One rail ticket for all cities
Beginning in April 2023, the Deutschlandticket for regional bus and rail services is to be offered for 49 euros per month.
Trips by bus and rail will become more attractive in Germany in 2023. To this the planned 49-euro ticket could make a decisive contribution: with the monthly ticket, passengers in Germany will be able to use regional transport throughout the country, regardless whether they are travelling in Berlin, Hamburg or Munich. The start date for the offer has yet to be finally fixed; currently it is set for 1 April 2023.
Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing speaks of the "biggest tariff reform ever in local public transport in the Federal Republic of Germany". The new offer is also intended to convince people to switch to buses and trains more often and so to travel in a more climate-friendly way. The expansion of rail transport is considered an important prerequisite for the transport turnaround envisaged by the Federal Government.
Successor to the successful 9-Euro-Ticket
The idea for the Deutschlandticket was prompted by the success of the 9-Euro-Ticket, which was intended as relief for citizens in the summer of 2022 in view of high costs for electricity, food, heating and mobility. On the initiative of the Federal Government, they were able to use local transport in June, July and August for a flat monthly price of nine euros. The new “Deutschlandticket” is now to become a permanent means of making local public transport more attractive.
The ticket - also called a "flat rate for regional transport" - is to be offered as a subscription for 49 euros per month and can be cancelled monthly. The Federal Ministry of Transport also expects the offer to make travelling by bus and train in German municipalities "simple and convenient". Until now, not only have the prices for regional transport varied considerably, but the respective tariff systems have also been very different and often complicated. The 49-euro ticket will soon put an end to all that.
More attractiveness through new trains and routes
But the Deutschlandticket is not the end of the story: to make it still more attractive, German Rail is also planning to introduce more modern and faster trains. According to the Federal Ministry of Transport, this will create almost 20,000 new seats on long-distance services. In addition, the routes are to be expanded and renovated. It is hoped that the improved infrastructure will lead to greater punctuality. And the politicians have made another promise: the mobile phone network in the trains is also to be improved.
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