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Berlin (dpa) - In view of new mobility services and digital change, the federal government has modernized the transport service market in Germany.

The cabinet decided to reform the Passenger Transport Act.

For new mobility providers, existing barriers are to disappear and regulations on taxi and rental car traffic are to be changed.

Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) declared: “We want to bring modern, digital sharing and on-demand services to the streets and create a legally secure, innovation-friendly framework for them.

And that without any competitive disadvantages for the previous providers such as taxis or public transport. "

Union parliamentary group vice-president Ulrich Lange spoke of a “digital update” of passenger transport law.

A core of the amendment is the inclusion of a new form of transport, it is about so-called pooling offers.

Several passengers usually share a van, and orders are placed using a smartphone app.

Existing offers are currently running on the basis of an experimentation clause.

With the change in law, this should now be possible nationwide according to a uniform framework.

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The draft law is now going into parliamentary deliberations.

The Federal Council also has to agree.

The new regulation also provides for more flexible, orderable offers in local public transport.

Rural regions in particular should benefit from this.

Lange said there should be smaller, more flexible vehicles instead of regular buses, no longer on fixed routes and ordered via smartphone app.

The municipalities should be given extensive competencies in order to shape this locally in the way that is best for the citizens.

The so-called return obligation for rental cars without an order should be adhered to in principle.

Relaxation should be possible for long distances, but this should be determined by the municipalities.

The term rental car does not mean companies that rent rental cars - but companies that broker “rental cars” with drivers.

The obligation to return states that vehicles from these agents must return to the company headquarters after every trip and, unlike classic taxis, are not allowed to wait on the street for customers.

The taxi industry had strictly refused to abolish the obligation to return and warned of massive burglaries.

Michael Oppermann, Managing Director of the Federal Association of Taxi and Rental Cars, said the draft law leaves the central problems of tomorrow's mobility unsolved.

"The draft is not suitable to resolve the undersupply of mobility offers in rural areas beyond one's own car, nor will it be possible on this basis to master the proliferation of dumping traffic in large cities."

There is a considerable need for correction.

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The transport service broker Free Now also considers the planned reorganization to be inadequate.

"The reform is not a big hit," said Germany boss Alexander Mönch.

“There are still two differently regulated areas - one has complete price flexibility, the other is subject to rigid tariff regulations.

This can not go well."

It makes no sense to continue separating taxis and rental cars with a driver.

“Users want to get from A to B either the fastest or the cheapest.

One should now have taken the chance to simplify the system. "

Trade unions also called for improvements.

Verdi, the railway and transport union and the German trade union federation fear an increase in precarious working conditions.

So criticized DGB board member Stefan Körzell, Scheuer risked a new "low wage swamp" in the traffic.

The left-wing transport politician Jörg Cezanne said that with vague guidelines on the obligation to return rental cars and on social standards, it would not be possible to put a stop to dumping offers.

The ADAC, on the other hand, welcomed the draft as a good compromise between maintaining existing offers and allowing new mobility options.

"The consumer benefits from greater variety, greater flexibility and lower costs."

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201216-99-717559 / 2