Overview
- Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig proposed downgrading riding without a ticket to a civil infraction to keep people who cannot pay out of jail and to cut court costs estimated at €200 million a year.
- Conservative leaders, police unions and transport groups opposed the change, warning it would weaken deterrence, raise losses and put staff at risk.
- Frankfurt already stopped filing criminal complaints for simple fare evasion on city buses, trams and the U‑Bahn, which leaves a €60 surcharge but creates different rules from S‑Bahn and regional lines.
- Under current law, unpaid fines can trigger a substitute prison sentence, and recent years saw about 7,000 to 9,000 people jailed for fare evasion.
- States test alternatives such as community service, with Sachsen‑Anhalt reporting 353 people last year worked off fines and avoided more than 12,000 days in custody.