Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing hopes that there will be a rush of customers to use public transport. “Of course we have to deal with this, but convincing as many people as possible to use buses and trains is exactly what we want,” said the FDP politician in an editorial meeting with the German Press Agency in Mainz. The federal states must consider how they can attract more customers. “Because the more people use the Germany Ticket and public transport in general, the more attractive the price can be in the future.”

Wissing calls Ticket a “digitalization concept for public transport”

The Deutschlandticket, which allows unlimited use of regional and local buses and trains nationwide, currently costs 49 euros per month. As the federal government has changed the regionalization law, the price will remain stable in the current year, as this means that funds not used in 2023 can be used to finance the ticket this year. However, the state transport ministers have announced a price increase for the coming year.

Wissing called on the states not to diminish the success of the 49-euro ticket with debates about price increases, but to quickly address the question of “how can we advance the digitization of public transport and how can we make more data available to make the service more attractive to people?” The minister told the dpa in Mainz: “The Deutschlandticket is a digitization concept for public transport.” The ticket lays the foundation for more digitization. “The states and transport associations must build on this and continue to improve customer friendliness.”

“We still have trains that travel around almost empty,” said Wissing. “And elsewhere we have trains that are overcrowded and whose infrequent service frustrates people.” The aim must be to align the service more closely with users and to use existing capacity in the best possible way. “We need data for this.”