A deputy chairman of the German Police Union (GdP) has suggested that Berlin impose a citywide speed limit of 30 kilometres per hour.
GdP deputy chairman Michael Mertens has suggested that Berlin impose a 30 km / h speed limit on roads across the city.
Berlin currently has a 50 km / h speed limit on most roads and a 30 km / h limit on roads near schools and Kitas. Mertens believes a slower limit would keep pedestrians more safe.
People under the age of 15 and over the age of 75 are more likely to be involved in traffic accidents in Germany, and in 2023 pedestrians were the second-biggest group to be killed in traffic accidents, after drivers.
“Everyone is a pedestrian, even if they only walk to their car,” explained Mertens, adding that the prospective rule would hurt him as a driver, but that he is still in favour of it.
Mertens also suggested that money raised from speed violations could help to fund further transport security measures and quipped that Germany was the European “discounter of issuing fines”.
In response to his colleague’s proposal, GdP boss Stefan Weh said that 30km / h limits should not be imposed excessively, only in areas where slower speeds make sense. In 2024, an amendment to Germany’s traffic law made it easier for municipalities to impose 30km / h limits.
However, Weh admitted to reporters at the Berlin newsletter Tagesspiegel Checkpoint that excessive speed was the main reason for traffic accidents.
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