The city of Tübingen has become the first in Germany to make use of a rule change that allows municipalities to set the price of resident parking permits themselves. From next year, charges will increase by as much as 600 percent, with larger cars paying the most, in an attempt to deter people from driving in the city. 

Parking permits in Tübingen to cost six times as much

The Green mayor of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg, Boris Palmer, has found himself at the centre of a row after releasing details of a plan to raise the cost of residential parking permits - which above all targets large cars like SUVs. 

According to the Stuttgarter Zeitung, people in Tübingen will soon pay 180 euros per year for a permit for cars that weigh more than 1.800 kilograms, and for electric cars that weigh more than 2.000 kilograms. This is a 600-percent increase on the current charge of 30 euros per year. For smaller cars, the charge will be 120 euros per year. Palmer originally wanted to increase the fee to 360 euros, but failed to win enough support to carry this through. 

He has said that people on social security will only pay half of the fee, while exceptions will also be made for people with disabilities and care workers who are dependent on their vehicles to carry out their jobs. 

Boris Palmer says driving is massively subsidised in Germany

The mayor, who is well-known for his controversial proposals and outspoken demeanour, said the aim was to encourage drivers to leave their cars at home and use public transport instead. In a Facebook post, he said that drivers already benefited from substantial state subsidies. 

“You didn’t pay for the roads,” he wrote. “Neither do you pay enough taxes. Your favourite form of transport is massively subsidised as it is, by all other taxpayers and the next generation. If prices were to reflect the real amount you should be paying, a parking space would have cost not 30 euros a year, but 3.000.” 

In the row that followed, Palmer was accused by one city resident of pursuing a “personal campaign against cars and their owners”, but he refused to give in, and further suggested that drivers in Germany get too emotional about their cars. 

Other German cities considering parking fee hike

The local council now has to vote on the proposal, but Palmer has reportedly already secured enough backers to pass it. This would make Tübingen the first city to make use of the option of setting its own parking fees, which were previously capped by law. 

Since the Road Traffic Act was amended in July, a number of other cities in Germany have also begun examining the possibility of increasing parking fees. Freiburg is reportedly planning an increase as well - to 360 euros per year.