German Rail Plans to Be More Punctual Than Ever in 2024 Despite Extensive Construction Sites. According to Rail Chief Richard Lutz, the goal is to achieve a punctuality rate of over 70 percent in local and long-distance traffic.
By 2030, at least four out of five trains, including ICE and Intercity trains, are to be on time. These targets were set in cooperation with the Federal Ministry of Transport.
Lutz emphasized that customers are usually not upset about minor delays of a few minutes. However, it becomes problematic when delays last longer than 30 minutes, connections are missed, and trains are canceled.
This was also the main reason for the record compensation payments of 132.8 million euros in 2023. In addition to the warning strikes, an increasing number of travelers, numerous short-term construction sites, and winter storms in December were cited as reasons.
In comparison, the railway had to pay "only" 92.7 million euros in compensation in the year 2022.
To achieve the desired punctuality targets, a fundamental renewal of the infrastructure is essential. According to its network condition report, Deutsche Bahn rates the state of its rail network with a grade of 3.01. More than half of the assessed infrastructure was in a mediocre, poor, or deficient condition.
Experts Doubt That the "Master Plan for Rail Transport" Will Achieve the Desired Result. To Improve Infrastructure, the Railway Plans Longer Complete Closures of Major Routes Starting Summer 2024. The Renovation of the Ried Railway Between Frankfurt and Mannheim Will Be Tackled First.
Railway CEO Lutz Defends Management Bonuses in an Interview with "Bild am Sonntag"
He argued that the bonuses are not set by the railway company itself but by the supervisory board. Furthermore, despite financial challenges, there are to be no cuts to the management's bonuses.
According to a special regulation of the desolate state-owned corporation, not only bonuses but also interest are to be paid out to the management for the year 2022. According to SPIEGEL, this would bring in up to seven percent in addition to the bonuses.
Railway CEO Lutz would thus receive an additional five-figure sum on top of his bonus of just under 1.3 million euros. The approximately 1100 top managers and 2400 leading executives of the railway would also benefit from this regulation.
For the year 2023, railway executives will not receive bonus payments due to subsidy payments as part of the electricity price cap.
According to the Chairman of the Railway and Transport Union (EVG), Alexander Kirchner, the bonuses for the year 2023 would have been similar to the previous year. Deutsche Bahn received more than 50 million euros from the federal government as part of the electricity price brake for the year 2023.
