After the chaos in train traffic in Bavaria at the weekend, the railway workers’ union EVG and the Pro Bahn passenger association criticized the railway’s susceptibility to disruption. Even today, only a few long-distance trains run to and from Munich.
After the massive cancellations in rail traffic due to heavy snowfall in southern Germany, the Railway and Transport Union (EVG) and the Pro Bahn passenger association have criticized and called for consequences for the railway’s suitability for winter.
“The slogan ‘We drive in any weather’ no longer has any credibility,” EVG chairman Martin Burkert told the “Augsburger Allgemeine”. He called for massive investments following the example of other countries, such as Austria. In comparison, he called the German rail infrastructure “largely dilapidated.”
Per lane complained about “big susceptibility to failure”
The federal chairman of Pro Bahn, Detlef Neuß, emphasized that rail traffic in Germany was “only on edge after decades of austerity policy.” In the past, the railway was “much better equipped to deal with severe winter storms”. He demanded that the “great susceptibility to disruption” become one of the central issues in the planned rail reform.
One of the many problems is that, for cost reasons, the railway has recently dismantled more and more tracks as parking spaces and now entire trains have to be parked directly in the stations if they can no longer get to their destination.
“As a result of the congested train stations, rail traffic is blocked even more quickly and comes to a standstill over a large area,” said Neuß. He demanded that many errors in the old railway reform from 1994 need to be corrected. “Instead of looking at as much profit as possible for the railway, operations must function on a day-to-day basis,” emphasized the Federal Chairman.
Furthermore restrictions in rail transport
After the onset of winter and the associated snowfall, Munich Central Station continues to have very limited operations.
Deutsche Bahn (DB) expected high capacity utilization of trains on Monday morning and advised that trips to and from Munich should be postponed. Among other things, there were still no connections between the state capital and Innsbruck, Salzburg and Zurich. In addition, fewer long-distance trains were in use.
Passengers are asked to check the status of their connection before traveling and to postpone non-essential travel to Tuesday or later. As was the case at the weekend, the train connection has been lifted for planned trips on Monday. According to DB, the tickets are also valid on other days.