[GekkePrutser]

German roads are under so much maintenance to prevent the potholes you see In Belgium ;). Can't have your cake and eat it. When I used to drive from Holland to Belgium it was very clear when we'd enter the country. No signs needed, when the road gets super noisy and bumpy you know you're in Belgium.

And remember that many German motorways still have no speed limit. Hitting a pothole at 250kph is not fun and as such they need to be maintained to high standards.

And when there's a fair rental system with restricted prices there is no need to own property. Not sure if Germany has this but I know Austria does and Vienna is thriving on it.

[LargoLasskhyfv]

When I used to be driven from Arnhem to Oberhausen (ca. 199x) it's been very obvious when you've crossed the border to .de, not even because of the checkpoints, which still existed then, but because of the noises the car made when it went over the gaps between the concrete plates which probably were the same as in 194x, or so, when they Autobahn has been built.

Very annoying when stoned!

[yrgulation]

France and the netherlands have good roads and yet they dont constantly have to maintain them.

If germany would build them right and with quality in mind the first time they wouldnt break so often.

Not sure where you can reach 250kph if most of the autobahn is under repairs.

But speaking of driving in germany i found the constant tailgating and the general aggressiveness and flashing similar to east europe 10 years ago. Horrible driving culture.

But yes we can all agree belgian roads are in a league of their own. Suppose that makes belgium poor?

I am new to this game but from what i gather is that any country that has a visible issue is poor.

Maybe germany is poor because it cant afford gas? A german minister was complaining that american lng is too expensive for germany. Also renting and the government stepping in to keep rents at a low price sounds like poverty and socialism to me. Not a good sign.

[_abox]

> France and the netherlands have good roads and yet they dont constantly have to maintain them.

Yes they do. In the Netherlands there's a lot of maintenance going on. Once on a trip to my workplace at the time (75km away) I counted 12 individual speed restrictions due to roadwork. I constantly had to switch between 120, 100 and 70kph. Most of it happens during the night though. I guess Germany doesn't always do this.

> Also renting and the government stepping in to keep rents at a low price sounds like poverty and socialism to me. Not a good sign.

I personally like socialism and many in Europe do. The richest countries have the best welfare systems in general (like Scandinavia). Holland itself is an unfortunate exception with its Anglo-Saxon liberal model.

It's becoming more important as the housing market is out of control and buying a house is near impossible now on a modal salary. Regulation keeps pricing fair to those who need it. It's not a sign of poverty but of the systemic choices we make.

> But speaking of driving in germany i found the constant tailgating and the general aggressiveness and flashing similar to east europe 10 years ago. Horrible driving culture.

This is something we do agree on :) I try to avoid driving in Germany.