Last year, 40% of long-distance trains in Germany were reported to be delayed.
The state-owned railway company Deutsche Bahn (DB) announced Thursday that the on-time arrival rate for long-distance trains dropped from 64.0% in 2023 to 62.5% last year.
The punctuality rate for German long-distance trains peaked at 84.3% in 2004 but has steadily declined recently, reaching new lows annually.
DB defines a train as late if it arrives more than six minutes behind schedule. A DB spokesperson explained that 80% of delays are due to outdated infrastructure, which is increasingly prone to disruptions and overcapacity.
Once renowned for their punctuality, Germany’s trains are now infamous for frequent delays. According to the railway expert website Zugfinder, Germany had the lowest on-time arrival rate last year among 11 major European countries. The average on-time rate across these nations was 84%, with only Germany and Italy (64%) falling below 80%.
During the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament in June, as soccer fans from across Europe descended on Germany, the on-time arrival rate of trains dropped to a staggering 55.3%, sparking widespread frustration.
DB has set a target to achieve an on-time arrival rate of 65-70% this year, but local expectations remain low. Despite investing billions annually to upgrade the tracks, delays remain a persistent problem.
Last year, DB’s infrastructure investment, including federal government subsidies, hit a record high of 18.2 billion euros ($19.7 billion). In response to the federal government’s new infrastructure investment plan of 500 billion euros ($541 billion), DB has stated that it will need 162 billion euros ($238 billion) over the next decade to repair tracks and implement a digital transformation.