Speed limits in Germany (German: ''Geschwindigkeitsbegrenzung'') are set by the federal government. All limits are multiples of 10 km/h. There are two default speed limits: 50 km/h (31 mph) inside built-up areas and 100 km/h (62 mph) outside built-up areas. While parts of the autobahns and many other freeway-style highways have posted limits up to 130 km/h (81 mph) based on accident experience, congestion and other factors, many rural sections have no general speed limit. The German Highway Code (''Straßenverkehrsordnung'') section on speed begins with the requirement which may be rendered in English:
Any person driving a vehicle may only drive so fast that the car is under control. Speeds must be adapted to the road, traffic, visibility and weather conditions as well as the personal skills and characteristics of the vehicle and load.
This requirement applies to all roads, and is similar to the "reasonable speed" legal obligation levied in other nations.
Speed limits are enforced with a small tolerance. Driving merely 3 km/h (2 mph) or faster above the posted or implied speed limit is considered a punishable infraction in Germany. The speeding fines are set by federal law (''Bußgeldkatalog'', schedule of fines).
History
The
Nazi-era Road Traffic Act of 28 May 1934 imposed the first nationwide speed limit: maximum in urban areas, but no limit on rural highways or autobahns. In October 1939, the
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
further throttled speeds in order to conserve fuel: in urban areas, elsewhere. After the war, the
four Allied occupation zones established their own speed limits until the divided
East German
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
and
West German
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
republics were constituted in 1949; initially, the Nazi speed limits were restored in both East and West Germany.
In December 1952 the West German legislature voted to abolish ''all'' speed limits, reverting to State-level decisions. However, rising traffic fatalities led to a partial reversal: an urban speed limit of became effective 1 September 1957, despite resistance by the
German Auto Club. By 1970, fatalities had climbed to over 19,000; in 1972 a general rural speed limit of went into effect—except on motorways. At 14 November 1983 the
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
suburb of
Buxtehude
Buxtehude (), officially the Hanseatic City of Buxtehude (german: Hansestadt Buxtehude, nds, Hansestadt Buxthu ()), is a town on the Este River in Northern Germany, belonging to the district of Stade in Lower Saxony. It is part of the Hamburg ...
had the first implementation of limits in residential areas, a concept that became popular.
East Germany's safety efforts primarily focused on restrictive traffic regulation; for examples, zero alcohol tolerance, on autobahns and outside cities. Within two years after
German reunification
German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...
in 1990, the availability of high-powered vehicles and a 54% increase in motorized traffic led to a doubling of annual traffic deaths, ''despite'' interim continuation of prior speed restrictions. An extensive program of the four Es (enforcement, education, engineering, and emergency response) brought the number of traffic deaths back to pre-unification levels after ten years while traffic regulations were conformed to western standards (e.g., 130 km/h (81 mph) Autobahn advisory limit, 100 km/h (62 mph) on other rural roads, and 0.5 milligrams BAC.
Autobahns
![Zeichen 282](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Zeichen_282_-_Ende_s%C3%A4mtlicher_Streckenverbote%2C_StVO_1970.svg)
German
autobahn
The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'. ...
s are famous for having no universal motorway speed limit, although about 30% of them do have some kind of temporary or permanent limit. Roughly 21% of German motorways have static limits (temporary or permanent) indicated by traditional traffic signs. An additional 9% are equipped with motorway control systems that can show variable speed limits depending on time, weather or traffic. Most of these are switched off (= no limit) under good conditions. In sections of the motorway system without speed limit it is common to be overtaken by cars or motorcycles travelling over 200 km/h (125 mph). However, a recommended speed limit (''
Richtgeschwindigkeit
An advisory speed limit is a speed recommendation by a governing body, used when it may be non-obvious to the driver that the safe speed is below the legal speed. It is a posting which either approximates the Basic Speed Law or rule (and is s ...
'') of 130 km/h (81 mph) applies. While driving at higher speeds is not punishable, the increased risk induced by higher speeds (''erhöhte Betriebsgefahr'') may result in partial liability for damages. Moreover, the law forbids travel at speeds that would extend the vehicle's minimum halting distance beyond the driver's line of sight (''
Sicherheitsabstand''). On all German roads, there are speed limits for trucks, buses, cars towing trailers, and small motorised vehicles (
moped
A moped ( ) is a type of small motorcycle, generally having a less stringent licensing requirement than full motorcycles or automobiles. The term used to mean a similar vehicle except with both bicycle pedals and a motorcycle engine. Mopeds typic ...
s, etc.).
Public opinion
Surveys and associations
![Ampel Sondierungen and FridaysForFuture protest 2021-10-15 165](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Ampel_Sondierungen_and_FridaysForFuture_protest_2021-10-15_165.jpg)
The introduction of a national speed limit for motorways and similar roads has been on the agenda of various political and environmentalist groups for decades, but at present, there are no plans on behalf of the federal government regarding the matter. However, most Germans are in favour of a general speed limit.
In May 2020, the made a tight decision in favor of a general speed limit of 130 kilometers per hour on autobahns.
The annual general meeting of the (ACE) also voted for a speed limit of 130 km/h on the autobahn in November 2019.
The ACE chairman Stefan Heimlich welcomed the decision of the DVR and described it as „richtig und wichtig“ ("right and important").
The (VCD) advocates the introduction of a generally applicable maximum speed of 120 kilometers per hour on autobahns and expects this measure to provide more climate protection, higher traffic safety, fewer traffic jams due to lower speed differences and better efficiency for new vehicles, since a speed limit would end „das
..Wettrüsten um immer schnellere Autos
..€œ ("the
...arms race for ever faster cars
..).
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...
calls for a general speed limit on German highways, arguing that it would prevent traffic fatalities and protect the environment, that the majority of Germans are in favor of it, and that it would spur the construction of fuel-efficient cars. A general speed limit is "the fastest and cheapest measure to reduce greenhouse gases in the transport sector."
The nature conservation association
WWF calls for a speed limit of 120 kilometers per hour on motorways.
In 2005, the (SRU) proposed a speed limit of 120 kilometers per hour on the autobahn.
The
Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy
The Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy (official German name: ) is a German research institution for sustainability research focusing on impacts and practical application. It explores and develops models, strategies and inst ...
also advocates the introduction of a speed limit on German highways.
The
Deutsche Umwelthilfe
Deutsche Umwelthilfe e.V. (DUH, using the English name Environmental Action Germany) is a non-profit environmental and consumer protection association, supported by public and private project grants and donations. It is a member of the European Env ...
is calling for a general speed limit of 100 km/h during the day and 120 km/h at night on autobahns, hoping that this will lead to greater climate protection and traffic safety, a better flow of traffic, a more relaxed driving situation and a redirection from building faster cars to more efficient ones.
The
Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland
Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland (; BUND, ) is a German non-governmental organisation (NGO) dedicated to preserving nature and protecting the environment. The name means "German Federation for the Environment and Nature Conservation". ...
is in favour of a general speed limit, claiming it "would solve several problems at the same time" and "all rational reasons speak for it".
The
Gewerkschaft der Polizei
The Gewerkschaft der Polizei (GdP; en, Trade Union of the Police) is a trade union in Germany. It represents 181,000 police employees, and is one of eight industrial affiliations of the German Confederation of Trade Unions (DGB). The GdP is one ...
also advocates a general speed limit of 130 kilometers per hour on German motorways and argued: „Wir könnten
amit
Amit is a male given name of Indian or Hebrew origin.
In Hindi, Amit ( hi, अमित, means "infinite" or "boundless", bn, অমিত) originates from the Sanskrit word ' (अमित:), ' (अमित:) essentially is the negation of ' ...
Menschenleben retten und schwer Verletzte verhindern“ ("We could save lives and prevent seriously injured people
ith that).
In 2021, the
Umweltbundesamt
The Umweltbundesamt (; UBA, ) is the ''German Environment Agency''. Together with the Bundesamt für Naturschutz, the Bundesamt für kerntechnische Entsorgungssicherheit and the Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz, it operates under the jurisdiction o ...
advocated the introduction of a speed limit on freeways of 120 kilometers per hour.
The called for a maximum speed limit of 130 km/h on highways in 2021.
The
Evangelical Church in Central Germany
The Evangelical Church in Central Germany (German: ''Evangelische Kirche in Mitteldeutschland''; ''EKM'') is a United church body covering most of the German states of Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia and some adjacent areas in Brandenburg and Saxony.
...
(EKM) submitted a petition to the Bundestag in 2019 for the introduction of a general speed limit of 130 kilometers per hour on motorways in Germany.
With this measure, the EKM expects, among other things, more environmental protection and traffic safety.
The calls for the introduction of a speed limit to save energy and reduce direct and indirect health hazards of road traffic.
According to a club-internal survey, 44% of
ADAC
ADAC, officially the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (), is Europe's largest motoring association. ADAC is the largest club (Verein) in Germany with around 21 million members. It would be more aptly described today as an individual mobi ...
members were against a general speed limit in 2022, while 52% are in favor of it.
According to a survey which should primarily focus on bans and the respondents' subjective feeling of freedom associated with them conducted by the
Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion Research
The Allensbach Institute, formally the Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion Research or Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion Polling (german: Institut für Demoskopie Allensbach), is a private polling institute based in Allensbach, Baden-Wà ...
, which belongs to the
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
political spectrum, approval of a 130 km/h speed limit on highways was 22% in 2021.
In a representative survey conducted by the German online statistics portal
Statista
 
Statista is an online platform specialized in market and consumer data, which offers statistics & reports, market insights, cosumer insights and company insights in German, English, Spanish and French. In addition to publicly available thi ...
in 2020, 64% of the 2,115 respondents said that a 130 km/h speed limit should either "definitely" or "rather" be introduced on German highways.
According to a 2021 survey conducted by the
Versicherung Allianz Direct, around 71% of Germans are in favour of a speed limit on the autobahn.
According to a representative poll conducted by
YouGov
YouGov is a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm, headquartered in the UK, with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In 2007, it acquired US company Polimetrix, and sinc ...
in April 2022, 57% of the 2054 German respondents were in favor of a general speed limit of 130 km/h on autobahns, while 33% were against it and 10% were unsure.
As part of its "TÃœV Mobility Study 2022", the German
Technical Inspection Agency (TÃœV) asked various questions about the topic automobile in Germany.
According to the study, 56% of Germans are in favor of a 130 km/h speed limit on the autobahn, while 37% are opposed to the measure.
Politics
A majority of the
CDU/
CSU
CSU may refer to:
* Channel service unit, a Wide area network equivalent of a network interface card
* Chari Aviation Services, Chad, by ICAO airline code
* Christian Social Union (UK), an Anglican social gospel organisation
* Christian Social Un ...
,
SPD
The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany.
Saskia Esken has been the ...
,
AfD and
FDP parliamentary groups rejected a general speed limit of 130 km/h on the autobahn in the 2019
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...
, the parliamentary groups from
Bündnis 90/Die Grünen
Alliance 90/The Greens (german: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, ), often simply referred to as the Greens ( ), is a green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 as the merger of The Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (for ...
and the
Left Party voted in favor of it.
Overall, 70% of MPs voted against the speed limit, 18% in favor, 1% abstained and 11% did not take part in the vote.
The SPD parliamentary group declared that it only voted against the speed limit because it did not succeed in convincing its coalition partner CDU/CSU parliamentary group of this.
In 2020, the
Bundesrat rejected a speed limit on autobahns, which was requested by its environmental committee.
Arguments
The news website
Business Insider
''Insider'', previously named ''Business Insider'' (''BI''), is an American financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Insider''s parent company Insider Inc. has been owned by the German publ ...
believes the lack of a general speed limit on autobahns is holding back the development of
autonomous vehicles
Vehicular automation involves the use of mechatronics, artificial intelligence, and multi-agent systems to assist the operator of a vehicle (car, aircraft, watercraft, or otherwise).Hu, J.; Bhowmick, P.; Lanzon, A.,Group Coordinated Control o ...
in Germany.
For example, the massive differences in speed among road users on autobahns pose a problem for self-driving cars.
The Federal Managing Director of the
Deutsche Umwelthilfe
Deutsche Umwelthilfe e.V. (DUH, using the English name Environmental Action Germany) is a non-profit environmental and consumer protection association, supported by public and private project grants and donations. It is a member of the European Env ...
sees this as a threat to the future of the German automotive industry with regard to autonomous driving: „Man kann moderne, digitale, autonome Fahrzeuge nicht testen, solange man befürchten muss, dass links ein Wagen mit 250 Stundenkilometern vorbeischießt.“ ("You cannot test modern, digital, autonomous vehicles as long as you have to fear that a car will shoot past at 250 kilometers per hour on the left.")
In terms of
range
Range may refer to:
Geography
* Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra)
** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands
* Range, a term used to i ...
and
energy efficiency
Energy efficiency may refer to:
* Energy efficiency (physics), the ratio between the useful output and input of an energy conversion process
** Electrical efficiency, useful power output per electrical power consumed
** Mechanical efficiency, a ra ...
, drivers of
electric car
An electric car, battery electric car, or all-electric car is an automobile that is propelled by one or more electric motors, using only energy stored in batteries. Compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, electric cars are quie ...
s need a stable flow of traffic that rarely requires braking and then accelerating, which is beneficial or even necessary to ensure a long-term return on investment. Such a traffic flow could be achieved with the help of a speed limit through more even speeds.
A study from
Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...
came to the conclusion that a speed limit on autobahns could harmonize the flow of traffic and increase the road capacity.
Furthermore, if a speed limit of 130 km/h were introduced on previously unrestricted sections of the Brandenburg autobahns, the reduction in accident costs (€22.5 million) would be higher than the increase in time costs (€17.2 million) that occur at lower speeds due to longer travel times.
Many congestion and traffic researchers believe that with a speed limit, traffic flow would improve due to smaller speed differentials and accompanying more consistent travel speeds, which would increase road capacity and reduce the risk of accidents and congestion.
Some experts therefore even assume that with a speed limit, the average speed on autobahns could increase.
Michael Müller-Görnert, transport policy spokesman for the VCD, assumes that travel times could be shorter in the long term if a speed limit is introduced.
According to Professor Stefan Bauernschuster, Chair of Public Economics at the
University of Passau
The University of Passau (''Universität Passau'' in German) is a public research university located in Passau, Lower Bavaria, Germany. Founded in 1973, it is the youngest university in Bavaria and consequently has the most modern campus in the s ...
, a speed limit would save time for all truck drivers as well as the up to 70% of drivers who do not drive much faster than 130 km/h, even on unlimited autobahns, because the lower probability and severity of accidents would result in fewer accident-related traffic jams and closures.
Only those drivers who drive significantly faster than the recommended speed of 130 km/h would lose time as a result of the introduction of a speed limit.
Also, according to the results of a study on the effects of a speed limit from Brandenburg, the introduction of a speed limit on highways has the potential to reduce travel times for all road users due to the harmonization of speeds and the associated reduced risk of congestion.
In addition, the study concluded that one lane on highways with a speed limit can accommodate about 100 more cars per hour compared to one on unlimited highways.
A speed limit would also reduce CO
2 emissions.
A general speed limit on autobahns is considered to be a quickly implementable, cost-effective, overviewable, realistic, consistent and certainly effective measure for climate protection.
Tire abrasion caused by fast driving and frequent braking and acceleration, which leads to
particulate matter
Particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter (PM) or suspended particulate matter (SPM) – are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. The ter ...
, could also be reduced by a speed limit. The overall need for tires and thus also for
natural rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...
could also be reduced due to the lower wear.
Professors Stefan Bauernschuster and Christian Traxler, from the
Hertie School
The Hertie School (until 2019 Hertie School of Governance) is a German private, independent graduate school for governance (public policy, international affairs and data science) located in Berlin's Friedrichstraße. Hertie School is according t ...
, argue in a 2021 study paper that since emissions of pollutants increase disproportionately at high speeds, a speed limit could be beneficial to
health
Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...
by reducing air pollution. Using small-scale geographic grid data from
RWI Essen
The RWI – Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Essen (RWI Essen) is an independent economic research institute and think tank in Essen, Germany. Founded in 1926, the RWI maintains a non-profit status, mainly funded through public means ...
, they show that 14.9 million people in Germany live within two kilometers of the nearest stretch of highway without a speed limit. These values indicate that a significant portion of the population could benefit directly from the reduction in emissions associated with a speed limit.
Furthermore, a speed limit would reduce noise pollution.
In addition, production costs and thus the final costs of cars could be reduced if they no longer had to be designed for high speeds.
A speed limit could also reduce land consumption for the routing of highways and thus the costs for new construction, expansion and maintenance.
An often cited argument for a general speed limit is also that it would reduce the number of road accidents. (For further information about safety figures on speed-limited and unlimited autobahns, see
Autobahn#Safety.)
Some traffic researchers, such as Harald Kipke, expect the introduction of a general speed limit on autobahns to also improve safety on rural roads, because after a fast highway trip, the maximum speed of 100 km/h feels particularly slow on rural roads, making it harder for drivers to judge speeds and dangers there.
History
In the wake of the
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis or first oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo was targeted at nations that had supp ...
, a federal speed limit of 100 km/h (62 mph) on Autobahns was imposed to help save fuel and mitigate impending future shortages. Environmental or safety concerns were not considered at the time. The measure only lasted from December 1973 to March 1974; while the
Schmidt
Schmidt may refer to:
* Schmidt (surname), including list of people with the surname
* Schmidt (singer) (born 1990), German pop and jazz singer
* Schmidt (lunar crater), a small lunar impact crater
* Schmidt (Martian crater), a List of craters on ...
administration and the
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...
were in favor of keeping the speed limit, the
Bundesrat successfully pushed to repeal the law in early 1974. As a compromise, a non-binding ''advisory speed limit (Empfohlene Richtgeschwindigkeit)'' was later introduced in 1978 on Autobahns and ''"highways outside of built-up areas with a
center divide or without a centre divide and a continuous lane for
overtaking
Overtaking or passing is the act of one vehicle going past another slower moving vehicle, travelling in the same direction, on a road. The lane used for overtaking another vehicle is often a passing lane farther from the road shoulder which i ...
in both directions"''.
As a kind of ''
gentlemen's agreement
A gentlemen's agreement, or gentleman's agreement, is an informal and legally non-binding agreement between two or more parties. It is typically oral, but it may be written or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or th ...
'' between the German government and the country's car industry, German automakers then limited their high-performance cars to a top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph), a rule that is still adhered to today for standard production cars. The 1978 law is basically still in effect today, although unrestricted non-Autobahn highways have since become virtually non-existent.
In contrast to the idea of being non-binding, a 1992 decision by Germany's
Federal Court of Justice
The Federal Court of Justice (german: Bundesgerichtshof, BGH) is the highest court in the system of ordinary jurisdiction (''ordentliche Gerichtsbarkeit'') in Germany, founded in 1950. It has its seat in Karlsruhe with two panels being situat ...
stated that the advisory speed limit must be observed, and that a motorist causing an accident at higher speeds cannot claim ''unforeseeable events'' as a defense. While this ruling had implications for the liability for accidents above 130 km/h, the advisory speed limit still today is not a mandatory top speed as such for travel on stretches of unrestricted Autobahn, and exceeding it is not illegal.
The ''Umweltbundesamt (Federal Environmental Agency)'' repeated its recommendation of a binding blanket speed limit in early 2007, but the
Merkel administration saw no need for it. A 2007 party convention held by the
SPD
The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany.
Saskia Esken has been the ...
resulted in the addition of a call for an Autobahn speed limit to the party's
platform
Platform may refer to:
Technology
* Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run
* Platform game, a genre of video games
* Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models
* Weapons platform, a system or ...
, against resistance within the SPD's own ranks. Although the SPD was in a government coalition with Angela Merkel's
CDU at the time, the administration officially rejected the proposal.
Even without a blanket speed limit, state and even local authorities have the power to restrict speeds. The district of
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
has posted a speed limit on the heavily frequented
Kölner Autobahnring
The Cologne Beltway (German:''Kölner Autobahnring'') is the collective term for the Autobahns encircling Cologne. It consists of the Bundesautobahn 1, the Bundesautobahn 3 and the Bundesautobahn 4. Segments of the beltway handle the highest ...
/ (
Cologne Beltway
The Cologne Beltway (German:''Kölner Autobahnring'') is the collective term for the Autobahns encircling Cologne. It consists of the Bundesautobahn 1, the Bundesautobahn 3 and the Bundesautobahn 4. Segments of the beltway handle the highest t ...
). Effective 9 April 2008, the City-State of
Bremen
Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...
enacted a 120 km/h (75 mph) speed limit as state law, citing environmental concerns. Most Bremen motorways already had some speed restriction due to congestion and noise, and the new measure only affected 11 km (6.8 miles) of previously unrestricted Autobahn.
After over a decade of almost complete absence from political discourse, the issue of imposing a blanket maximum speed limit on German Autobahns was readdressed by a German federal government committee on the future of mobility and emission reduction in January 2019. In its first preliminary report, the committee recommended higher fuel prices and the introduction of an Autobahn speed limit among other measures. German transport minister
Andreas Scheuer collectively called the plans laid out in the report as „gegen jeden Menschenverstand“ ("going against all common sense").
Merkel cabinet speaker
Steffen Seibert
Steffen Rüdiger Seibert (born 7 June 1960 in Munich) is a German journalist who served as head of the German Federal Government's Press and Information Office and as the German government's spokesperson from 2010 to 2021. During his tenure, Seib ...
subsequently clarified that there were no plans for a general speed limit.
Minimum speed
Posted minimum speeds usually only apply to specific lanes like the common configuration on 6-lane roads with a minimum speed of 110 km/h (68 mph) on the left and 90 km/h (56 mph) on the centre lane. Vehicles which cannot sustain speeds of 60 km/h (37 mph) on the flat are not allowed on the Autobahn, however. Because of this, many European self-propelled cranes and other extra-heavy trucks which would be unsafe at much higher speeds, but similarly unsafe or impractical (and certainly obstructive) to drive for long distances on surface streets between job sites and depots, are engineered with maximum design speeds a little over 60 km/h - typically 62 km/h (39 mph) at governed engine speed in top gear.
Advisory speed
The nationwide
advisory speed limit
An advisory speed limit is a speed recommendation by a governing body, used when it may be non-obvious to the driver that the safe speed is below the legal speed. It is a posting which either approximates the Basic Speed Law or rule (and is ...
(''Richtgeschwindigkeit'') in Germany is 130 km/h since 1978.
This advisory speed limit is taken into account by the case law. For instance someone who exceeds the target speed by about 60 percent, for no other reason than reaching home earlier, forbids any capacity to avoid an accident. A speed of 200 kilometres per hour makes it impossible to fastly avoid dangerous situations while compliance with 130 km/h and only moderate braking would have prevented the accident.
Maximum speed limit
Some classes of vehicle have specific speed limit, such as trucks.
Accident statistics
Other roads
Rural roads, except for motorways or other designated fast roads, have a speed limit of 100 km/h, which is routinely reduced to 70 km/h or 80 km/h where the road approaches a junction with a significant side-road. Tree-lined scenic routes, such as the
German Avenue Road, often have 70 km/h limits.
Lorries
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...
, some buses, and cars towing trailers have lower speed limits as well.
In 2015, the German Safety Council recommended that the general limit is set at 80 km/h for rural roads narrower than 6 m. The proposed speed would reduce the differential with trucks 3.5 tonne lorries, which generally travel at 60 km/h. In 2013, rural roads spanned approximately 200,000 km, with at least 1,934 deaths on them.
City limits
There is a general speed limit within built up areas, which are marked by distinctive rectangular yellow signs showing the name of the village, town or city, of 50 km/h but residential areas usually have a lower posted speed limit of 30 km/h. On arterial roads, the speed limit may be raised to 60 or 70 km/h; this higher speed limit will be posted in the usual way. Motorways crossing cities count as normal autobahns and can be used for travel within larger cities in many cases.
Minimum speeds are very rarely marked in Germany.
Truck speed limits
There is a general speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph) for trucks with a
GVWR
Vehicle weight is a measurement of wheeled motor vehicles; either an actual measured weight of the vehicle under defined conditions or a gross weight rating for its weight carrying capacity.
Curb or kerb weight
Curb weight (U.S. English) or kerb ...
over 3,500 kg (7,716 lbs) and for vehicles with trailers. For vehicles with a GVWR of over 7,500 kg (16,534 lbs) the limit is set to 60 km/h (37 mph) except on autobahns (also 80 km/h). For
coaches
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Coac ...
and cars with trailers the limit is increased to 100 km/h on autobahns (under certain requirements). Posted speed signs for trucks are not common, they can be seen on some dangerous curves or descents.
Trucks over 3,500 kg are required to have a built-in
speed limiter
A speed limiter is a governor used to limit the top speed of a vehicle. For some classes of vehicles and in some jurisdictions they are a statutory requirement, for some other vehicles the manufacturer provides a non-statutory system which may b ...
for a maximum speed of 90 km/h (56 mph), and buses for a maximum speed of 100 km/h (62 mph).
[Straßenverkehrs-Zulassungs-Ordnung (road traffic admission regulation]
§ 57c
/ref> There are a few exceptions for army, police, fire brigade or scientific purposes.
References
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Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
Road transport in Germany