As Germany is planning for much-needed rail infrastructure renovations, points of contention arise. While renovations are necessary for the outdated network, significant infrastructure downtime could lead to serious consequences for the rail freight industry. Especially...Read more
Deutsche Bahn’s intention to raise rail route prices in Germany has been faced with strong criticism. The planned increase would take effect from next year. It would be the largest price increase ever. Industry representatives...Read more
German rail freight association Die Güterbahnen sees ‘dark clouds’ in the rail renovation plan proposed by DB and the federal government. The association identifies a number of issues in the June 2022 plan that it...Read more
The German rail sector fully recovered from the pandemic in 2022. According to an annual German market survey, German rail freight exceeded its pre-pandemic performance levels by 10 per cent. However, performance also stagnated in...Read more
Despite the significant budget cuts expected for the 2024-2027 period, Peter Westenberger, the managing director of the industry association Die Güternbahnen, is convinced that there are still enough funds to continue carrying out critical railway...Read more
The German Federal Government has officially approved the reduced transport budget for 2024. After some amendments in the sums to be cut and the sectors they will affect, the German parliament greenlit it. In addition...Read more
German rail budget 2024Tomorrow, Wednesday 17 January, will be a loud lunch in Berlin. At least 13 freight train drivers will sound their horns in protest to the cuts expected from the 2024 German federal budget. The proposal...Read more
The plan announced by the current ruling class in Germany, the so-called traffic light coalition, to expand rail capacity did bring the expected results for 2023. German rail association Die Güterbahnen said that “no new...Read more
The German Ministry of Transport presented a draft regulation to extend the possibility of using Type 1 long trucks, (up to 17.88 metres in total length), until 2026. The policy was set to expire at...Read more
The discussion around the much-contested German federal state budget for 2024 and financial strategy until 2027 is settling down as the first palpable rail investments come forward. One of the most important parts of the...Read more
File: Greening Freight Package The Greening Freight Transport Package (GFTP) remains one of the most relevant topics in the rail freight industry in Europe. Among the most discussed and awaited aspects is the Combined Transport Directive (CTD). Akos Ersek,...Read more
The half-year report of the Deutsche Bahn (DB) Group is shadowed by an overall negative performance which mainly highlights DB Cargo’s losses. The Group’s freight division completed the first six months of 2023 with a...Read more
INTERVIEWThe recently released federal budget for 2024 has left the German rail freight sector questioning the government’s commitment to green goals and rail growth. At first glance, the additional three billion euros might seem like...Read more
The German federal transport minister Volker Wissing sends mixed signals to the industry. On the one hand, he appears to have a new railway renovation concept that will be completed by 2030. On the other...Read more
The German rail industry is quite upset with the recent comments made by representatives of the Federal Government regarding the Deutschlandtakt and its timetable. The German Federal Commissioner for Rail Transport Michael Theurer was quoted...Read more
The German Federal Council voted in favour of extending, until 31 March 2024, the ordinance that gives priority to freight trains transporting energy supplies (EnKo trains) on the German rail network. This is what a...Read more
The prioritisation for the rail transport of energy supplies in Germany is “very likely” to be officialised on 14 September and will be in place for 6 months, according to Neele Wesseln, Deputy Managing Director...Read more