Press
Many Austrians traveled to Düsseldorf on June 17th to support their team at the European Championships. An editor reports on his arduous journey there and back.
Düsseldorf – While Austrians like to make fun of Deutsche Bahn’s bad reputation and the delays from abroad, it is less pleasant to experience the chaos first hand. But that is exactly what many football fans who wanted to travel from Austria to the European Championship match against France had to experience.
Deutsche Bahn has problems with EM trains despite preparations
“DB is significantly expanding its timetable during the tournament period. For example, it is using longer ICE trains and offering trains on additional days of operation. In addition, 14 special European Championship trains will run every day,” Deutsche Bahn announced in the winter. “The additional capacity is primarily intended for late evening and overnight connections in order to offer many travel options for departure from the games. During the tournament period, DB will almost double the travel options after 11 p.m. from the 10 host cities to the 20 busiest long-distance stops.”
14 hours of European Championship travel to Germany: Reporter from Austria is taken off the train by police
But despite all the preparations, the journey home for many guests from abroad was difficult. A reporter from the Austrian newspaper oe24who traveled to the Austria-France match on June 17th, shares his experience. Several direct trains travel daily between Düsseldorf, where the Merkur Spiel Arena is located, and the Austrian capital Vienna. In the worst case scenario, you have to change trains in Nuremberg or Frankfurt. That actually sounds simple. The journey takes eight to nine and a half hours. But not on the day of the European Championship match between Austria and France.
Reporter Thomas Zeidler-Künz needed a full 14 hours to get to the game. On the way he stopped in Vienna, Passau, Regensburg, Hanau, Frankfurt, Cologne and finally Düsseldorf. In Hanau, the reporter said he was taken off the train by five police officers because he had held the door open for other fans during the stop before. Rail replacement services had to be used for parts of the route.
“Between Passau and Regensburg, Deutsche Bahn has a major construction site right in the middle of the European Championships… Nothing is moving, no buses or taxis are available, lots of Austrians are standing and nothing is moving… I doubt that the stadium will be full tonight against France – at least not the Austrian sector,” wrote a disappointed fan on Facebook. Hundreds were stranded in Bavaria on their way there, and the Austrians were already raging about Deutsche Bahn.
Delayed journey home after European Championship match in Düsseldorf, missed connections: Thousands of fans spend the night at the train station
But the journey home was also nerve-wracking. “There was a traffic jam at the exit of the stadium. Over 15,000 fans were led down two staircases that were far too narrow to the subway, which turned out to be a better tram,” reports Zeidler-Künz, “Absolutely unworthy of a EURO!”
The night train left at 2:38 a.m., 74 minutes late. Many fans spent the night on the floor at the station. The delay meant that all connecting trains were cancelled. Masses of travellers were stuck in Nuremberg or Munich. The first connection was only able to arrive in Vienna at 1:15 p.m. the day after the game. “So over 14 hours after the final whistle,” said the editor.
For many Austrians, it was a sobering match. It is not just the 0:1 defeat against France that is bothering them. “The referee was a disgrace, but Deutsche Bahn was even more so. After today, I will never get on one of their trains again,” one fan said in sad summary. In the next few days, the Travel may be difficult, warns the football association. (No)