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Germany Considers Free Public Transport in Fight To Banish Air Pollution (theguardian.com)

"Car nation" Germany has surprised neighbours with a radical proposal to reduce road traffic by making public transport free, as Berlin scrambles to meet EU air pollution targets and avoid big fines. From a report: The move comes just over two years after Volkswagen's devastating "dieselgate" emissions cheating scandal unleashed a wave of anger at the auto industry, a keystone of German prosperity. "We are considering public transport free of charge in order to reduce the number of private cars," three ministers including Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks wrote to EU Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella in the letter seen by AFP Tuesday.

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  1. Bigger issue in Europe - Corruption and lies by bjdevil66 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Per Netflix's Dirty Money, all of the major car manufacturers are putting out cars that break their own emissions standards - and NOBODY in their own governments is doing anything about it. It's as if they've all been bought off.

    Maybe the corrupt... er, "green"... German government should go after the lawbreakers before trying radical (and potentially really disruptive) ideas like giving services for free.

    BTW - If you haven't seen that Dirty Money episode about Volkswagon, take an hour out and watch it. Amid the surprising depths of dishonesty that higher-level executives will go to turn an ever-bigger profit, the part about the Volkswagon-employed Germans actually considering gassing people (and monkeys) to win a PR war is darkly hilarious.