Traffic volume is falling despite increasing car registrations
(dpa/Car Whiz/KI) Despite an increasing number of cars in Germany, traffic volumes on highways remain below the level before the Corona crisis. A study by the consulting firm KCW, carried out on behalf of Agora Verkehrswende, shows that traffic volumes on these roads will still be around 7 percent below the 2019 level in 2023, even without lockdowns.
According to figures from the Federal Motor Transport Authority, which are cited in the study, at the end of last year there were more than 49 million cars registered in Germany, a historic high. The presumed reason for the lower traffic volume is that fewer people commute.
Home office a possible cause
According to a survey by the ifo Institute, around a quarter of all employees worked from home in February 2024, a figure that has remained almost constant since the pandemic-related home office requirement was lifted in April 2022. This means that traffic volumes are more than twelve percent lower than in 2019, especially during morning rush hours.
Public transport, on the other hand, can hardly benefit from this development. Although rail traffic volumes in regional and long-distance transport are above pre-corona levels, the number of public transport users is still lower than before the pandemic. This means that fewer passengers are traveling longer distances. The share of the various modes of transport – the so-called modal split – has therefore changed little. At the end of 2023, the share of public transport in total transport performance was around ten percent, similar to May 2017, while private motorized transport, especially private cars, accounted for just under 60 percent. Overall, fewer people are generally on the move than before the pandemic.
