobrindt said of EU Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc's recent comments about the con
  • April 25, 2017
    EU proposing toll charges based on CO2 emissions
    The European Commission is aiming to cut road transport’s CO2 emissions and is proposing to introduce toll charges based on a vehicle’s emissions, according to Reuters. The proposal, which is expected to be published at the end of May, will also include buses and coaches as well as a requirement for motorists to pay according to the distance travelled. The proposal will keep the average level of tolls collected roughly constant, meaning more polluting vehicles will pay more while cleaner ones will pay less.
  • August 28, 2014
    Dutch to level EU protest against German toll plan
    A petition with almost 45,000 signatures will be submitted to the European Parliament on 2 September by the Royal Dutch Touring Club (ANWB) in protest at a proposed German road toll that will fall primarily on foreign drivers. The Dutch Club is urging the European Parliament to get involved and address the question of discrimination against international motorists. The ANWB will be represented by their President, Frits van Bruggen, and the European Parliament will be represented by Dutch MEP, Wim van de