Germany: A Review at the Verge of a New Era

Abstract

Germany, is undergoing serious changes as a result of the unification of FRG (Federal Republic of Germany) and fGDR (former German Democratic Republic) when this book is issued. Predictably, this Germany will remain a widely heterogenous country for years. This applies to socio-geographical, infrastructural and economic as well as to institutional matters. In view of this unusual situation it was difficult to come up with a clear concept for the chapter devoted to “transport in Germany.” Three options were available: i) To focus on the old FRG, presenting a historical exercise but allowing for comparisons with other West-European countries; ii) To focus the description of transport conditions on the new Germany. This would only be possible by the amalgamation of FRG and fGDR statistics which—as a matter of fact—are not only kept separately but are also incompatible; and iii) To do i) in a more limited way and supplement the findings by an additional section on some salient features of the fGDR.