Toll compromise to include rewards for environment-friendly cars

The German government has reached an agreement with the European Commission on the country’s plans to impose passenger car tolls for highways, writes Florian Eder for Politico. Until now, the main point of contention was that the scheme proposed by German transport minister Alexander Dobrindt would have allowed owners of cars registered in Germany to deduct the toll from their car tax bill. EU rules forbid discrimination based on nationality, writes Eder. The compromise would take a car's emissions and fuel efficiency into account, “meaning some people would receive a rebate exceeding the toll's value, while those with thirstier vehicles would only get a partial rebate,” writes Deutsche Welle in a separate article.

Read the Politico article in English here and the Deutsche Welle article in English here.