Several German states are lifting Sunday and holiday driving bans for heavy trucks to keep goods moving after record-low water levels crippled inland shipping. Baden-Württemberg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Bavaria will join North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland in allowing trucks over 7.5 tonnes to operate on restricted days, with most exemptions running through late August or September. Saxony has declined a blanket waiver, offering only case-by-case permits, as no commercial cargo shipping is currently possible on the Upper Elbe.
State transport ministers said the measures were unavoidable. "We must take every step that reduces or avoids supply bottlenecks," Baden-Württemberg's Nicole Razavi said. The Federation of German Industries welcomed the shift, saying road and rail diversions could stabilise supply chains.
Unions and opposition parties objected, with Die Linke arguing drivers should not bear the cost of government inaction. BUND reiterated that falling river levels are a symptom of the climate crisis.