Indeed, the lack of spending on the rail infrastructure in the last few decades has probably more to do with politics (cough cough car lobby cough cough) than the Deutsche Bahn's personal.
I always like how the personal has a humorous and chill way of announcing the delays.
Let me tell you about the wonders of DSB. You expect a train and lo and behold, it's a "train bus"!
If I have to take the "train" anywhere the next 4 months I need to take one of those infamous "train busses"
But hey, at least the trains are working and on time when there's not construction work? Think again! That is the time for signaling errors, brakes that fall off the trains, or leaves on the track! And guess what that means? More train busses!!
There was a bus substitute on one of my routes some time ago.
Turned out it was faster than the train because it took the Autobahn.
First time in my life arriving 20 mins early at that destination...
Was it a proper travel bus with seatbelts and everything? I've once been in a bus meant for inside cities that went on the Autobahn, that was pretty scary
at least the toilets were working on dsb. last time i was on an ice every toilet except one was out of order. on a full night train from münchen to hamburg.
The DB was great (albeit a little bureaucratic), while it still was the Bundesbahn, a public institution, run by public servants like every other government office. But when they became the DB AG, a shares based for profit company (still held by 100% by the government), they became a shitshow, because now their mission of providing reliable public transportation changed to making maximum profit and paying their C-suite (typically former politicians or their buddies) ever increasing bonuses for doing fuck all or even less than that.
That's the way many German public institutions went thanks to rampant privatisation caused by all mainstream parties adopting the neoliberal agenda. They are now a shadow of their former self, delivering sub par service for outrageous prices while making a few individuals very rich.
The CDU never invested in the necessary maintenance, so from 2022 to 2025, SPD, Grüne and FDP had to push through funding all the necessary repairs and modernizations at once, crippling the whole network for the next 10-20 years.
Part of it is beeing modernized while the rest now has a higher demand than what its capable of. Since the network is already very tightly packed, one small incident can cause a domino effect of trains beeing late throughout Germany.
The green electricity part is debatable. From my balcony I have a very nice view of the giant smoke stack from the coal power plant and on the other direction the giant smoke stack from the sewage treatment plant where they burn solid wastes, I hope to recover some energy, although I am not sure about that.
Yeah, German rail makes the math look good. On paper, the fast passenger trains run on renewable energy. But then there's cargo trains on the same tracks, which do not.
It's PR no doubt, but they've been promoting that for some time now without reports that indicate otherwise, which make me believe it's true. And yes it's only for long-distance trains
Bro be happy it was only 30 mins. I have travelled with db to munich once. It got delayed 2 hours to munich and then 2 hours back as well. Always take flixbus if going to munich from west side
The other day I was supposed to take an ICE, which was canceled, and all the next ones as well for that day. So they had replacement buses. 4 per train...
which means that when i arrived at 11.30 for my "train-bus" replacement, the 4 buses that left were from the 9.30 slot. By the time the buses for the 10.30 slot arrived, there were people from the 12.30 train there. You can imagine I gave up and did not go.
But something similar happened for as with your buses, but fortunately in a good way:
The preceding ICE was even more delayed, so I was able to catch that one instead. :-)
I went there for my train, and there was a large amount of people waiting for the late previous ICE. Suddenly, the display showing the late train switched to the train I was waiting for, and a moment later, an ICE rushed through on the center track.
I've rarely seen a more pissed off group of people.
Read up on your passenger rights! With more than 20mins (projected) delay, your "Zugbindung" ends and you can take any other ICE to your destination. If your delay is more than an hour, you get a 25% refund, if it's over 2 hours the refund is 50%. If you miss any following trains, need to take a taxi or need to stay in a hotel because of the delay, DB will refund you the cost of that as well. You're also entitled to a free drink in the train at some point, I don't know the specifics of that off the top of my head though
47 Comments
idiomaddict@lemmy.world · 78 pts · 193d
Hmm. Maybe ICE deserves to be in Nuremberg right now
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 14 pts · 193d
It certainly should be here by now.
But I still value the work ethics of the ICE personal very much.
It's not their fault that their employer isn't able to coordinate procedures efficiently...
ShouldIHaveFun@sh.itjust.works · 2 pts · 192d
Indeed, the lack of spending on the rail infrastructure in the last few decades has probably more to do with politics (cough cough car lobby cough cough) than the Deutsche Bahn's personal. I always like how the personal has a humorous and chill way of announcing the delays.
SeductiveTortoise@piefed.social · 1 pts · 193d
Hey, you try to be effective while taking the worst possible decision every time! Those poor managers! 😭
Nomad@infosec.pub · 10 pts · 193d
Nice joke, love it.
For the non German people: ICE here is intercity express. Our cops are somewhat more tolerable than yours.
Also German Rail is always late.
And for the people that don't get the Nuremberg part: that's where the Nazi trials were held.
DmMacniel@feddit.org · 29 pts · 193d
Only 30 minutes? That's cute.
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 9 pts · 193d
I am confident that there is still growth potential along the remaining route!
Let me tell you about me once trying to get from Mainz to Nürnberg some time...
renzhexiangjiao@piefed.blahaj.zone · 19 pts · 193d
meanwhile, die Züge in Polen:
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 7 pts · 193d
So we are still not worst?
I guess that's... uplifting?
SeductiveTortoise@piefed.social · 7 pts · 193d
Dear DB. That's not a challenge, don't you dare to accept it!
gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works · 4 pts · 193d
Oh my god +161m what the fuck
lime@feddit.nu · 19 pts · 193d
fuck ice.
worst train experience of my life.
VonReposti@feddit.dk · 11 pts · 193d
Let me tell you about the wonders of DSB. You expect a train and lo and behold, it's a "train bus"!
If I have to take the "train" anywhere the next 4 months I need to take one of those infamous "train busses"
But hey, at least the trains are working and on time when there's not construction work? Think again! That is the time for signaling errors, brakes that fall off the trains, or leaves on the track! And guess what that means? More train busses!!
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 5 pts · 193d
There was a bus substitute on one of my routes some time ago.
Turned out it was faster than the train because it took the Autobahn.
First time in my life arriving 20 mins early at that destination...
meekah@discuss.tchncs.de · 2 pts · 193d
Was it a proper travel bus with seatbelts and everything? I've once been in a bus meant for inside cities that went on the Autobahn, that was pretty scary
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 3 pts · 193d
Yes, seatbelts and comfortable seats.
Definitely an improvement to the Regionalexpress!
meekah@discuss.tchncs.de · 2 pts · 193d
lime@feddit.nu · 3 pts · 193d
at least the toilets were working on dsb. last time i was on an ice every toilet except one was out of order. on a full night train from münchen to hamburg.
baggachipz@sh.itjust.works · 16 pts · 193d
As a foreigner, ICE was so great a decade ago when I went to Germany regularly. What happened to destroy this beacon of fine travel?
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 24 pts · 193d
The long term effects of privatization and decades of car centric politics.
baggachipz@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 193d
That sucks. I saw the DB as a model of envy.
trollercoaster@sh.itjust.works · 8 pts · 193d
The DB was great (albeit a little bureaucratic), while it still was the Bundesbahn, a public institution, run by public servants like every other government office. But when they became the DB AG, a shares based for profit company (still held by 100% by the government), they became a shitshow, because now their mission of providing reliable public transportation changed to making maximum profit and paying their C-suite (typically former politicians or their buddies) ever increasing bonuses for doing fuck all or even less than that.
That's the way many German public institutions went thanks to rampant privatisation caused by all mainstream parties adopting the neoliberal agenda. They are now a shadow of their former self, delivering sub par service for outrageous prices while making a few individuals very rich.
baggachipz@sh.itjust.works · 2 pts · 193d
Sad, but unsurprising, that right-wing grift is universal.
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 6 pts · 193d
Sadly a thing of the past...
Spezi@feddit.org · 10 pts · 193d
The CDU never invested in the necessary maintenance, so from 2022 to 2025, SPD, Grüne and FDP had to push through funding all the necessary repairs and modernizations at once, crippling the whole network for the next 10-20 years. Part of it is beeing modernized while the rest now has a higher demand than what its capable of. Since the network is already very tightly packed, one small incident can cause a domino effect of trains beeing late throughout Germany.
TheBat@lemmy.world · 16 pts · 193d
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 9 pts · 193d
Or the Swiss.
TheBat@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 193d
SeductiveTortoise@piefed.social · 3 pts · 193d
If I don't survive, tell my wife "Hello".
f314@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 193d
Indeed! For example, the Tōkaidō high speed line between Tokyo and Osaka runs almost 400 trains every day with an average delay of about 12 seconds 🤯
Bear in mind that this is just the high speed service (Shinkansen). There is also a parallel line for local trains.
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 11 pts · 193d
Return voyage working out much better, so l am happy again! :-)
RidderSport@feddit.org · 4 pts · 192d
Casually flexing on americans about chilling and drinking coffee while running at 300kph on green electricity as well as being comfortable
synapse1278@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 192d
The green electricity part is debatable. From my balcony I have a very nice view of the giant smoke stack from the coal power plant and on the other direction the giant smoke stack from the sewage treatment plant where they burn solid wastes, I hope to recover some energy, although I am not sure about that.
Schmuppes@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 192d
Yeah, German rail makes the math look good. On paper, the fast passenger trains run on renewable energy. But then there's cargo trains on the same tracks, which do not.
RidderSport@feddit.org · 1 pts · 192d
It's PR no doubt, but they've been promoting that for some time now without reports that indicate otherwise, which make me believe it's true. And yes it's only for long-distance trains
just_an_average_joe@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 2 pts · 193d
Bro be happy it was only 30 mins. I have travelled with db to munich once. It got delayed 2 hours to munich and then 2 hours back as well. Always take flixbus if going to munich from west side
pewpew@feddit.it · 7 pts · 193d
In Italy, our train system is notorious for being always late... They actually celebrate when they are on time, no joke
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 7 pts · 193d
Celebrating sounds very Italian... We Germans just share some sarcastic comments with our fellow travellers. :-)
KyuubiNoKitsune@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 6 pts · 192d
Internal Combustion Engine? Maybe you should try the train.
Evolushan@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 193d
The other day I was supposed to take an ICE, which was canceled, and all the next ones as well for that day. So they had replacement buses. 4 per train... which means that when i arrived at 11.30 for my "train-bus" replacement, the 4 buses that left were from the 9.30 slot. By the time the buses for the 10.30 slot arrived, there were people from the 12.30 train there. You can imagine I gave up and did not go.
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 3 pts · 193d
Not an option for me, mandatory appointment.
But something similar happened for as with your buses, but fortunately in a good way:
The preceding ICE was even more delayed, so I was able to catch that one instead. :-)
Treczoks@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 192d
At least it arrives. Not like in Siegburg/Bonn where they just pass through if they are late.
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 4 pts · 192d
Wow, that must be the most frustrating feeling ever.
"Your halt has been canceled today..."
Treczoks@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 192d
I went there for my train, and there was a large amount of people waiting for the late previous ICE. Suddenly, the display showing the late train switched to the train I was waiting for, and a moment later, an ICE rushed through on the center track.
I've rarely seen a more pissed off group of people.
xodasu@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 193d
ZkhqrD5o@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 193d
The virgin DB ICE vs the gigachad ÖBB Railjet.
froh42@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 193d
Come on, if you were in Minneapolis, you'd be happy about that.
Ok, ok, I'll let myself out.
python@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 192d
Read up on your passenger rights! With more than 20mins (projected) delay, your "Zugbindung" ends and you can take any other ICE to your destination. If your delay is more than an hour, you get a 25% refund, if it's over 2 hours the refund is 50%. If you miss any following trains, need to take a taxi or need to stay in a hotel because of the delay, DB will refund you the cost of that as well. You're also entitled to a free drink in the train at some point, I don't know the specifics of that off the top of my head though
Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de · 1 pts · 192d
This is solid advice, although in my case it has been a ticket without Zugbindung, as it has been for a work trip.
I got reimbursed 25% one time last year, but had several trips where the delay annoyingly just stayed a few minutes below the magic 1hr mark. :-)
bigmamoth@lemmy.world · -5 pts · 193d
German qfality The downfall of germany should be studied. Ice are cool, sad it's shit like anything in that country anymore