The GDL strike at Deutsche Bahn (DB) began early on Thursday morning. Since 2 a.m. there has been “massive disruption” to all traffic, said company spokeswoman Anja Bröker. However, the railway is countering this with a basic timetable. This is in operation on long-distance, local and S-Bahn trains.
Basically, anyone who wants to or even has to travel by train despite the GDL strike will get to their destination. Every fifth train runs without problems. However, train travelers have to be prepared for “exceptionally high occupancy”. Many trains are therefore already fully booked.
Passengers were well prepared for the GDL’s fifth strike, the railway explained on request. “Just like at Berlin Central Station, there is not much going on at the train stations in Germany today,” said the spokesman. That will also be the case on Friday. The GDL is on strike until around Friday at 1 p.m. The restricted timetable will apply throughout Friday, it said. The railway does not intend to operate the full range of trains again until Saturday.
But will travelers still be able to reach their destination during the strike? The surprising answer: Basically, YES!
These trains are running despite the GDL strike
But travelers also have to be prepared for very high occupancy. Many trains are fully booked. However, there is a good chance of still getting on the train, as many travelers have already started their journey with saver or flex tickets or will arrive later. FOCUS online looked at the most important travel destinations. In fact, travelers could reach their destination on Thursday and Friday without any problems.
Berlin to Frankfurt: Although there are few trains on this route, travelers have chances to book travel tickets and also destinations in Cologne, Wolfsburg or Hanover.
Berlin to Düsseldorf: At least three trains run and connect the cities of Wolfsburg, Hanover, Bielefeld, Hamm, Dortmund, Bochum, Essen, Duisburg and Düsseldorf Airport.
Munich to Berlin: ICE trains roll at regular intervals. For example, at lunchtime, afternoon and evening. The stops in Nuremberg, Erlangen, Bamberg, Erfurt and Leipzig are also served.
Stuttgart to Hanover: More than six train connections are planned for Thursday alone. The trains stop without restrictions in Mannheim, Frankfurt, Limburg, Montabaur, Siegburg/Bonn, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Duisburg and Essen.
Munich to Tyrol: The Westbahn had already announced on Monday that trains to and from Munich via the Deutsche Eck to Tyrol and Vorarlberg would run as scheduled.
Here is an overview of all companies that operate regularly.
- In Munich The S-Bahn runs every hour. To Dachau and the airport every 20 minutes.
- In Berlin The S-Bahn also runs every hour. To the Ostbahnhof or BER airport more often.
- In Hamburg The S-Bahn runs every 20 or 40 minutes, depending on the stop.
- In Stuttgart Individual S-Bahn trains run every hour.
- In Hanover The S-Bahn runs without major restrictions.
- The companies metronome, Erixx and AKN are not on strike, but the strike can also lead to cancellations and delays on their connections.
- FlixTrains are on the road as usual. Tickets are still available on most routes.
- They are also not on strike Hessian state railway as well as the transport companies Cantus, Vias and Flexxbut restrictions are also possible on these lines.
- There will be no strike on trains run by smaller railway companies such as National Express, Eurobahn or RheinRuhrBahn.
- As of now, 42 regional train and S-Bahn lines run without restrictions in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Which trains depart from your station, You can find out more at “bahnhof.de” from Deutsche Bahn. There you will find all departure and arrival times.
Being late at work because of a rail strike: Is there a warning?
As a general rule, employers should be accommodating in dealing with strike-related delays. Legally, bosses do not have to excuse their employees because of a rail strike. Employees are even more obliged to independently ensure that they arrive at work on time and on time – regardless of whether there is a storm or a strike.
If employees have to clock in before starting work and they arrive late, those affected either have to make up for the absence or they end up in the red when recording their time.
“First and foremost, the employee must inform their employer of a potential delay as quickly as possible. Otherwise there is a risk of a warning,” emphasizes Jürgen Schreiber, a specialist lawyer for labor law.
I have a ticket – but my train isn’t running, what should I do?
If your chosen train was delayed by more than 60 minutes due to the strike or was even canceled completely, the statutory passenger rights apply. In this case, you can apply for compensation. This also applies even if the strike is long over.
If you bought your ticket online using your Deutsche Bahn customer account, you can submit your claims directly via the online application in your customer account. This is possible both on bahn.de and in the “DB Navigator” app.
All passengers who wish to postpone their planned trip due to the GDL strike can cancel their ticket.