Host Nation Update, April 3, 2023
49-Euro- Deutschland ticket for local public transportation and Regional Trains (NOT VALID FOR ICE TRAIN)
After a long dispute about financing, the 49-Euro-Ticket follow-up offer has now been decided and will be launched on May 1.
When will the ticket go on sale?
The official start of sales is today, Monday (April 3) – either online or at a Deutsche Bahn counter.
Can I buy the ticket on a monthly basis?
Yes. If new customers want to buy the ticket online, they must take out a new subscription by the 10th of each month in order to be able to use the Deutschlandticket on time in the following month.
For which period is the 49-euro ticket valid?
The Deutschlandticket is only valid for the current calendar month. So if you only decide on the 15th of a month, you will have to pay the full 49 euros for the period until the end of that month.
Where can I buy the ticket?
The ticket can be purchased at the ticket counter or booked digitally as a subscription.
Do I have to cancel the subscription?
If the subscription is not cancelled, it continues automatically. However, the ticket can be cancelled at the end of each month.
When can I start using the ticket?
From May 1, you can use the successor to the 9-euro ticket to travel throughout Germany on public transport.
Why is the 49-euro ticket coming?
The ticket is the successor to the 9-euro ticket, which was offered for a limited period of three months in the summer of 2022. The aim is to make public transportation more attractive and encourage more citizens to switch from cars to buses and trains.
How is the 49-euro ticket financed?
The federal government will contribute 1.5 billion euros a year for the period 2023 to 2025. The other half will be contributed by the federal states. The loss of revenue for the transport companies is to be offset because of the low ticket price, which is lower than the usual subscription rates.
How long will the price of 49 euros be valid?
That has not yet been finally clarified. The federal and state governments describe the 49 euros as an “introductory price.” Which means that later increases are possible. In any case, there is no price guarantee until the end of 2025. (Stuttgarter Nachrichten, April 3) For more information, please read our post on this topic: Discounted public transit tickets with state or nationwide validity now on sale – StuttgartCitizen.com
Böblingen/Schönaich: Online petition on wildlife accidents on the Panzerstraße
“Between Schönaich and Böblingen, there are repeated collisions between cars and wildlife. The county office currently does not consider this location to be a particularly accident-prone area.”
“Böblingen/Schönaich. Thursday evening, March 16th: emergency lights on the Panzerstraße from Schönaich towards Böblingen. A deer is lying in front of a car. It is conscious but severely injured and unable to escape. The police inform the responsible hunting lessee (name known to SZ/BZ), who has to come and put the animal out of its misery with a knife. Tragically, at that time, the deer was carrying two fawns in its belly, which also did not survive the accident.”
It is just one example of several deer accidents that occur in this place. Also a week later, in the morning hours of March 22, a deer lost its life in this way. In January, it was a fawn. Now an online petition on this issue is making the rounds on the Internet: “Stop the fatal wildlife accidents at the Armored Road,” demands initiator Nina Warga. With signatures (as of April 2: 318) one wants to stand up together for the deer of the Böblinger city forest. In addition, a game fence, a speed limit and the placement of several warning signs are demanded in the context of it. No game fence at this place in the comments of the petition among other things it comes up whether a game fence could not have been installed. In the course of the construction of the new cycle path, however, this would have been rejected: “The issue of game crossing along the Panzerstrasse had been discussed in detail between the responsible authorities in the district office, the city, the hunting community and the Forest Research Institute (FVA),” says Benjamin Lutsch, press spokesman for the Böblingen district office. It was agreed that the bike path would be built with an embankment so that the game would still have the opportunity to cross the road. Toad protection walls and amphibian tunnels were also built. “Wildlife fences in the area of the underpass were discussed, but were not considered effective by the wildlife research department of the FVA. After weighing the various concerns involved, it was ultimately decided not to do so.” After the construction phase, the district tenants optimized the underpass used by wildlife at their own expense by planting new shrubs – in the hope that they would then prefer to take the path under the bridge.
Every accident is one too many,” says the hunting leaseholder. In the last 12 months, three deer, one of them pregnant, have died that way. “This could have been prevented by reducing the speed limit.” Current speed limit is 100, the main accident site is between Gate 4 of the tank barracks and the traffic circle at the entrance to Schönaich. “We are talking about a kilometer stretch here and a section of 200 to 300 meters where the game changes the road,” says the hunter in charge. Here, he says, a maximum speed limit of 100 kilometers per hour applies to road users. On the further armored road, 70 applies. According to information from the German Hunting Association, if a deer appears 60 meters away, a motorist can just about stop at 80 kilometers per hour. At 100 kilometers per hour, the collision cannot be avoided. At this speed, the car is still traveling at more than 60 kilometers per hour. The impact weight of a 25 kilogram roebuck is then 800 kilograms. The district office sees no need for action at present on inquiry of the SZ/BZ. “Since there were only three accidents with wild animals along the armored road last year, the measures agreed upon at that time with all parties involved are effective,” says Benjamin Lutsch. No accident black spot in terms of wildlife accidents would be identifiable here. (SZBZ 20 April. 2023)