Tuesday, February 09, 2021
Only via app or website
Bahn abolishes analog ticket redemption
Anyone who spontaneously gets on a Deutsche Bahn train from next year and wants to buy their ticket from the conductor has a problem. Or an internet-enabled mobile phone. Because after the departure of a train there will soon be no paper tickets and therefore no more cash payments.
From next year onwards, customers of Deutsche Bahn will no longer be able to buy paper tickets on long-distance trains. The option will no longer apply on January 1, 2022. Instead, from April 2021, travelers could still book a digital ticket via the app or the train website for up to ten minutes after departure. No board surcharge is due.
The railway and transport union had drawn attention to what they saw as the wrong decision. "We have always advocated an open system that spontaneously gives long-distance travelers the opportunity to choose the train as the ideal means of transport," emphasized the union. The railway referred to the expansion of the online ticket and emphasized: "It will continue to be possible for spontaneous long-distance travelers to buy a ticket on the train."
According to Deutsche Bahn, fewer than one percent of tickets have been sold on the train in recent years. The board surcharge, which is due as a surcharge, is now 17 euros.
In local transport and on the S-Bahn, tickets must be purchased before the journey. The union called for a widespread information campaign about the change. Because the union fears conflicts if unsuspecting passengers want to redeem the train staff after the deadline.
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