Timetable for 2025 is set
Deutsche Bahn denies concrete plans to cut routes
26.06.2024, 14:53
Listen to article
This audio version was artificially generated. More info | Send feedback
In view of the higher rail toll, the railway company is reportedly planning to cancel some connections next year because they are unprofitable. The state-owned company rejects this as incorrect. However, the higher track access charges could have an impact on prices and, at some point, on the service.
Deutsche Bahn has rejected a report about specific connection cancellations. “There are currently no concrete plans to cancel the long-distance connections mentioned,” said Michael Peterson, head of long-distance passenger transport. “We completed our planning for the 2025 timetable in April. This timetable does not currently include any of the service cuts mentioned.” Previously, “Spiegel” had reported, citing a letter from the company to the Federal Network Agency, that Deutsche Bahn wanted to cancel a number of long-distance connections next year – especially in eastern Germany.
The reason for this, according to the report, is the increase in equity at Deutsche Bahn, which is forcing the infrastructure division to significantly increase the rail toll. Peterson said that it is correct that the track access charges represent “a significant cost component in long-distance passenger rail transport”. “The drastic increase in track access charges currently on the table presents DB Fernverkehr AG, like many other commercially oriented transport companies in long-distance and freight transport, with considerable challenges.” Deutsche Bahn is therefore forced – depending on the level of the additional burden – “to review the scope of our timetable offering nationwide”.
Higher personnel and material costs drive up prices
The rail toll is a fee for using the rail network. These track access charges are levied by the DB infrastructure company InfraGo. The Federal Network Agency recently approved a significant increase in track access charges for 2025 – on average by six percent compared to the previous year. According to InfraGO, the reason for the high increase is higher personnel and material costs in recent years. Due to a legal regulation, regional transport cannot be burdened as heavily – therefore the increases are mainly passed on to long-distance and freight transport. For 2025, the track access charges for long-distance transport will increase by 17.7 percent according to current figures.
If the increase in the announced magnitude, “which is significantly higher than the average inflation-related cost increase,” is passed on directly to DB Fernverkehr AG, service reductions and higher ticket prices are unavoidable, the rail company said. Poorly utilized trains would then no longer be sustainable and the service would have to be reduced accordingly.
The issue caused unrest in politics, with the Greens in particular reacting with criticism. The Greens’ Bundestag MP Paula Piechotta called for “a revision of the track pricing system with an adjustment of the Railway Regulation Act.” Greens’ leader Omid Nouripour argued that this was a matter of public services and announced talks. He and Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing would do everything in their power to prevent cuts in long-distance rail services, he told RTL/ntv.