Mobility as a "luxury": Bundestag takes care of affordable driving license

Acquiring a driving license is too expensive for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag. After the parliamentary plenary addressed this issue in March under the motto "So that mobility does not become a luxury", the transport committee listened to experts on the subject. Their tenor was: In all efforts to reduce costs, road safety must come first. The experts did not always agree on other issues.

For example, Ulrich Chiellino, Head of Traffic Policy at the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (ADAC), said that a sense of proportion was required before compulsory learner driver tests were introduced to avoid additional costs. Most learner drivers pass the test at the first attempt despite all the complaints about high failure rates. Such offers should therefore be voluntary. Jürgen Kopp, Chairman of the Federal Association of Driving Instructor Associations (BVF), pleaded for mandatory learning progress checks. In the past 14 years of using digital learning programs, it has become clear "that you cannot leave pupils to learn on their own".

"Learner drivers with little prior knowledge"

According to driving instructor Bernd Blonsky, the driving lessons made the license expensive. The training requirements have not been greatly increased. However, today's learner drivers come to driving school "with a very low level of prior knowledge". This is not just about motor skills, but "about the road traffic system". Some learner drivers get by with ten to twelve hours of practice, while others need more than 100 hours. "That really costs money," said Blonsky.

Retests cost a lot of money as a result of high failure rates, explained Michael Bahr from the Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt). He considers an amendment to driver training to be necessary, as its legal basis was last amended in 1998. Current driver training lacks pedagogical and psychological control instruments. For Bahr, it is important to record learning progress and determine readiness for the test, "i.e. a preliminary test before the actual test". Driving instructors need to be supported so that this can be carried out to a high standard.

Ahmed Baziou, President of the Association of Innovative Driving Schools Germany (VIFD), saw the high training costs for driving instructors, inflation and increased vehicle costs as the main reasons for the increase in the cost of driving licenses. The expected changes to the learner driver training regulations in 2025 with additional training content could make the driving license even more expensive.

"Making the driving instructor profession more attractive"

Another cost lever for BVF Chairman Jürgen Kopp is the digital application process, which must be implemented quickly. "This is a real cost reduction if it doesn't take a four-week wait to submit the driving license application," said Kopp. For Richard Goebelt, Member of the Board of Management and Head of the Vehicle and Mobility Division at the TÜV Association, a digital application process would be a key element in relieving the burden on authorities, driving schools and TÜV. Goebelt rejected the idea of allowing driving license tests to be carried out by providers other than TÜV. Economic interests in a competitive situation would stand in the way of the current practice of offering a comprehensive range of tests.

Marc-Philipp Waschke from Auto Club Europa (ACE) advocated adapting the qualification requirements for driving license examiners and making the driving instructor profession more attractive. Integrating new training regulations and digital training elements could lead to a noticeable further development. Didactics and content must be geared towards today's teaching methods and new forms of mobility, said Waschke. There must also be a nationwide range of courses available at driving schools, even in rural areas, "that takes all social groups into account". ADAC representative Chiellino suggested a dual training system in which prospective driving instructors learn in an academy "and at the same time are already integrated into a driving school".

The car will continue to play an important role in the countryside in the future, said Michael Müller-Görnert, transport policy spokesman for Verkehrsclub Deutschland (VCD). Therefore, obtaining a driving license will remain an issue in the long term. However, it does not necessarily have to be linked to private ownership, he said, referring to car sharing. There are also many millions of people who are unable to drive for various reasons. These people also need a mobility service to enable them to participate.

(anw)