Germany: The New Traffic Rule Will Affect Millions Of Drivers

Anyone currently traveling to or returning from the German neighboring countries by car might be surprised at what's going on in traffic from now on. Due to stricter border controls when entering Germany, drivers will have to be prepared for longer waiting times in the coming months.

The background to this is, unauthorized entry into Germany. In order to curb this more effectively, the Federal Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser (SPD) has ordered temporary checks at all German borders. While random checks at German borders have long been part of everyday life, they are now to be tightened up.

Traffic: Why longer waiting times and at which German neighbour-country borders when entering Germany.

The stricter border controls are to begin on September 16 and will initially apply for six months. In addition to limiting irregular migration, this measure also serves to protect internal security from the current threats posed by Islamist terrorism and cross-border crime, explained Nancy Faeser. The Ministry of the Interior had already ordered stationary controls at the borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland in mid-October 2023. These have even been in place at the German-Austrian land border since 2015 and are now being expanded.

From September 16, traffic will also be checked at the borders with France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark. Although Germany and all its neighboring countries are part of the Schengen Agreement on the free movement of persons, drivers must show a valid identity card or passport at the border. The impact on commuter traffic should be kept as low as possible, but drivers must nevertheless expect longer waiting time in some cases.

In addition to border controls, the German interior minister, Nancy Faeser also announced an expansion of rejections at the German borders. And rejections are only possible where there are controls directly at the border. The police have so far seen weaknesses in the implementation of border controls, the high level of personnel deployment in particular has been criticized.

Francis Tawiah (Duisburg-Germany)