Rosenheim, 23 October 2023. The German Bundestag has decided to increase the truck toll on German federal and trunk roads. From 1 December 2023, CO2 emission classes will be introduced as a new tariff feature for the toll. As a result, a CO2 surcharge will be levied for the lorry toll. A surcharge of 200 euros per tonne will be payable.
The Rosenheim-based start-up maut1.de, provider of digital toll boxes for cars and trucks, criticises this decision and fears massive additional costs for freight forwarders and ultimately for consumers. "This will make the toll around 83 per cent more expensive for lorries that run on diesel," calculates maut1.de Managing Director Julian Schmelzer. "In addition, the truck toll will be extended from 1 July 2024: from vehicles currently weighing 7.5 tonnes or more to all vehicles weighing 3.5 tonnes or more."
The logical consequence for Schmelzer: "Haulage companies will have to pass the prices on to consumers and this will further fuel the already very high inflation in Germany." According to the ifo Institute, economic growth in Germany will be negative at minus 0.4 per cent in 2023. Schmelzer's fear: the increase in the toll will slow down the already weakening economy even more.
Hardly any alternatives to diesel vehicles
The truck industry has hardly any alternatives to diesel vehicles: "There is currently neither a sufficient charging infrastructure for electrically powered trucks, nor is there a sufficient supply of vehicles," says Schmelzer. The hydrogen sector is also still in its infancy. "The CO2 component, which is intended to control and reduce emissions, only causes additional costs without the freight industry having any serious alternatives - unlike in the passenger car sector," emphasises Schmelzer. "So this decision is nothing more than a hidden tax increase!“
Schmelzer's conclusion: "The introduction of a CO2 component in the toll is fundamentally correct and will make a contribution to climate protection. However, the introduction should be suspended and postponed, as there are no alternatives for haulage companies and the current economic situation does not permit this!“
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