September 18, 2025: Leipzig city council forms new alliance, sparking ticket price hike for Germany
In Germany, the political landscape saw some shifts as Thomas Kemmerich, former leader of Thuringia's FDP, joined Frauke Petry's "Freedom Team." Meanwhile, in Leipzig City Council, the right-wing extremist group, the "Free Saxons," overtook the Left with 13 members. However, Jürgen Günter Butz, a member of the "Free Saxons," left his faction and joined the AfD.
Transport news highlights the introduction of the Germany Ticket in 2023, a nationwide subscription model for free travel on local and regional transport. The number of users is approximately 13.5 million nationwide. The federal and state governments are contributing 1.5 billion euros each to its financing. However, from January 2026, the monthly price of the Germany Ticket will increase from 58 to 63 euros, pending formal confirmation by the Bundesrat. There have been accusations against the federal government for not keeping its promises from the coalition agreement regarding the Germany Ticket.
Disputes between the federal and state governments also surround the additional costs incurred by the transport companies beyond the subsidy for the Germany Ticket. The Bundestag has approved the budget for 2025, but the details of the agreement remain unclear.
In cultural news, Leipzig, known as an Innovation Hub and home to radical thinkers, is hosting an ongoing exhibition at the City History Museum, showcasing the Transformation Era of the 1990s. A remarkable discovery was made of poet Rilke's drawings on his birthday.
The "Symphonic Wind Orchestra of the Leipzig Music School 'Johann Sebastian Bach'" is holding a concert called "Autumn Sounds." However, protests are scheduled by BUND and NABU at the Federal Administrative Court Leipzig on September 30 to prevent the construction of a highway.
In France, massive protests against austerity measures are ongoing. On a different note, firefighters battled a roof fire at the Dresden World Trade Center.
Politically, Angela Merkel narrowly beat the SPD in the early Bundestag election on September 18, 2005, leading to a Grand Coalition of Union and SPD. The participation of state transport ministers, including Bavarian Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter from the CSU, in the Special Conference of Transport Ministers in Munich on the same date resulted in a unanimous agreement to raise the Deutschlandticket price to 63 euros from 2026. The specific individual participants' party affiliations beyond Bernreiter (CSU) are not detailed in the available sources.
Lastly, Germany's climate goals are at risk of failing, raising concerns about the country's environmental future.
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