Germany's Plan to Partially Privatize the Autobahn

It’s not just the U.S. raising the idea of private highway investment. Germany’s Autobahn network may be famous for its extent, quality, and lack of universal speed limits, but it’s now suffering from underinvestment and poor management. That, at least, is the contention of Germany’s government, which put forward a plan this weekend that it hopes will pump fresh cash into the country’s highway system. The idea is to partially privatize the network, handing over 49.9 percent of its maintenance and revenue to a newly created private company, whose investors are expected to mainly be major German insurance firms.

This could free up new funds to improve the network, but the plan’s long-term consequences are heavily disputed. Following through would require not only a major cultural shift, but also a change to Germany’s constitution.