Some modern Germans consider speed a relic of the past and demand the introduction of limits
As "Russkaya Germaniya" notes, Germany is still the only country in Europe (not counting the Isle of Man, which, however, has no autobahns but has high-speed highways) where there are fundamentally no limits. About 30% of German autobahn sections have limits, with a total length of almost 13,000 kilometers. On the remaining 70% of roads, you can drive at any speed that the car and driver are capable of.
Throughout the post-war history of West Germany, it was believed that a government official insisting on introducing speed limits was digging his own political grave. However, times are changing, environmental considerations are occupying an increasing place in the minds of many residents of the country, and a number of German newsmakers are advocating that free citizens do not need to fly, but simply drive – as is customary almost everywhere in Europe, at a speed no higher than 130 kilometers per hour.
Road death statistics are declining year by year; fresh data for 2019 again turned out to be record low: compared to 2010, 16.5% fewer road users died in Germany. Nevertheless, speeding is one of the main causes of death for drivers, motorcyclists, cyclists, and pedestrians.
Overall, on all roads, it is the third most common cause of death, and on autobahns, it is the leading cause, although fewer people die there than on regular highways, where limits exist but compliance is not always guaranteed. Nevertheless, almost half of those who lose their lives on autobahns die precisely because of high speed, and 71% of fatal accidents occur on sections without limits.
Overall, the claim that fewer people would die on roads if speed on autobahns were limited is well supported by statistics. But environmental considerations are even more important: emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere would decrease with the introduction of a limit, which is one of the government's primary goals.
In 2018, the transport sector became the third factor in greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Federal Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA), transport produced 164 million tons of emissions, 88% of which was carbon dioxide. The higher the speed of a car, the higher the fuel consumption and, accordingly, the more carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere.
According to the UBA, a limit would save between 1.9 and 5.4 million tons of CO2 per year: a limit of 130 km/h would save 1.9 million tons of carbon dioxide, 120 km/h – 2.6 million, and a 100 km/h limit would save 5.4 million tons of emissions.
Unsurprisingly, the first, and quite early, to advocate for speed limits on German autobahns were the Greens. Co-chairman of the party Robert Habeck, one of the most likely candidates for the post of federal chancellor from the environmentalists in the 2021 elections, recently made a specific statement: if the Greens enter a government coalition of any color (and today, according to sociologists, their alliance with the "black" conservatives is the most likely political future for Germany), their first demand would be the introduction of a limit.
The argument, once again proclaimed by the second major opposition force, the Free Democratic Party (FDP), that a speed limit is a curtailment of civil liberties (liberal leader Christian Lindner usually drives a Porsche), Robert Habeck considers "laughable": "In Germany, there is no legal right to drive at unlimited speed."
A more serious surprise was the lack of categorical rejection of a potential speed limit by the country's leading conservative. The appearance of limits on autobahns in the near future is quite possible, according to Markus Söder – Prime Minister of Bavaria, leader of the Christian Social Union, and the country's most popular politician in light of the decisive fight against coronavirus. The CSU itself previously habitually opposed any speed limit. Söder, however, has long been building an image of a "green" conservative – any party lacking an environmental agenda is doomed to lose votes, so the position of the CSU head on the speed issue should no longer cause much surprise.
Overall, both Markus Söder and Robert Habeck echo public opinion, which already prevails in the country. As sociologists from the Kantar institute found, 54% of German residents – albeit a slight majority – support the introduction of a speed limit of 130 km/h on autobahns. 43% of Germans are against the limit, and the remaining 3% are undecided.
The political preferences of those for and against the limit are interesting: overall, it is supported by voters of the four main parties that have the greatest chances of forming a government after the upcoming elections in 14 months, as well as the Left Party. Among its voters, there are the most supporters of speed limits – 78%. The Greens are not far behind: 74% of those supporting the environmentalists would welcome the introduction of a speed limit on autobahns. Among supporters of the Social Democrats, 71% support the idea of limiting speed. Finally, 56% of CDU/CSU voters also said "yes" to the limit. The fewest supporters are among those who vote for the FDP (46%) and the Alternative for Germany (18%).