The federal government has adopted the draft law on the re-regulation of the legal framework for intelligent transport systems in road traffic and their interfaces with other modes of transport (IVSG). The draft provides, among other things, that traffic data are reliably provided digitally via the National Access Point. The National Access Point is a platform, the so-called “Mobilithek”, for the exchange of digital information of mobility providers, infrastructure operators and traffic authorities as well as information providers. Under EU law, each member state operates a National Access Point. Whether timetable data, real-time traffic information or locations of rental bicycles: all information that is required, for example, to plan and carry out a trip through Germany, can be provided centrally there, retrieved and integrated into information services. The draft law enshrines the Mobilithek in law and thus ensures transparent and reliable
traffic data.
“With the new Intelligent Transport Systems Act (IVSG), we are creating the basis for a modern, connected and sustainable mobility in Germany. The goal is to make traffic data freely available and to shape intelligent transport systems in a legally secure and efficient way. From construction sites to available charging stations to public transport usage: with the IVSG we legally determine that real-time information on public transport, construction sites, charging infrastructure and sharing offerings is provided centrally, uniformly and easily accessible via the National Access Point. This improves traffic planning, fosters innovations and contributes to a more environmentally friendly mobility,” believes Federal Minister Patrick Schnieder.
The draft law regulates, among other things:
- The draft requires road construction authorities and operators to publish information such as road closures, speed limits, access conditions of bridges and tunnels or construction sites to
- certain roads, entirely digitally on the National Access Point. Providers of route planners can thus use current and reliable data from the authority that issued the traffic regulation.
- Data from the Traffic Warning Service, such as warnings about wrong-way drivers or objects on the roadway, must be available via the National Access Point and can now be used across borders as well.
- The draft not only obliges transport companies to provide already recorded vehicle occupancy data in scheduled services, but also to provide data on the utilization of priority spaces for people with disabilities. Reliable information on the currently available transport options in public transport enables all travelers and especially people who use a wheelchair or a walker to plan a more reliable and accessible trip.
- In addition, the draft provides that information on all usable charging stations for electric cars
- be made accessible via the National Access Point. The background is the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR), which at EU level aims to make charging infrastructure throughout the EU so user-friendly that charging of electric vehicles is possible in a flexible and spontaneous manner.
New is that the Mobility Data Act is no longer pursued as an independent law, but integrated into the recast IVSG. This creates a consistent and comprehensive regulation that brings together the provisions on the provision of traffic- or travel-relevant data via the National Access Point, the ministry says. The law is necessary to implement EU legal obligations (EU Directive 2023/2661) and to achieve the goals agreed in the coalition treaty on digitization and sustainable mobility. It strengthens the digital infrastructure, promotes innovations and creates clear legal framework conditions for the mobility of the future. (Source: BMV)
