Let’s start with the good news: Since 1995, freight traffic on German railways has almost doubled. The railway lobby organization Allianz Pro Schiene reports an increase of 98.6 percent over the period. During the same time, there has also been a significant increase in passengers on German trains, though the growth rate of 32.4 percent is not quite as impressive as that for freight traffic.
The network has shrunk by 12 percent
The bad news is that during the same period, the railway network in Germany has been reduced by nearly 12 percent. This means that the railway network is increasingly experiencing congestion, resulting in delays and canceled trains—and angry passengers.
– We complain, but we keep riding. Taking the train is popular, says the head of the railway lobby, Allianz Pro Schiene, Dirk Flege, according to several German media outlets to the German news agency DPA.
Allianz Pro Schiene has calculated that in 2023, Germans traveled a total of 104.2 billion passenger kilometers by train, thus beating the previous record from 2019.
39,200 Kilometers of Rails
Today, there are a total of 39,200 kilometers of railway in Germany, compared to 44,600 kilometers in 1995. And many places are in poor condition. So poor, in fact, that Deutsche Bahn announced last year that at least 9,000 kilometers need to be upgraded. The expense is expected to exceed 40 billion Euros—possibly up to 80 billion.
Lack of funds
But Germany is short of funds, and it is now doubtful whether the modernization can be realized, and it is almost unthinkable that it would happen before the Fehmarn Belt Tunnel opens in 2029. The German federal government has set aside just under 30 billion Euros for the modernization of the railway network until 2027—about two-thirds of the minimum requirement.
According to Allianz Pro Schiene, Germany is one of the European countries that, in relation to its population, spends the least amount on railway infrastructure. In 2022, for instance, 114 Euros per German were invested in railway infrastructure. By comparison, Sweden invested 245 Euros per Swede in the railway in the same year. Denmark spent 135 Euros per Dane on infrastructure in 2022.
