Election Benchmark 5:
Mobility and the Semester Ticket

Mobility is a key prerequisite for equal opportunities in higher education. That is why we are committed to an efficient public transit system that reliably connects university campuses and ensures that students in rural areas can easily access them.
This includes attractive rail and bus connections, modern infrastructure, and better integration of various mobility options. Our goal is mobility that is affordable, reliable, and flexible—regardless of where students live.

By immediately putting an end to the current energy policy—which, driven by climate hysteria, unnecessarily drives up energy prices—we will make transportation more affordable for all citizens, including students.

As a first step, we want to secure affordable semester tickets. In the medium term, we are aiming for a 9-euro ticket, which will particularly benefit apprentices and students. In the long term, we want a 0-euro ticket.

Our goal is to provide free transportation for students, apprentices, and volunteers.

With the Deutschlandticket, a public transportation product with extremely attractive pricing has been introduced during this legislative session. The Deutschland-Semesterticket is significantly cheaper while offering the same scope of service. We want to continue this trend. At the same time, we must not forget that many students in Saxony-Anhalt rely on cars. We therefore reject policies that discourage car use and instead focus on better integration of the various modes of transportation, such as mobility hubs at train stations in rural areas.

Through an affordable and reliable Germany-wide ticket, attractive public transportation connections—especially in rural areas—support for car-sharing and on-demand services, and the expansion of bicycle infrastructure. We are also advocating for a driver’s license reform so that young people can obtain one at an affordable price.

The Germany Semester Ticket offers students real added value because it enables nationwide mobility at predictable costs. That is why we support the goal of securing this program for the long term.
The state must do its part to ensure reliable framework conditions. At the same time, the federal government remains responsible for ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of the Germany Ticket as a whole. Students, universities, and transportation companies need planning certainty. We are therefore committed to ensuring that the Germany Semester Ticket can continue to be offered in the future under fair and reliable terms.

The ticket model imposed by the federal government is an incalculable money pit costing taxpayers billions. We reject this bureaucratic centralization project because it is eating away at our state’s finances. Top researchers and hardworking students are not lured to Saxony-Anhalt with ticket subsidies, but with first-class teaching and low fixed costs. Instead of pouring millions into Berlin’s misguided planning, we’d rather invest that money directly in modern laboratories, excellent teaching, comfortable student housing, and healthy cafeteria meals.

The Germany Semester Ticket is a real step forward for many students. However, the fact that only a portion of the student body has opted for it also shows that it isn’t appealing to everyone. This is partly due to a lack of price stability resulting from its linkage to the Germany Ticket. We believe that public transportation is a fundamental right and therefore consider the price to be too high. The federal government must invest more and make the Germany Ticket more affordable, which would also lower the price of the Semester Ticket.

See the answer to question a) at
(The SPD answered the related questions.)

Saxony-Anhalt has successfully advocated, both at the Conference of Transport Ministers and in the Bundesrat, for a mechanism that secures funding through 2030. Since a large portion of the costs is covered by tax revenues, it goes without saying that an evaluation of the Deutschlandticket is necessary before any extension is considered. In principle, we are prepared to support its continuation.

We want to lower the price of the Deutschlandsemesterticket to 19 euros per month and advocate at the federal level to ensure that the price of the Deutschlandsemesterticket is no longer automatically increased whenever the price of the Deutschlandticket rises. For students who do not have access to the Germany Semester Ticket, we want to create a 19-euro social ticket, which will also be available to apprentices, volunteers, and retirees.

Good transportation connections benefit both universities and the regions where they are located. That is why we want to further improve access to university campuses through well-coordinated rail and bus connections.
We place special emphasis on integrating urban and regional transit systems, as well as on providing services tailored to the needs of commuters from rural areas. In this way, we ensure that students can reach their universities reliably, easily, and affordably.

Access to our universities must not end at the city limits of Magdeburg or Halle! We will put an end to the failed, misguided “transportation transition” policies of the established parties and modernize the regional rail and bus network so that students from the Altmark and rural areas can also reach campus on time. By abolishing the obstructive right to bring class-action lawsuits, we’ll radically accelerate network expansion. Instead of expensive prestige projects, we’ll consistently invest in increasing service frequency and reactivating key regional routes to build a strong hub for higher education!

We believe that dialogue with universities and local transit providers is needed here to find the best possible solutions. Some problems are already known and must also be addressed by state policymakers. This requires close cooperation between universities, local governments, and the Saxony-Anhalt Public Transportation Service (NASA) to better integrate university campuses that have been difficult to reach into the public transportation network.

We aim to double public transportation service, particularly in rural areas. This will also improve connections between—especially smaller—university campuses and other locations in the region. We want to involve young people in the planning of public transportation so that service frequencies and routes reflect the realities of their lives.

Most university campuses in Saxony-Anhalt are connected by local public transit, which is the responsibility of the municipalities and is supported in particular by allocations from regionalization funds. Decisions in this regard are therefore subject to municipal self-government. The state is responsible for local rail passenger transport, and during this legislative term, its FDP-led Ministry of Infrastructure and Digital Affairs, under Minister Dr. Lydia Hüskens, has already implemented a whole series of improvements that also benefit the university campuses. Of particular note here is the creation of the Stendal-Hochschule stop.

We will significantly strengthen public transportation—both by bus and by train—because a reliable, affordable, and well-developed public transportation system is the backbone of climate-friendly mobility. We want to expand local transit with more frequent service, expanded bus routes, better connections, and a simple, solidarity-based fare system that makes mobility possible for everyone. Our goal is to ensure that public transit is available in every village at all hours. On-demand services such as the “Dorfauto” or ride-sharing benches should complement this. We will launch a rail infrastructure initiative. To fund electrification, double-tracking, and speed increases on key rail lines, we intend to secure funding under the Municipal Transportation Financing Act (GVFG). Our guiding principle is the model of the integrated fixed-interval schedule.
We will strengthen the eco-friendly transportation network consisting of buses, trains, bicycles, and walking. To make it easier to switch between modes of transportation, we will, for example, promote bike-sharing systems and bicycle parking facilities.