In view of the sharp rise in energy prices, Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) has proposed a general increase in the commuter allowance to relieve citizens.

He was open to “significantly increasing the commuter allowance from 2023,” wrote Lindner on Twitter on Tuesday. This should then apply “from the first kilometer and not only for long-distance commuters”.

As part of its relief packages, the traffic light coalition had already increased the commuter allowance by three to 38 cents per kilometer. At the time, that caused explosives in the coalition.

The increase applied retrospectively to January 1st, however, only from the 21st kilometer and thus for people with a particularly long commute to work.

“The many people who commute to work every day are particularly affected by the high energy costs,” wrote Lindner.

“If everyone in the coalition takes this problem seriously,” he pleads for a significantly higher commuter allowance from next year.