Train passengers in Germany see rising number of Deutsche Bahn cancellations

People travelling by train in Germany are no strangers to disruption. But new figures lay bare the scale of how the situation has been deteriorating over the last years.

They show that train operator Deutsche Bahn is clearly becoming less reliable - when it comes to both long distance and regional transport.

From 2019 to 2024, the proportion of cancelled journeys on long-distance services rose from one to four percent, according to figures from the Ministry of Transport which were issued on request by Green Party MP Matthias Gastel. 

In regional transport, the proportion was five percent.

The cancellations include external factors like strikes and weather conditions. However, Gastel highlighted other issues. 

"The increase in train cancellations is also the result of dilapidated infrastructure," said Gastel. "Investments at a high level must therefore be continued at a guaranteed level in the coming years."

Gastel said many train cancellations were also due to vehicles not being adequately maintained or made available on time. "This is where management needs to step up its game," he said. 

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Free Democrat MP Torsten Herbst also asked about train cancellations on these long-distance routes in parliament. According to the government, more than 13,600 journeys were cancelled last year alone. Over 60 percent of these were due to external causes, such as industrial action.

In fact, the ministry said almost half of all cancellations were caused by strikes in January 2024, when there was a wage dispute with the German Train Drivers' Union (GDL). "Passengers were usually informed of a cancellation in good time," said the government. 

Along with cancellations, punctuality has been steadily getting worse on Germany's rail network.The punctuality rate for Deutsche Bahn's long-distance services in 2024 was 62.5 percent - the lowest figure since statistics began getting recorded in 2001.

Vocabulary 

Train failure/train cancellation - (der) Zugausfall

Long distance train - (der) Fernzug

Ailing/dilapidated - marode

Industrial action/Labour dispute - (der) Arbeitskampf

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