Luxembourg favours 'European solution' to German road toll plan

Luxembourg has so far not joined a lawsuit against a German road toll for foreign drivers set to be introduced in 2019.

"Luxembourg would rather favour a European solution in this dossier," Transport Minister François Bausch said in response to a parliamentary question by Alternative Democratic Reform Party member Guest Gibéryen.

Austria has filed a lawsuit in the European Court of Justice against the planned toll which will apply to foreign-registered cars, claiming it is "discriminatory".

German drivers will be able to claim the costs back through tax deductions. The Netherlands joined the lawsuit in December.

If each country introduced its own national toll, it would "not have much to do with European thought," Bausch said in his reply, and it would also be problematic for competitiveness within Europe.

A toll for cars will therefore not be introduced in Luxembourg.

The EU Commission targeted the German car toll in a lawsuit, but following modifications by the German government, it gave the plan a green light.

There has been a toll in Luxembourg for lorries over 12 tonnes since 1994 – the so-called 'Eurovignette'.