LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT SYSTEMS IN GERMANY - CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS AND FUTURE OUTLOOK

Following a period of decline and stagnation up until around the mid-1980s, public transit systems have more recently come to be increasingly appreciated. This article looks at the current position and prospective further development in light rail transit systems in Germany; and concludes that light rail systems are an efficient mode of public transit, of variable capacity, and have attained a high degree of sophistication in terms of both technology and design. Given appropriate expansion and a sound financial basis, they can satisfy citizens' mobility requirements in an environmentally sound and economically efficient manner.