Germany - rail services, ticketing and incidents (merged posts)

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From DW

Train travelers in Germany have an extra reason to celebrate entering 2020 — the national railway company Deutsche Bahn is cutting prices for long-distance rides. The government wants more people to take the train.

Deutsche Bahn has unrolled new prices for 2020 and made its tickets 10% cheaper for long-distance traffic, the German railway company said. The move, which went into effect on Wednesday, stems from the climate protection measures passed by the German government – the Cabinet cut the value-added tax (VAT^▸ (Value Added Tax)) on rail travel in December from 19% to 7% in an effort to make train travel more attractive.

"We are passing on this tax cut to our customers," Deutsche Bahn said on its website.

The new prices apply to trips of over 50 kilometers (31 miles), but only if the passenger travels from one railway region into another.

The company is also cutting prices on special offers and additional services, such as fees for transporting bicycles.

Interesting story to pop up this morning on that early January day when RAIL FARE RISES hit the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) passenger and news media ... I have already been on BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) Radio Wiltshire, where recordings of commuters are complaining about the reliability of the service they're buying and the randomness of the fares at times.

Before we hold the German example up as "could UK do this", we should note that it's funded by a cut in VAT on train fares, where in the UK we don't have VAT on travel fares in the first place.

[4064ReadingAbbey]

Effectively this only concerns the IC^▸ (Inter City) and ICE services run by DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) Fernverkehr. The Länder are now responsible for specifying and funding services (suburban services, IR and so on) within their area and the VAT^▸ (Value Added Tax) reduction does not apply to these services.

[stuving]

Effectively this only concerns the IC^▸ (Inter City) and ICE services run by DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) Fernverkehr. The Länder are now responsible for specifying and funding services (suburban services, IR and so on) within their area and the VAT^▸ (Value Added Tax) reduction does not apply to these services.

Surely the VAT rate is national, so that will be cut. If the Länder specify fares they can decide whether to pass the cut on, and presumably if they don't they will know where the money saved will end up.

[Bmblbzzz]

Unless there are different rates according to whether a fare is classed as regional or national?

[infoman]

Just in time for the Euro football tournament taking place in 2024,thats the year not the time.

[sikejsudjek3]

If we were serious about cutting carbon we'd cut fares and spend the money allocated for HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) on lengthening trains instead.

However we aren't serious about cutting carbon emissions so it won't happen. Instead we'll have continually rising prices, overcrowded trains and a huge white elephant to move people from Birmingham to London 20 minutes quicker.... and most of the public will love it and keep voting for it. 

Glad I have a reliable new car and don't use Crosscountry trains anymore ! 

[Bmblbzzz]

I don't entirely agree. If we were serious about cutting carbon emissions from transport, we would raise rail fares to discourage travel; but not by as much as we'd raise the cost of flying and driving.

But even if we were serious about cutting emissions, we couldn't face the changes needed to reduce travel and consumption, so we'll carry on as we are until we can't.

[TonyK]

Before we hold the German example up as "could UK^▸ (United Kingdom) do this", we should note that it's funded by a cut in VAT^▸ (Value Added Tax) on train fares, where in the UK we don't have VAT on travel fares in the first place.

Agreed. 50km is quite local in a lot of the UK, despite Germany being about 50% bigger. A lot of commuters take their morning ride to work on intercity trains, and our rail regions are somewhat arbitrary. Thus, we can't easily apply the same differences. Plus our peak services tend to be crammed beyond nominal capacity, with fare price being the only form of control of numbers, so we don't necessarily want more people on the most expensive services, much as we might as a nation say we do.

Any cut in VAT amounts to an increase in subsidy.Ask our government for similar, but don't expect a positive answer. At the moment, we are deadly serious about cutting the use of fossil fuels, but not at all serious about doing anything about it.

[SandTEngineer]

A BLS (Switzerland, open access) Rollende Landstrasse (carries lorries and their drivers) has hit a large concrete block near Mühlheim which seems to have come from an overbridge that was being demolished. The driver has been killed and at least two lorry drivers in the coach behind the loco injured.

https://www.tag24.de/justiz/polizei/zug-unglueck-rheintalbahn-auggen-breisgau-freiburg-baden-wuerttemberg-1477193

[stuving]

There are pictures in the German text here,
and I've found a French one that say this was a bridge being built and the concrete deck (or a large section of it) fell on the track in front of the train.

[eightf48544]

As  a contact pointed out different safety standards, not stopping trains whilst construction going on.

They also pointed out no overhead, so was he coasting or on "Last Mile Diesel".

Also note no "Social Exclusion"  everyone standing around in groups!

[Red Squirrel]

As  a contact pointed out different safety standards, not stopping trains whilst construction going on.

We shouldn't make any assumptions ahead of the enquiry. However, without straying too far into uninformed conjecture, I might guess that maybe the deck was thought to be securely installed, but somehow failed after the line had been handed back?

[eightonedee]

Fair point RS, although if that's not the case it seems extraordinary that a running line was operating under active construction site like this.

[eightf48544]

February's Today's Railway Europe has Februaries Today?s Railways Europe has a very long article (10 pages) on the German Governments  plans for Deutschland Takt 2030, a clock face timetable for all  Germany y mostly based on 30 minute intervals for particular services and regular connections between services.  The article outlines the steps necessary to achieve this goal.  This consists a long list of infrastructure improvements from New High Speed lines some electrification extra-long freight loops etc.
However,  to my mind the most telling principle behind the whole plan is ?first the timetable then the infrastructure planning.
This seems to me a way of planning for rail enhancements in an integrated way rather than looking at individual enhancements in isolation.
Taking Melksham how frequent a service is required from where to where how many freight paths are required etc. Possible services could include.

Shuttle Westbury to Chippenham/Swindon.  30 minute service
So a possible loop/s on line, improvements to Thingley and Bradford Jns and, fourth platform at Westbury,  third platform at Chippenham

From Southampton to Oxford? Hourly  takes one of the shuttle paths.
All of the above but capacity enhancements in Southampton area  Swindon to Oxford.plus  any where else.

Bristol to London via Bradford on Avon stopping service takes 2nd shuttle path.
All of the above with possible exception of Westbury 4th platform. Reinstatement of Bradford North Curve, new station on outskirts of Trowbridge.

This approach needs to be carried for all the stations served or potentially served from Melksham this could reinforce enhancements already planned and suggest further   enhancements. The plan will require great deal of iteration

Having worked out the future timetable and enhancements needed to implement it you can add the clincher to this approach. Electrification
 
At a minimum electrification from Chippenham to Bristol, Didcot to Oxford,  Newbury to Westbury and Bath plus Chippenham to Trowvbridge.  The electrification to take into account the other enhancements so that they can be incorporated in the planning of the electrification.
Implementing Takt is a complicated process and would take many years but the integrated approach of timetable first would I am sure provide a better railway

[stuving]

That sounds like the same concept as Network Rail's "Improving Connectivity" - as examined in their report in 2014 and consultation. I can't see that report available any more, and I don't think it ever led to much at all. It was discussed in this thread.