After 15 years of anguished debate, the German government decided on Tuesday to privatize its rail system. Passengers fear the sale will cause a deterioration in service. Frequent delays have already eroded the country's proud reputation for punctual trains. Off the rails: The road to privatization has made German trains less efficient. The cliché that German trains always run on time is no longer true. Their reputation has been eroded, at least among German passengers, by a creeping increase in delays in recent years as national operator Deutsche Bahn sheds staff, rolling stock and equipment to shape up its accounts for privatization. The deterioration is obvious to anyone who regularly travels on German trains, and one of the country's main passenger lobbies, Pro Bahn, regularly complains about it. German rail services remain good overall -- the sleek red-and-white ICE high-speed inter-city trains are generally reliable, despite the delays -- and standards have a long way to slip before they reach the British experience of the 1980s and 1990s, when train cancellations, collapsing seats, blocked lavatories, general filth and ludicrous excuses (like "the wrong kind of snow" or "leaves on the line") were routine.
After 15 years of anguished debate, the German government decided on Tuesday to privatize its rail system. Passengers fear the sale will cause a deterioration in service. Frequent delays have already eroded the country's proud reputation for punctual trains.
Off the rails: The road to privatization has made German trains less efficient. The cliché that German trains always run on time is no longer true. Their reputation has been eroded, at least among German passengers, by a creeping increase in delays in recent years as national operator Deutsche Bahn sheds staff, rolling stock and equipment to shape up its accounts for privatization.
The deterioration is obvious to anyone who regularly travels on German trains, and one of the country's main passenger lobbies, Pro Bahn, regularly complains about it.
German rail services remain good overall -- the sleek red-and-white ICE high-speed inter-city trains are generally reliable, despite the delays -- and standards have a long way to slip before they reach the British experience of the 1980s and 1990s, when train cancellations, collapsing seats, blocked lavatories, general filth and ludicrous excuses (like "the wrong kind of snow" or "leaves on the line") were routine.
I'm assuming there is a German word just for this phrase.
you are the media you consume.
somehow governments never cease to peddle the lie that if it costs them 10 billion to do something, then private corporations will do better spending only half as much and trousering the rest. No they don't. They trouser all of it and run the infrastructure into the ground, then turn around and say "We broke it, but you'll have to fix it or face a voter revolt. And, by the way, 60% of everything you provide will go into our pockets. thanks very much"
Just exactly like British Rail. We get a worse service that costs 10 times as much.
And just when we need greener transport systems our governments make cars more attractive. Is there any party anywhere not infected with this mania ? Who will rid us of these turbulent privatising bastards ? keep to the Fen Causeway
Germany to Sell up to 49 Percent of Deutsche Bahn | Business | Deutsche Welle | 24.07.2007
Another 14 percent could also be sold -- according to the German constitution, the state is obliged to retain a majority holding as part of its duty to provide Germany with rail services. [...] The cabinet also decided the Deutsche Bahn would retain control of the track network for the next 15 years.
[...]
The cabinet also decided the Deutsche Bahn would retain control of the track network for the next 15 years.
That last is a major defeat for Bahn head Hartmut Mehdorn, who wanted to take the network (which apparantly also includes railway stations) with him into privateland.
The article further notes (though don't get your hopes up):
But it is by no means certain that the proposed IPO will go ahead amidst protests from local governments, unions and consumer groups. Many fear severe disruptions to services such as occurred in previous privatizations -- most notably that of British Rail in the 1980 and 90s. Contentious issues include the potential canceling of local routes and job losses.
Contentious issues include the potential canceling of local routes and job losses.
