In its new sector report on the railways, the Monopolies Commission advocates a split of Deutsche Bahn. The declared goal: more competition on the rails, fewer delays and an improvement in infrastructure.
“It will be the highest rail for ambitious reforms,” says Jürgen Kühling, chairman of the monopolies commission. Because there are serious deficiencies in the entire railway infrastructure such as tracks, points or railway bridges. And in view of the many delays and cancellations, something urgently needs to be done.
So far, DB Netz and DB Station & Service have been responsible for the rail network and the stations. These two subsidiaries of Deutsche Bahn are to be merged into a new, public welfare-oriented infrastructure division called InfraGo. In the future, it should be set up largely independently of the railway group, the federal government’s advisory body proposes.
For more quality on the rails
All users of the infrastructure, including the competition from Deutsche Bahn, should benefit from the new company. The route prices that competitors pay for using the railway infrastructure should be linked to certain quality goals – for example, to punctuality. This should ensure more quality on the rails.
In addition, the Monopolies Commission warns that Deutsche Bahn must finally pass on real-time data on planned arrival and departure times or train cancellations, among other things. This is the only way that other digital ticket providers would have a chance on the market. According to the Monopolies Commission, travelers should also benefit from cheaper ticket prices.