Transport: One in three people feel poorly connected by bus and train

According to a study, one in three citizens in Germany is dissatisfied with the local public transport options in their own place of residence. 33 percent of those surveyed said no to the question of whether they felt well connected to their place of residence by bus and train, according to the mobility barometer from the opinion research institute Kantar.

In the representative survey commissioned by the interest groups Allianz pro Schiene, BUND and the German Road Safety Council, more than 2,000 people aged 14 and over were surveyed by telephone and online in September and October 2024.

A majority also stated that their public transport connections had not improved in recent years. When asked whether the number of departures at the nearest stop had improved or worsened over the past five years, 15 percent said it had gotten worse. 68 percent see no change. 17 percent spoke of an improvement.

However, the distance to the nearest stop is not a problem for most people. Almost nine out of ten people (89 percent) are satisfied with it.

From the perspective of many cyclists, safe cycle paths are in short supply

The participants were also asked whether they felt safe cycling and walking. Not even one in two people (44 percent) said that there were enough safe cycle paths available to them. More than one in four cyclists (27 percent) see regression in this area and feel more unsafe than they did five years ago.

Almost half (48 percent) see no change, whereas one in four feel safer (25 percent). Almost one in four people (23 percent) feel less safe when walking, 62 percent see no change and 15 percent feel safer than they did five years ago.

The three associations are using the findings as an opportunity to call for “a paradigm shift in transport policy”. “There will probably be a lot of talk about cars again in the election campaign and coalition agreement. Our survey shows that people want more local public transport, they want safe cycle paths and they want to travel on foot without hesitation,” said Tina Töpferend from BUND.