EM-Chaos at the train station - Wissing: Bahn took over at the EM (European Championship)
The German Railway (Deutsche Bahn) has overcommitted itself from the perspective of Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) during the Football European Championship. "What some fans have experienced does not meet the expectations of Germany and the expectations I have for our transport infrastructure," Wissing told "Welt am Sonndag." With the announcement that the DB would provide an additional 10,000 seating places in rail transport daily, they have taken on a burden. The intention was certainly good. However, the network cannot accommodate these additional capacities in its current state.
Bahn Board Speaks of Bad Luck
The frequent heavy rain in the first tournament weeks worsened the situation. "The network is not designed for such extreme weather conditions because the drainage systems cannot absorb these water masses," Wissing said.
Bahn Infrastructure Board Member Berthold Huber defended his corporation. "We really did everything we could. We moved all construction sites that were not necessary, canceled some, to minimize the impact on the infrastructure as much as possible," Huber said. But sometimes misfortune comes with bad luck. "We had the flood, which destroyed a dam for us mainly between Würzburg and Nuremberg." This changes nothing about the fact that the railway needs structural improvements.
Improvements will come
The Minister announced improvements. Starting on Monday, the sanitation of the so-called Riedbahn between Frankfurt and Mannheim, one of the 41 heavily frequented corridors that will be renewed in the coming years, begins. The tracks will be fully closed for construction work for months. Passengers will initially face additional burdens. However, once the Riedbahn is completed, passengers will notice improvements throughout the entire rail transport, Wissing emphasized.
The construction industry expressed doubts about whether all the planned corridor modernizations can be completed by 2031. "The companies cannot make a realistic capacity planning to this day because politics and DB are not united," said the managing director of the German Construction Industry Association, Tim-Oliver Müller, to "Welt am Sonntag." "I am now quite sure that not all the currently planned 41 corridor modernizations will be completed by 2031." It is sensible to extend the entire project in time.
- Minister Volker Wissing of the FDP expressed his disappointment with the German Railway's handling during the European Football Championship, citing traffic issues in Berlin.
- The German Railways (DB) announced they would provide an additional 10,000 seating places daily for soccer fans, aiming to alleviate transportation issues, but the current network couldn't accommodate the additional capacities.
- Despite the DB's efforts to minimize infrastructure impact, the heavy rain during the tournament and the flooding near Würzburg and Nuremberg further complicated matters, necessitating structural improvements.
- Volker Wissing announced improvements to the rail transport system, starting with the sanitation of the Riedbahn between Frankfurt and Mannheim, one of the 41 corridors to be modernized in the coming years.
- Tim-Oliver Müller, the managing director of the German Construction Industry Association, expressed doubts about whether all the planned corridor modernizations can be completed by 2031 due to political and DB uncertainties.
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