Interesting article on the 9 EUR Ticket

Hi Sam,
This is a great offer for travelling really cheaply in July and August in Germany. However trains are extremely full as a result of these tickets so plan your trips wisely. Travel earlier or later than normal to avoid the overcrowded trains.
The tickets can also be used for buses, trams and the underground in Germany.
If you want to avoid the “9 Euro crowds” completely, then book 1st class.

If you want to avoid the “9 Euro crowds” completely, then book 1st class.

For regional trains, this is the worst strategy imaginable. When the train is overcrowded, people simply rush into first class. Threatening with the police is only effective at large stations. At smaller hubs, where is non federal police at all (the state police have no authority over train traffic) the conductor is powerless and you may stand up for a first class fare (i.e. for the full fare, since there are non sparpreises on regional trains!). I have been experiencing this every week since the introducion of the 9€ ticket in Treuchtlingen (a hub for regional trains coming in from Munich, Augsburg, Würzburg, and Nürnberg), where a evening train from the Franconian Lake District spits out more vacationers than fit on the train to Augsburg. It is better to avoid popular routes at peak times. My morning train from Augsburg to Treuchtlingen, for example, is as empty as ever.