New study on gigaliner countermands eco-arguments of the Lkw-Lobby

While the advocates of overlong trucks argue that they cause less traffic on German streets, a study by renowned traffic scientists is proof to the contrary. According to calculations by Prof. Herbert Sontag (TH Wildau) and Prof. Gernot Liedtke (TU Berlin), by allowing mega trucks, more than 8 billion ton-kilometres is shifted from railroad tracks to the streets – that is 7.6 percent of railway cargo traffic. This quantity corresponds with 7,000 additional truck trips per day on German streets. “The hope of many politicians to reduce the number of trucks on the streets by deploying longer trucks will not be met,” says study author Prof. Sonntag in Berlin. “The claim that the mega-trucks would contribute to environment protection in cargo traffic is refuted by our calculations.”

Video: Statement of Dirk Flege, chairman of the Allianz pro Schiene

While federal minister of traffic, Alexander Dobrindt (CSU), openly stands for giving the gigaliners legal approval at the end of the test phase, the managing director of the Allianz pro Schiene (alliance for railroads) criticizes the traffic-political naivete of some countries nation- and federal politicians, who yielded to growing pressure from certain truck manufacturers. “if Daimler were to really believe that they would sell less trucks with the gigaliners, the shareholders had to apply their veto,” said Flege. “It is a fact that the release of gigaliners will lead to even more truck traffic,” said Flege. If the federal government were to still enact the legal permission, it would burden the tax payer with high costs, and endanger the safety of car drivers and bicyclists, and it would damage the environment.

Flege refers to the demonstration of tomorrow, Tuesday, where high ranking politicians mobilize against the giant trucks: Michael Cramer, chair of the transport committee in the EU parliament, and Martin Burkert, chair of the transport committee in the German Bundestag, will clearly speak against the permission of gigaliners. “The general public has not awakened yet; car drivers, bicyclists or pedestrians have thus far hardly seen any gigaliners. That's why we put them right on Brandenburg's doorstep in full length. It is time to stop this traffic-political nonsense,” said the Allianz pro Schiene chairman.

Source: www.allianz-pro-schiene.de