Fast Is Past: German Auto Club No Longer Opposes Speed-limited Autobahn

The German equivalent of AAA, Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (ADAC), has long been a proponent of a limitless Autobahn. However, the group recently walked back its zeal for the cause amid demands from environmental groups to enact speed limits in a bid to curb emissions.

While most of the Autobahn has the same posted limits you’d find on most North American highways, there are plenty of sections where people can drop the hammer and go as fast as conditions permit. Safety advocates have often raised an eyebrow, encouraging regulators to limit additional sections of the roadway, but universal limits have always been a bridge too far. Now that environmental groups have joined the fray, the issue has garnered a lot more attention.

About a year ago, the German government commissioned a new climate-related report on mobility and the future of motoring. Among the recommendations were a call to eliminate the last sections of unlimited Autobahn in favor of a universal 130 kph and a ban on all diesel vehicles entering cities. Germany’s transportation minister, Andreas Scheuer, provided plenty of pushback, suggesting the proposal was part of an agenda with a woefully inadequate scope.

Despite this, calls for environmental action never slowed, and the Autobahn found itself in a odd position ⁠— encouraging ADAC to rethink its position. But the auto club isn’t supporting changing the highway so much as it is attempting to place itself in a more neutral position.

“The discussion about the introduction of a general speed limit on motorways is being conducted emotionally and is polarizing among members,” ADAC Vice President for Traffic, Gerhard Hillebrand, told DPA International. “That’s why the ADAC is currently not committing itself to a stance.”

ADAC has around 21 million members, so there’s bound to be internal conflict, but it seems kind of sad for the auto group to find itself in a position where it no longer feels comfortable having any opinion at all. Hillebrand said there needed to be a comprehensive study on the effects of a speed limit on the Autobahn ⁠— something that definitely already exists. “This would provide a solid basis for a decision [on a stance],” he said.

[Image: Michael von Aichberger/Shutterstock]