Berlin Senate wants more electric vehicles in car-sharing

E-car at the charging station.

Berlin is focusing on more car-sharing cars with electric drives, more sharing services in the outer districts and fewer e-scooters standing around on pavements.

The Senate Department for the Environment and Mobility explained its plans to renters of e-tread scooters, rental bikes, scooters and car-sharing vehicles on Tuesday. The new rules are to come into force on 1 September with the amendment to Berlin's road law, according to the Senate Administration.

Car parking spaces to become e-scooter parking spaces

In the future, there will be more and more designated parking areas for e-scooters and rental bicycles in former car parking spaces. Parking will then be prohibited in their vicinity. In addition, providers are to be obliged to introduce technical solutions for the orderly parking of vehicles, for example via an obligatory photo receipt or via precise tracking systems.

Providers of cars with electric drives pay less parking fees

In car sharing, electrification is to be given a high priority. To this end, half of the parking fees will be waived for providers without fixed stations, but only for e-cars. These so-called free floaters will also be exempt from the planned increase in short-term parking fees in all Berlin parking zones.

Areas outside the S-Bahn ring are to be better integrated

Above all, car-sharing companies are to be required by secondary provisions of the future special use permit to offer a certain proportion of their vehicles daily in the districts outside the S-Bahn ring. There, the special use fees will also be reduced or suspended in order to create additional incentives for more car sharing in the outer districts.

Administration remains in dialogue with sharing providers

The mobility administration wants to discuss the details further with the providers, among others, and then submit a draft resolution for the corresponding charging ordinance to the Senate. The amendment to the Berlin Road Act itself was reportedly already passed by the House of Representatives in the previous election period.