There is chaos on the German rail network. According to Deutsche Bahn, 75 percent of the long-distance trains are at a standstill because of a strike by the train drivers. In regional and S-Bahn traffic, around 60 percent of trains are canceled compared to the regular timetable. See details here.
For Switzerland, this has the following effects, as SBB told Blick:
- In daytime traffic, the ICE connections Basel – Berlin – Basel and the connection Basel – Cologne – Basel are canceled between Switzerland and Germany.
- For the connection Zurich – Basel – Hamburg and back, travelers have to change trains in Basel.
- The connections between Zurich and Munich will be reduced. Two pairs of trains run continuously every day, the remaining connections run to Bregenz.
- Due to the construction site, the Zurich – Stuttgart line currently only runs between Zurich and Singen.
- The night trains from Zurich and Basel to Berlin and Hamburg fall on the nights of January 1st and 2nd. September up to and including 6./7. September 2021 in both directions.
SBB also announced that it regrets the inconvenience and wants to be accommodating: travelers who want to postpone their trip due to the strike during the strike period can either use their long-distance ticket flexibly or cancel it free of charge. Seat reservations can also be exchanged free of charge. Travelers are asked to find out in advance via the app, website or customer service.
Deutsche Bahn’s appeal rejected
The train drivers’ strike in Germany can continue as planned until Tuesday morning: The Hessian state labor court rejected the appeal of the Deutsche Bahn on Friday, with which it wanted to stop the strike of the GDL union.
In August, the train drivers went on strike twice, each over several days. Deutsche Bahn accuses the union of not only trying to achieve better working conditions with the strike, but also of pursuing political and legal goals. “At the moment, millions of passengers are victims of the power interests of the GDL,” said a rail spokesman in “Inforadio”. (gf / SDA)