VSPV e.V. – Association of Private Commercial Road Passenger Transport North Rhine-Westphalia

Less bureaucracy, less protection? The North Rhine-Westphalian industry association VSPV calls on Federal Transport Minister Steffen Bilger not to lower the safety standards for volunteer transport services. Before any changes, the evaluation of the Exemption Regulation, which has been pending since 2021, must take place.

The Mobility Association honors the former Federal Minister of Transport with a certificate of appreciation. Managing Director Sascha Waltemate and Patrick Meinhardt, Head of the Capital Office, highlight the close cooperation and open discussions about the future of the industry.

The VSPV has personally handed over its position paper on the reform of the Passenger Transport Act to Federal Minister of Transport Steffen Bilger. The association calls for a reorientation of regulation: away from historical distinctions between taxi and rental cars, toward a digital mobility system with clearly defined tasks.

The VSPV awarded the Berlin transport policy-maker Tino Schopf a certificate of appreciation. In doing so, the association honors his long-standing commitment to fair competitive conditions, the rule of law, and the interests of taxi and rental-car companies.

The electrification of vehicle fleets is seen as the key to the transport transition. At the Urban Charge Conference in Cologne, however, it became clear: For the taxi and rental car industry, not only new technologies determine success, but above all reliable policy framework conditions and a nationwide charging infrastructure.

Das Taxi fährt vielerorts bereits dort, wo Busse selten unterwegs sind. Der Mobilitätsverband VSPV fordert deshalb, Taxis künftig stärker als Bestandteil des öffentlichen Nahverkehrs zu nutzen. Bei einem Treffen mit dem Bundestagsabgeordneten Henning Rehbaum warb der Verband für das Konzept des ÖPNV-Taxis und einen neuen Blick auf die Mobilität im ländlichen Raum.

In autumn the evaluation of the Passenger Transport Act (PBefG) is on the political agenda. The mobility association VSPV gets involved early in the debate and has handed a position paper to the CDU transport politician Michael Donth. The experiences of the past five years are at the center — and the demand for greater legal certainty for municipalities and the business sector.

After the election to the Berlin House of Representatives, the SPD loses its traffic expert Tino Schopf. The North Rhine-Westphalia mobility association VSPV responds to this with clear criticism and calls on the SPD leadership to continue relying on his expertise in transport and mobility policy.

How can taxi fares be made digitally available and taxi stands be found more easily? During the NRW.MOBIDROM GmbH's open house day, the VSPV discussed with authorities, municipalities and mobility service providers about data provision, digital infrastructure and the future of mobility-related information in NRW..

The Mobility Association welcomes the planned relief on gasoline and diesel in principle. For taxi, non-emergency medical transport, and bus companies, however, it only compensates a small portion of the rising fuel costs.

Taxi and rental-car companies see themselves not only as mobility service providers but also as part of the local community's social life. In a conversation with CSU Member of the Bundestag Stephan Mayer, the VSPV advocated that the industry's voluntary engagement be given greater consideration in the political debate.

The Mobility Association VSPV and the Social Association of Germany (SoVD) want to push the Inclusion Taxi forward politically. At a meeting in Berlin, the two organizations agreed on further steps to permanently anchor the service in social law and to establish it as a fixed component of an inclusive public transport system.

With the reappointment of Christian Hirte as State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Transport, the mobility association VSPV has clear expectations. The association calls for a comprehensive evaluation of the Passenger Transport Act (PBefG) and advocates for a broad dialogue about the future of taxi, rental cars, and public transport.

The mobility association VSPV and the Taxpayers' Federation want to cooperate even more closely in the future. At the center are economic policy issues, the interests of small and medium-sized enterprises, and questions of mobility and infrastructure policy. For VSPV members, the cooperation also brings a concrete added value: They will receive one year of free access to the services of the Taxpayers' Federation.

Platform economy, competition distortions and the question of how mobility in rural areas can be secured: The VSPV is seeking to join forces with an influential partner of the German economy, the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK).

The evaluation of the reform of the PBefG was supposed to provide answers. Instead, it has raised mainly new questions. At least the VSPV has come to this conclusion, which, through the investigation by the Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt), sees its criticism of parts of the reform as confirmed.

Sometimes the future of an industry is decided in a paragraph that hardly anyone outside of professional circles knows, or: why a draft bill in Berlin is currently occupying not only health insurers, but also taxi and car-rental companies.

A letter from a federal ministry can sometimes mean the end of an initiative for associations. For the Mobility Association VSPV, it was the start of a new round of talks, because a provisional “No” simply means that more persuasion work must be done.

The association sees a need for action in the revision of the Passenger Transport Act. The focus is on platform responsibility, digitalization, and the stronger integration of taxis into public transport.

A meeting between politics and industry representatives brings the taxi trade's central demands back into focus and highlights common areas for action.

The discussion about the financing of the statutory health insurance remains tense. At the hearing on the planned Contribution Stabilization Act in the Bundestag, it became clear that many experts acknowledge the need for action, but view the present draft bill critically.

The Federal Court of Justice reinforces the existing regulation, but points to unresolved questions of European law. In view of the evaluation report in August 2026, a possible amendment to the Passenger Transport Act comes into focus.

The Association of Private Commercial Road Passenger Transport in North Rhine-Westphalia handed Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder a position paper on the revision of the Passenger Transport Act last week. In it, the association, according to its own statements, outlines a concept for a functionally differentiated, digitally coordinated and EU-law-compliant regulation of on-demand transport. At the same time, it clearly distances itself from the newly founded Federal Association of Passenger Transport.

New association with clear demands

The Federal Association of Passenger Transport, currently being formed, presents itself publicly as the representative of a modern market order. According to the VSPV, however, it is not an established industry association, but the initiative of a single market participant. Its founder reportedly comes from parcel logistics, operates a rental car fleet brokered via the Bolt platform, and, according to his own statements, takes over taxi companies almost daily.

The taxi should be strengthened as part of public service provision, and digital ride-hailing platforms should be clearly brought under regulatory responsibility.

In Germany, the discussion about barrier-free mobility is often reduced to elevators, train platforms and low-floor buses – but that is only part of the problem. Taxi and rental-car traffic has so far mostly played only a secondary role in it. The VSPV and the SoVD are pressing to enshrine the Inclusion Taxi in the Social Code as binding.

With a NeTEx-compliant data standard, the Taxi and Rental Car Association integrates taxi and rental-car data into existing information platforms and relies on cooperation with transport associations and system providers.

While public debates often stay at the level of fundamental questions, behind the scenes it is about concrete interfaces – between regulation, digitization and market organization. An example of this is provided by a meeting of the Association of Private Commercial Road Passenger Transport in North Rhine-Westphalia (VSPV) with Johannes Wieczorek.

In Berlin, the Alliance of Associations is repositioning itself—and is also banking on the topic of mobility. In the capital, quick access is often valued more than staying power. Accordingly, the outcome of the Alliance of Associations' general assembly is: personnel decisions and strategic emphases dovetail, and the network aims to secure and expand its influence.

In Berlin's political scene, attention is growing to the question of how gaps in public transit provision can be closed. At the meeting between the Green Party's transport policy spokeswoman Victoria Broßart and representatives of the Mobility Association VSPV, one concept was at the center, which has been discussed in the industry for some time: the so-called public transit taxi.

Representatives of the North Rhine-Westphalia Mobility Association VSPV travel to the Baltic Sea coast to back up their colleagues from the state association of the taxi and rental-car trade in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It is about money, responsibilities—and the question of how binding the rules in the passenger transport law actually are.

"2026 must become the year of public transport and taxis!" As representatives of the Association of Road Passenger Transport (VSPV) exchanged views with the transport policy politician Michael Donth, it was about nothing less than the future architecture of public transport – the role of the taxi in it.

After failed negotiations, as of April 1, numerous businesses have suspended patient transport services. An expert opinion by the VSPV assesses individual contracts with health insurers in the mandatory transport sector as inadmissible and calls for official scrutiny.

The expectations were high; the results are modest. After the latest conference of transport ministers, criticism of the policy of the states and the federal government in public transport (ÖPNV) is growing.