Citizens' buses: Pensioners save rural public transport with heart and dedication!

Citizens' buses: Pensioners save rural public transport with heart and dedication!

Münsterland, Deutschland - In rural areas, mobility is increasingly secured by innovative citizen bus projects. Martin Stapelbroek, a 66-year-old volunteer, drives a red sprinter bus that serves as a citizens' bus. The Bürgerbusverein was founded in 1985 and has since developed into the oldest of its kind in Germany. The bus serves four municipalities in the western Münsterland, runs five days a week, covering about 2000 kilometers per week. Stapelbroek, who is also chairman of the association, reports that the bus is usually fully occupied to one place. Around 1200 people currently use this service per month, which corresponds to an increase of 18% compared to the previous year. According to a mobility study, 50% of the villagers perceive public transport as inadequate, which underlines the importance of such projects.

The Bürgerbus helps to close supply gaps and to secure mobility in the country. With an average age of 70 years, the association shows a remarkable volunteer culture that is crucial for the success of such initiatives. There are now around 500 citizens' bus associations in Germany, most of them in North Rhine-Westphalia. However, the success of citizens' bus projects depends not only on volunteer drivers, but also on the financing, which is secured by ticket income, grants and municipal support.

a guide for sustainable mobility

The Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV) recently completed a research project for sustainable mobility in rural areas. The result is a guideline entitled "Sustainably Mobile in Rural Areas", which offers municipalities practical examples and options for action. The guide requires a link between different means of transport to cover the mobility needs in rural regions. This includes not only citizens' buses, but also plus bus lines, needs traffic, shuttles as well as car and bicycle sharing offers. Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder emphasizes how important a realistic transport policy is that takes into account the special requirements of city and country.

The combination of heavy line traffic and flexible offers, such as the citizens' bus, is emphasized as an essential strategy. In addition, recommendations for the area of ​​space through cycle path networks and link offers such as Park+Ride and Bike+Ride are given. These initiatives aim to not only improve mobility, but also to make more environmentally friendly.

Examples from practice: e-mobility in rural areas

Another example of innovative mobility solutions offers the “E-Dorfe car” project in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis. Here, eight electric cars were originally launched for use by citizens to show alternatives to their own car. In three years, over 10,000 single trips were covered with these e-villages. This project not only contributed to better accessibility of the communities, but also facilitated access to e-mobility. The local community of Bickenbach has now bought its own electric car, and further purchases are planned to expand the offer.

These diverse approaches show how the mobility situation in rural areas can be actively and sustainably improved through civic engagement and innovative concepts. The guidelines provided by the BMV support the implementation of such projects and offer municipalities an important basis for better mobility in the future.

Further information can be found in the articles of maz-online.de , bmv.de and Gelkbtesland.de. .