Traffic: Germany’s big summer test for buses and trains

It will be an unusual summer for millions of passengers. Instead of becoming more expensive, as is usually the case, buses and trains will be drastically cheaper from this Wednesday.

For 9 euros a month, in June, July and August you can “please board” the nationwide local public transport system. There is already great interest in cheap tickets in advance in many places, and transport companies are preparing for a rush. It is also a big test for customers and the industry: will the charm offensive succeed in getting more people to switch from their cars? Politicians are relying on many new findings beyond the summer campaign.

the passengers

The 9-euro tickets are a “huge opportunity”, said Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP). The providers could now show what public transport can do. And citizens could try something new when it comes to mobility. In fact, the hope is that many with a 9-euro flat rate in their pocket will even consider taking the bus to the cinema, for example – without having to look for the right ticket tariff zone and a parking space in the city. For regular customers with monthly and annual subscriptions, the cheap campaign means three months’ relief from higher costs.

Hundreds of thousands of 9 euro tickets have already been sold. How often people drive it, how far, at what times – it’s all uncertain. It is likely to be full, especially during rush hour, when there are often crowds in conurbations anyway – and on weekends there are already often full trains to excursion destinations. How many customers are there? “We don’t have a clue,” said Jörg Sandvoß, head of the regional subsidiary DB Regio, recently. According to the Association of Transport Companies (VDV), 30 million ticket users per month can be expected. But that is only an estimate.

The Market Researchers

In order to ask about the attitudes of the passengers, the federal and state governments have agreed on a central evaluation, as the Ministry of Transport announced. This evaluation runs via the VDV. The industry organization has commissioned market researchers to conduct surveys. In three waves, a representative selection of citizens will be questioned by telephone and online during the campaign, about how often they use the 9-euro ticket and how far they travel with it.

However, there should not be any surveys in buses and trains for this evaluation. “It’s not just about the customers for us, but also about the non-customers,” said a spokesman for the association. The industry also wants to find out how people liked bus and train travel. “The exciting question is: How many customers have returned and how many are staying?” The first results are to be published during the campaign. In addition, the federal states and transport associations can also conduct market research themselves on site.

The railway staff

Fuller trains can also mean overflowing wastepaper baskets, rubbish under the seats, dirty toilets. According to Deutsche Bahn, it is strengthening its cleaning teams and also collecting rubbish on the go. Maintenance in the workshops will also be increased. “We set everything in motion,” explained DB regional boss Sandvoß. The group did not give any figures on this. Just this much: At train stations, 700 additional security and service staff are to ensure that boarding and alighting is as smooth as possible – four times as many as in a normal summer.

Trade unionists fear conflicts with train attendants and other employees – if, for example, people are sent from overcrowded trains or there are disputes about tickets. “Don’t take your frustration out on the employees who just do their job,” Martin Burkert, deputy head of the railway and transport union (EVG), appealed to everyone. “The Pentecost weekend will be the big stress test.”

The Railway Planner

Another major challenge is that construction work on the track network doesn’t throw a spanner in the works. Because the railway is building at a record level, fighting against a large renovation backlog. This is not without consequences. In April she was less punctual than she had been for a long time. Again and again, industrial customers scold the freight railway, which has to give way to passenger trains.

There are numerous major construction sites over the summer, for example at the main train stations in Frankfurt, Dortmund, Stuttgart and Berlin, between Hamburg and Hanover, Fulda and Würzburg, Osnabrück and Rheine, Braunschweig and Magdeburg as well as Munich and Salzburg.

The politicians

Wissing relies on valuable findings from the experiment. “Because then we know: what do people expect from us in concrete terms?” Passengers have not yet been questioned to this extent. According to the ministry, for example, the use of different customer groups is to be researched – their reasons, obstacles, price perception and satisfaction. The results should then also be included when the federal and state department heads want to advise in autumn anyway on how to proceed with buses and trains in general. A working group has been working on proposals for a long time.

For years, the industry has also been discussing cheaper tariffs such as 365-euro annual tickets. Do many people then leave their car behind? So far, this has largely been a theoretical discussion. Now comes a reality check. If the experiment is successful, new impetus in this direction is conceivable – even if the experimental arrangement is so special that it would hardly be easy to extend it. Because at the same time as the cheap summer for public transport, tax relief on petrol and diesel at filling stations will also take effect. And apart from the price, more attractive connections are also important, especially away from the centers.