CCC welcomes Berlin coalition agreement, but calls for more climate protection in road transport
The coalition agreement now presented by the CDU and SPD in Berlin demonstrates with the special fund that the new coalition takes climate protection seriously. The Climate Change Center (CCC) Berlin Brandenburg expressly welcomes this focus. According to the agreement, the special fund will be used to advance building renovation, strengthen public transportation, and further decarbonize the energy sector.
Prof. Dr. Felix Creutzig, scientific coordinator of the Climate Change Center, emphasizes: “The objective is appropriate and the measures will advance climate protection. The electrification of municipal car fleets also points in the right direction. However, it is foreseeable that the portfolio of measures will not be sufficient to achieve the goal of 70% reduction in CO2 emissions in the foreseeable future.”
Creutzig points out, “Policy instruments, especially in the transport sector, are important to reduce CO2 emissions. This includes more active parking management and higher prices, including for resident parking permits, or announcing an emissions-free city center.” The equity perspective also comes up short, he said. Research by the Technical University of Berlin shows, for example, that senior citizens and children have too little space in the streets. Wider sidewalks, such as in Luisenstrasse/Berlin-Mitte, could improve both quality of stay and climate protection. Safe separated bike lanes are of utmost importance to enable even weaker road users to participate.
The central importance of building renovation is to be welcomed. Investments in the energy sector will also help climate protection. An important differentiation is important for district heating. Here, large heat pumps in particular have the potential to provide energy-efficient heat. In contrast, hydrogen, bioenergy and e-fuels should be used exclusively in high-temperature processes in industry and in aviation (BER airport), where these scarce resources are best placed. “The planned heat generation by hydrogen in the Marzahn ‘Clean Tech Business Park’ is an aberration and a waste of valuable energy resources,” warns Creutzig.
The new coalition’s focus on data-based management can also be effective for climate protection. This includes accelerating planning processes for new streetcar lines, for example, or digital parking management. Research from TU Berlin also shows the potential of AI-based methods to advance climate-resilient urban planning in the prevention of heat waves. The targeted data governance can thus become the central lever for climate-friendly urban planning, and advance the management of climate protection in mobility and in the building sector.