The Social Democratic Party (SPD) is campaigning to remove the criminal code that penalises passengers who ride public transport without a ticket.
Carmen Wegge, the SPD’s parliamentary legal spokesperson, told “Welt” that “poverty should not be punished. Therefore, riding without a fare should not be criminalised”. She explained that Section 265a of the German Criminal Code burdens the justice system with minor cases; “people who cannot afford a ticket are not criminals. That is why I support the complete repeal of this paragraph”.
Under the current law, travelling without a ticket violates § 265a, which deals with the theft of benefits. Offenders can be fined or sentenced to imprisonment; non‑payment of the fine can lead to a suspended sentence.
The SPD argues that the penalties already collected by transit operators-known as the “enhanced fare” or penalty fare-are a powerful deterrent, making further criminal prosecution unnecessary. “Instead of prosecutions and suspended sentences, we need social and pragmatic solutions: fair social tickets, instalment payments, and assistance for hardship cases. Mobility is part of essential public services” Wegge said. She added that this issue would continue to be raised in talks with the coalition partner.
The Christian Democratic Union (CDU/CSU) takes a different view. Susanne Hierl, the Union’s legal spokesperson, described the offence as “not a trivial matter but rightly punishable”. She said their goal is to “protect public transport and avoid sending the wrong message to offenders”. Hierl rejected the idea of abolishing the offence, emphasizing the importance of reliable, modern, and clean public transport that also contributes to climate protection. “Public transport fares are fundamental to funding the system” she argued. “Intentional fare evasion not only harms the operators but also the public”.
