In the Bundesrat, Bavaria's Minister of Construction and Transport, Christian Bernreiter, recently presented Bavaria's positions on core issues of transport and construction policy. Discussions focused on the demand for a reform of rail track prices, the modernisation of building law, and the Infrastructure Future Act, all of which directly influence the development of real estate and infrastructure projects in the region.
A central issue was the reform of track prices for local public rail transport (SPNV). After the European Court of Justice classified Germany's cap on price increases as contrary to EU law, significant financial and planning risks have arisen. For the years 2025 and 2026, a retroactive increase of approximately 10 percent each is looming. Minister Bernreiter emphasised that this would mean an additional burden of several hundred million euros for the federal states. He called on the federal government to compensate for these additional expenses through additional regionalisation funds and to swiftly implement a comprehensive reform of the track pricing system. This demand is unanimously supported by the Conference of Transport Ministers and the Conference of Minister Presidents and was also confirmed in the Bundesrat in the form of a resolution to the federal government.
Modernisation of Building Law and Infrastructure Planning
In addition to track prices, the Bundesrat dealt with the modernisation of urban development and spatial planning law, primarily with a reform of the Building Code. The aim is to accelerate construction processes. Regulatory priorities include the acceleration and complete digitalisation of the development plan procedure, the simplification of environmental impact assessments, and the strengthening of the resilience of urban and municipal structures. Bernreiter underscored the necessity of making construction simpler and faster again and reducing bureaucracy to avoid unnecessary burdens.
In the legislative process, Bavaria advocated for the full privileging of construction projects for fire brigades and ambulance stations to enable simpler procedures for cities and municipalities. Furthermore, greater legal certainty was demanded for the allocation of building land by municipalities to the local population, in order to secure affordable housing and protect existing social structures. These motions found a majority in the Bundesrat. However, a further Bavarian initiative to privilege construction rubble recycling facilities in the outdoor area, with the aim of promoting the use of recycled building materials and thus reducing long transport routes, high costs, and CO2 emissions, did not receive a majority. A lack of on-site processing facilities currently results in inefficient processes.
Infrastructure Future Act
During the session, the Infrastructure Future Act was also voted on, which provides for a series of legislative amendments to accelerate planning and approval procedures in the areas of transport and energy. Despite fundamental approval, specific demands from the federal states to the federal government remained unheard. A conciliation committee could be averted in the Bundesrat. Bavaria approved the law but, together with other federal states, addressed further appeals to the federal government in the form of a resolution. This underlines the ongoing efforts of the federal states to optimise the framework conditions for infrastructure and real estate development and to make processes more efficient.
