16.09.2025
The Volt parliamentary group in the Römer supported the motion by the Left party in the Main and Finance Committee, according to which the Frankfurt Transport Company (VGF) should refrain from filing criminal complaints for fare evasion in the future.
“The criminalization of ‘fare evasion’ solves no problems,” explains Martin Huber, transport policy spokesperson for Volt in the Römer. “It places an entirely unnecessary burden on courts and the prison system and, in the worst-case scenario, leads to a disproportionate substitute prison sentence with all the drastic consequences for those affected. It is much more logical to address the social cause; many people simply cannot afford the cost of public transport. For those in precarious living situations, the new practice therefore means enormous relief; they will no longer be criminalized.”
The topic was discussed with the FDP within the coalition for many months, but without an agreement. “It is therefore all the more important that we now make a clear decision and advocate for a social solution,” says Martin Huber.
The parliamentary group also points to the national political dimension. Volt in the Römer expressly supports the call to finally remove the corresponding paragraph (§ 265a of the German Criminal Code) from the Criminal Code. The civil law claim of the transport companies to the increased transport fee remains unaffected by this, including in Frankfurt. Thus, the interest of the VGF is protected—even with just a waiver of filing criminal complaints—while people affected by poverty are no longer criminalized.
Volt in the Römer particularly positively highlights the civil society initiative Freiheitsfonds (Freedom Fund), which provides concrete help nationwide by paying the fines for those affected and has sustainably brought the issue onto the political agenda.
At the same time, Volt in the Römer is campaigning for a real solution, namely the social structuring of local transport in Frankfurt. An example from the current legislative period: The public transport ticket for Frankfurt-Pass holders was made cheaper, and at the same time, the income limit for the Frankfurt-Pass was adjusted upwards and made dynamic, so more people benefit from this relief.
