Over the past few years, there’s been some talk from German government officials about potentially removing the derestricted areas of the Autobahn. Adding speed limits (albeit likely high ones) to all sections of the Autobahn was proposed to reduce emissions and reduce nationwide fuel consumption. There’s also a question of safety, as cars have become far faster than ever before. However, the increase in electric vehicle usage might actually save the Autobahn’s derestricted zones.
Germany’s Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing told Bild am Sonntag (h/t to Car Throttle) that EVs are slowing down the way people drive, so as to conserve batteries. So not only do EVs tend to reduce the number of people driving at incredible speeds but those that do drive quickly in EVs are producing no emissions doing so. Even highly efficient internal combustion cars produce more emissions at the top end of their rev ranges while trying to hit top speed. EVs do not.
The great irony of this is that EVs are often look at as the death of fun in performance cars by many car enthusiasts. Those same enthusiasts also hate the idea of Germany speed-restricting all of the Autobahn. However, it’s EVs that might actually save those unrestricted areas for the very enthusiasts that hate them.
I only drove on the Autobahn once, though driving hundreds of miles on it did give me a good idea of what it’s like. Even on my first go, the Autobahn felt perfectly safe and easy to navigate, despite me not speaking German. The speed limit signs and derestricted zones are perfectly simple to understand and the signage is fantastic. It was also shocking to see the level of lane and rule discipline displayed by 99 percent of German drivers. So I see no reason why the unrestricted areas should go away, especially when EVs will soon become the norm, thus reducing the nation’s need to further reduce emissions and curtailing many owners’ desire for high speed thrills.
[Source: Car Throttle]
