Driving licence

In order to drive a car in Germany you have to have a full driving licence. Apart from a German driving licence, “full” driving licences include EU-driving licences, national licences issued in New Zealand (in many cases a German translation is required) and international driving licences issued in New Zealand. The translation of national driving licences has to be done by a German diplomatic mission or a national Automobile Association or the German Automobile Association (ADAC). Rather than having your national license translated you are recommended to get an international driving license as this is generally known and recognized.

Important Information: Foreign and international driving licenses are only valid for six months.

Even just one day longer and you have to have a German licence if you want to continue driving. You are liable to very high fines if you are caught driving without one. Thus you are strongly advised to apply to the driving licence issuing section of your local Road Traffic Licencing Department (Ordnungs- und Straßenverkehrsamt) 3 months before your own license runs out as processing sometimes takes considerable time. Enquire in advance which documents you should take with you.

Traffic Regulations
Germans are passionate drivers and often ignore the recommended top speed of 130 km/h on German motorways. When it comes to traffic regulations, however, they are taken very seriously and observed. Traffic offences are punished with high fines, penalty points and even loss of licence. If there are no signs to the contrary, top speed in towns is 50 km/h, on main roads outside towns, 100 km/h. You should definitely respect any speed restrictions in force on certain stretches of the motorway as there are often radar traps.

Drinking and Driving
The blood alcohol limit in Germany is strictly enforced and if you are over the limit your license is in jeopardy.

Documents
When driving a motor vehicle you are legally required to carry your driving licence and car papers with you.

Parking
There is a dearth of places to park in Germans towns and incorrect parking can be very expensive. A parking ticket (Knöllchen, derived from Protokoll) for incorrect parking currently costs anything up to € 40 and if your car has been towed away you usually have to get to the other end of town to “release” it. This will cost a further € 130 or even more. So it is better to use a multi-storey car-park. In most car-parks there are spaces specially reserved for women drivers close to the entrance.

Bicycles
The first time you visit your German institution of higher education you will probably be surprised by the number of bicycles. Germans and students in particular, are very fond of using bicycles as a means of transport. In smaller towns you can get everywhere by bicycle. So do consider getting hold of a second-hand bicycle while you are here. You can always sell it again when you leave. There are second-hand bicycle shops in every town or you can look at advertisements in the newspaper.

Public Transport
Germany has a very good system of public transport. On public transport you can travel by train (“Deutsche Bahn AG”), by city-rail (“S-Bahn”), by tram, by underground, by bus, or by taxi. The easiest thing is to get hold of a town plan as soon as you arrive. This will include a map showing the city-rail, tram and underground connections. An overview of bus routes and a bus and rail time-table can be obtained from the ticket kiosks located at major stops in the town centers.

German Rail
You can get a German Rail time-table at the station on the Internet (http://www.bahn.de) or you can ring for information on departure times and rail connections. You will find the number in the telephone directory under Deutsche Bahn AG. Please note that not all trains travel on all days. You can find out which by consulting the appended abbreviations which are explained in the key. There are a large number of price reductions depending on when you travel, the number of people travelling, their age, [Frühbuchungen] and various other factors, which you should enquire about. If you travel at night you should consider paying extra to reserve a couchette or berth in a sleeper. At peak travelling times (eg. Christmas or the beginning of official holidays) it is certainly advisable to reserve a seat. There is an extra charge to use Intercity (IC) and Eurocity (EC) trains which you pay when you purchase your ticket at the station. You can buy a first- or second-class ticket in a smoking or non-smoking compartment. Large items of luggage or bicycles can be handed-in before departure (usually a day or two in advance) and collected at your destination at the luggage delivery section on presentation of the luggage ticket.

Tickets on Local Transport
If you are lucky enough to have a semester ticket or a Monatsticket (monthly pass) you can get on any bus or tram you like in the town where you are studying. If not, before each journey you will have to consult the tables attached to the ticket machines to work out in which zone your destination is situated. But you have not necessarily finished when you purchase a ticket in the correct price category; you usually have to stamp the ticket in another machine on the platform or in the bus or tram itself. If you want to take a bus you will not always find a ticket machine at the bus stop. In this case you can buy the ticket from the driver or from a machine inside the bus. If you are caught without a valid ticket by a ticket inspector it can be very unpleasant and the fine is very costly, too.

Semester Ticket
Some institutions of higher education have come to special agreements with the municipal transport companies and have introduced the so-called “semester ticket”. Particularly in large cities the object is to reduce the number of cars and ease the parking situation which is often dramatic, especially around the institution. Students get their ticket at registration. The charge varies from one town to another. The semester ticket allows you to use any local public transport for the entire semester free of charge. It is not transferable and thus only valid in combination with an identity card including a photograph. If there are no semester tickets at the place where you are studying the transport companies or public utilities offer students special rates; you just have to ask. There are also special concessions for dependents even if they are not registered students. Children up to a certain age are free or only pay a reduced rate.

Car-Sharing
At some institutions of higher education there is a so-called car-sharing notice-board (Mitfahrerbrett) where you can look and see whether you can find what you need. This is the cheapest means of transport. In all the larger towns there are also car-sharing centres (Mitfahrzentralen) offering a wide range of car-sharing arrangements? The combined cost of the journey (according to destination) and the centre’s service fee is usually well below what you would have to pay on public transport. If you yourself are intending to drive somewhere you can reduce your expenses by taking one or more people with you. The telephone number of the car-sharing centres can be found in town magazines or the Yellow Pages under Mitfahrvermittlung (car-sharing arrangements). Just ring and ask whether there is a car-sharing arrangement to the place you want to go on the day you want to travel or offer to take people with you in your car if you are driving yourself. The centre will write down the amount to be paid or received. As a passenger you are not required to contribute to any other costs. Furthermore, the centre will also tell you what sort of car is being used for the journey. Last of all, the driver and passenger are put in touch with each other and arrange how and where to meet on the day.

Air travel
The airlines offer special rates and concessions to students, in some cases up to the age of 35 (eg. Lufthansa’s “Up and Away”). Enquire at a travel agency. The travel agencies near the institution of higher education usually specialize in student travel and make advantageous agreements with the airlines. Airports tend to be out of town and can usually be reached by airport bus or rail transfer. You can get details from the travel agency, too, or consult the airport section of the Yellow Pages. Here you will also find the telephone numbers of the airlines and a lot of other useful information.