Punctuality of Deutsche Bahn's long-distance trains down to 51.5%

Ten minutes late today. However, in the DB app, they put "Delay not in Germany." (It was in Austria.)

The German airlines can thank Deutsche Bahn for any bump in their business.

Just returned from a week in Germany. We took several trains, Boppard to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Munich, Munich to Heidelberg, and several shorter regional trains. Only the Frankfurt to Munich train was delayed, for an hour. We also took trains from Heidelberg to Strasbourg and Strasbourg to Triberg which were also fine. All of the others were on time or just a minute or so late. We enjoyed traveling by train.

We lived in Germany from 87-91 and trains were never late.
However, on our trip to Bavaria last year, we had NO trains that were on time. Some are 30 minutes late. Also, we had two that were cancelled and we almost missed our transport to our river cruise.

It is sad, we never saw graffiti in Germany, but today you see it a lot, not as bad as other countries, but still not good.

What has happened to Germany?

My daughter lived in Bonn for a while. She said the trains were never late because being late indicated a failure to meet expectations ... and with German trains there were no expectations.

A little bit over-dramatic question for me. Maybe some people did not follow history but Germany had a little bit to do with reunification after 1991. The GDR infrastructure was very much outdated, so a few thousand billions were invested there. Also the whole EU landscape changed a lot - and Germany is by various parameters the largest country in the EU with the most neighbors.

Some answers to the reasons for the rail system situation:
The whole rail infrastructure and the control systems are just old now and the fundamental renewal takes time, e. g. closing of Berlin - Hamburg for 9 months or Cologne Central for 10 days (from Nov 14 on). As mentioned the political focus was different. Furthermore Germany has not a separated fast train network. And growing demand: The rail-based passenger traffic volume grew 82% in 30 years; the traffic volume of goods on rail grew over 50%. The German rail system reached its limits and therefore also smaller impacts end in larger negative outcomes.
This PDF contains more details on 30 years of Deutsche Bahn transformation in German language.

And I agree that the current status is not acceptable.

Mark,
Thanks, that helps explain.

"We lived in Germany from 87-91 and trains were never late... last year, we had NO trains that were on time. Some are 30 minutes late. Also, we had two that were cancelled and we almost missed our transport to our river cruise."

Train travel is definitely more unpredictable than than it was back in 1991. OTOH, getting from A to B is much faster these days... a really late train today is still a lot faster than an on-time train was back then. A punctual train is 40% faster today than it was in 1991, in fact, for this north > south journey:

1991: Hannover Hbf > Munich Hbf on the ICE...07:20 - 13:20 (6 hrs.)
2025: Hannover Hbf > Munich Hbf on the ICE... 07:26 -11:44 (4 hrs., 18 mins.)

1991 timetable: https://www.fernbahn.de/datenbank/suche/?zug_id=19910101999

DB's threshold for "late" is just 6 minutes... I don't see delays of even 10-20 minutes as hugely problematic for most travelers-- except when it comes to making your connecting train when a change of train is needed. When it is, I think it's wise to assume that the first train WILL be late... and to incorporate an increased stopover time period between trains when making your travel plans.

Much bigger problems come about when trains are cancelled or tracks are closed without sufficient notice.

I don't see delays of even 10-20 minutes as hugely problematic for most travelers-- except when it comes to making your connecting train when a change of train is needed.

Deutsche Bahn publishes a KPI for this as well in the same overview. It is called "Reisendenpünktlichkeit" (passenger punctuality long-distance). Explanation: punctual arrival time plus maximum 14:59 min. of the passenger at the booked destination station in percent. Value in October was 57.3%.

The difference to the operative punctuality of long-distance trains shows that not every delay of a train leads automatically to a traveler's delay at the final destination.

Russ, you book a ticket with a change of trains and DB has no problem giving you a 6 minute connection time. As a tourist that just doesnt work. Now you have to go hunting for thrains that have 15 or 20 minute connections. How would you feel if 50% of Lufthansa flights were late and you had a 1 hour connection in Frankfurt? Sure, they will stick you on the next one but .... well its a holiday for goodness sakes.

@Mr Ê 🇺🇸 🇺🇦

DB doesn't give me a schedule - I choose my own, and if the stopover time doesn't suit me, prior to booking, I look for an earlier or later departure time - and/or use the DB site's stopover-time lengthening feature.

The high frequency of train departures on any given day in Germany outshines the far more limited choices one has for alternative flight connections when one's plane arrives late. I think this is something everyone knows, isn't it?

For me it's a holiday. For Germans it might be a holiday or a work trip or whatever. Germans use the trains in greater numbers than ever nowadays, so they've adjusted, and we travelers have to make adjustments to the reality on the ground as well if we want a nice holiday.

As a tourist 6 minute connections work fine too, once you have gotten the hang of it. You even get to appreciate the efficiency.

Of course DB does need to improve its punctuality. That will take time. You cannot repair decades of neglect in a few years. The excellent Swiss train network took 3 decades to create...

Rus, I was about to agree with you, then the next post pops up and says I just have to get the hang of it. Well, this is where my statement that “for a tourist” things are different. A tourist will not have the opportunity to get the hang of things. It’s one reason the mix of tourist points of view and local points of view work so well in this forum.

There are times when nothing makes more sense than a train. Sometimes it can even be enjoyable. So, this is negative to train travel. Still, I don’t do trains a lot, my destinations just don’t work well by train and Budapest is sort of on the fringe of Europe. I think in the last 12 years I have been on a total of 3 trains in Germany (I used to visit my daughter in Bonn from time to time) so like most tourists (not counting RS Travelers) my experience is limited. Over the last 12 years I have been Czech, OBB, ZSSK, MAV and Укрзалізни́ця. And even then, not many. So my experience level is probably close to that of the American who travels to Europe for two weeks once a year, not a local and not a FrankII or TexasTravelMom.

I know, when you miss a train, the procedure is simple, especially after you get the hang of it. I won’t be in Germany often enough to get the hang of anything. I am on holiday and for my enjoyment threshold a 30-minute change is much more enjoyable than the worry that comes with an “efficient” layover in a train station I have never been to before in a language I do not speak and a train system that has more than 50% of their long haul trains running late, and on a holiday when I want to relax.

So, I went looking on the DB website to prove a point. I was expecting to find the very short changes that I have dealt with on OBB, but to my pleasure I didn’t. Most of the changes on the DB system for the longer run trains are 15 to 20 minutes. Will I still worry? I would rather have my 30 minutes, but there were almost no 30-minute changes offered by DB on the few routes I checked. Still much better. Maybe DB realizes how unreliable their trains are and took that into consideration. Well done.

And Rus, we aren’t too far apart. Before my previous post, I should have done a bit of shopping first, then led with the parapraph above. Would have been more helpful and better context. Thank you for making me work. I learned. Always good.

Alone last week we had 3 connections with the DB and managed to get every connection exactly because all of them were delayed.

I don't disagree with you, Mr Ê 🇺🇸 🇺🇦, that the current situation in Germany can create practical problems on the ground for tourists. But here's the thing... the delay issues have become a semi-permanent feature of DB train travel. At least 20% of long-distance trains have been running late - and running later and later from year to year - for at least a decade:

https://www.zugreiseblog.de/bahn-puenktlichkeit-statistik/

While it might have been reasonable in the 70's and 80's to expect near-perfect on-time performance, it is unreasonable now, and it is a good thing that this forum and others are adorned with posts like Mark's and others' to keep pounding out the old "news." An informed traveler can anticipate/avoid troubles and be a happier traveler. Perhaps Rick and other institutional sources of travel information, sources that routinely caution us about overpacking, pickpocketing, scams, etc., should also be informing the traveling public on this problem AND the appropriate workarounds?

All that said... it's a mostly-manageable problem and does not have to ruin a trip... each country has its bugaboos to work with, right? Validate in this country. Reserve a seat in that country. Use your ticket's barcode to exit the station in some other country. And in Germany, expect delays and plan accordingly.

"So, I went looking on the DB website... Most of the changes on the DB system for the longer run trains are 15 to 20 minutes. Will I still worry? I would rather have my 30 minutes, but there were almost no 30-minute changes offered by DB on the few routes I checked."

On long trips I like extra-longer layovers... for a walk around, a meal, whatever.... and at the DB site you can arrange a layover in advance for 30 minutes or any length of time you wish too. Use the "Increase transfer time" button for any given itinerary. OR... Use the "Stopover" feature at the same page where you enter your travel details.

Or... if the connecting trains after your layover are all regional trains, your ticket - whether a saver fare or a flex-fare - frees you from the schedule... use ANY regional trains and make ANY additional stopovers you wish along the scheduled route.

I just want to add the info for travelers that in the last years not only troubles of Deutsche Bahn increased but also alternatives such as Flixtrain (see news from April) and various regional train offers. Also Flixbus is sometimes an alternative to consider.

The political discussions on state level also get more intensively because the regional people and businesses are affected by the actual low quality of service. Example: a NDR article in German language reports the discussion about enhancing the current with 147% overloaded tracks or completely renewing the rail connection network between Hamburg and Hanover. DB wants to build completely new, state Lower Saxony votes for enhancement by two tracks. Btw: from May 1st to July 26th 2026 the connection will be disturbed by planned maintenance works.

Other planned works and projects on German rail network for 2026 are listed in lower part of this ADAC article. Works from 2027 and later are listed by bullet points.

Much bigger problems come about when trains are cancelled or tracks are closed without sufficient notice.

When this happens does DB arrange for alternative transport like bus? I’m thinking to travelling around Germany by train next year and getting a bit nervous about this….. I’ve planned most of my stops to be direct to minimise missing connections, however if there were strikes or floods, I’m really not sure what to do.

I can deal with late trains, can always jump on the next one. But a train route that is cancelled for the day is what I dread most.

Good to know about the DB trains when I am there next summer taking the ICE and IC . I'll plan for delays and such unpleasant contingencies.

In the 1970s and '80s the trains I took in West Germany then were hardly ever, ever late, say not more than a minute or two. IC trains more than 10 mins late were unheard of. I used the German Rail Pass then, rode it into the ground, didn't have to concern myself with missing a connection since my train could be counted on arriving on time.

All one had to do back then was to check the big yellow Abfahrt/Departure sheet for the next train if you just got to the station and saw the last train was say , 3 mins ago. Simple and that info could be relied upon. There were also sometimes DB troubleshooters recognized by their red caps.

In France not the same, obviously. Inquiring at the ticket counter even if the Union Jack picture was above the counter did not necessarily mean the clerk would be able to communicate with you in English. Bottom line: if you didn't speak French , too bad.

Having experienced 2 canceled trains these last 3 trips since 2023 in addition to late trains, I've changed my train taking habits in Germany somewhat, you tailor your rides instead of exactly relying on the DB schedule.

On canceled trains and what to do: That depends on a number of factors, such as where I am in Germany, ie, in which city or which city was the destination? The time of day, etc. Unpleasant but not a disaster , merely an unexpected nuisance .

Yes, buses are the normal response when the trains aren't running.

Schienenersatzverkehr (or "SEV" for short) translates to "Rail-replacement transport" and is displayed on buses and on temporary streetside signposts. Or it might be shortened to "Ersatzverkehr", sometimes with train-to-bus international signage, and sometimes even with a translation to English, as you see in this photo.

It works pretty well when the issue is scheduled repairs/construction. When a problem arises without notice, buses and signage is rushed out but not necessarily in a rush that is helpful. I was caught a couple years ago when this happened in Duisburg. Waited at the replacement bus stop for the bus that DB said would be provided. Never came. Had to catch a regularly-scheduled local bus (which took about 1 hour to cover what is a 10-minute train ride.)

Strikes, when they occur, are typically announced in advance, so like with planned construction, you can get advance notice from DB and the DB app, as well as modified train schedules for whatever trips can be put together by non-striking personnel.

Strikes are not just a German thing. We got caught up in one in Portugal a couple years further back. Found out about it from my hotel-room TV (I know enough Spanish to sometimes unravel a sentence or two in Portuguese) and all we could do was head to the station and wait to see what would happen. Eventually, a train heading to Porto from the town we were in came along, and we got a ticket at the station and got to our Porto hotel for our last night in Portugal. And it's not just a train thing either. The next morning, our flight out of Porto to Luxembourg was cancelled, our only option being a flight to FRANKFURT. So we flew to Frankfurt and made other changes on the fly.

More adventure than we wanted, but it wasn't life or death.

Yes, buses are the normal response when the trains aren't running.
Thanks for all that information. Do the buses have undercarriage for large suitcases?

Disruptions are a nuisance yes. Especially if you have planned all the hotels along the route. Worst case scenario will probably lose a hotel night at the destination and need to find a last minute hotel room at the current destination. Last minute hotel rooms aren't cheap (or available), especially if there is an event at the time.

If a delay means that you end up stranded and need a hotel it is Deutsche Bahn that has to provide you with one. As a general rule you should never end up out of pocket because the railways messed up.

That said, I always advise people to start early. Leave after breakfast (or have it on the train). But I would not "plan for delays". If you do that Sod's law stipulates that all your trains will be on time and you just end up wasting time hanging around stations. Plan assuming that your trains will be on time, but plan such that arriving an hour (or even two) later than planed is not a disasters. So do not plan to arrive somewhere on the last train of the day.
Have the DB app, an start planning alternative routes as soon as you know that you are going to be 20 minutes or more late...

Strikes are not just a German thing.

Correct. Germany is a country with not so many strikes compared to other European countries. France and Belgium have the most strike days per employee.

See article with illustration of European countries with most strike days.

PDF brochure with many photos about replacement buses (Schienenersatzverkehr):
https://sev.db-ersatzverkehr.de/resource/blob/13092560/c2fd82c58e0a797f57a0a581182f3a83/DB-Bro-SEV-E2_16zu9-data.pdf

The locals here are absolutely correct. No argument, but I am not too sure how relevant much of it is to the typical American tourst

If a delay means that you end up stranded and need a hotel it is
Deutsche Bahn that has to provide you with one.

Thats fine for a local, but Bob, Carol and the 2 kids from Hackensack, NJ just have been dragging luggage around the train station for 2 hours trying to figure out what to do, who to talk to. There was another train they could have gotten on, but by the time they figure that out (having never ridden european trains before), they missed that one too. Amazing how many Germans dont speak English. Since they missed the replacemtn DB isnt giving them anything. To that we add, that since they didnt get to Berlin on time, that the family missed the Four Hour - Private Berlin WWII and Cold War History Tour that they paid $476 for. Well, its only 1 lost day out of the 10 paid vacation days that Bob gets each year.

As a tourist 6 minute connections work fine too, once you have gotten
the hang of it. You even get to appreciate the efficiency.

Sure, and when will Bob and family get the hang of it? Its their first trip to Europe and like most Americans might be their only or if they do come back it might be in 4 or 5 years.

Since they missed the replacemtn DB isnt giving them anything.

No, there is no rule that you have to take the next available train. And no one has to wait for someone to “give” him/her something; Bob can just get on the next train that suits him; the conductor knows that his previous train was running late. However, that is one of the things he should know in advance. If he prefers to stubbornly remain uninformed, it is difficult to help him.

The locals here are absolutely correct. No argument, but I am not too sure how relevant much of it is to the typical American tourst

Well, I am convinced that all tourists from Hackensack (NJ) as part of a metropolitan area will thank Germany as largest net contributor of the EU with 13.2 bn EUR in 2024 for paying parts of the infrastructure in net recipient countries of the EU like Greece (3.5 bn EUR), Poland (2.9 bn EUR), Romania (2.7 bn EUR) and Hungary (2.0 bn EUR) - even if not all fellow Europeans from these countries show gratitude for this support. And the numbers of 2023 were much higher.

And this redistribution of money runs for decades now. This partly answers the question why not earlier more money was invested in the German rail and street infrastructure.

And thanks for the fellow travelers here posting their current travel experience with Deutsche Bahn because personal experiences are different to the numbers. And good luck to the travelers visiting Germany in November and December.

If Bob and Carol miss their train and are in a major German city clueless as to what to do next, they can go to the Ticket Office, Reisezentrum provided it is still open. Use that phone to come up with a solution. Look at the electronic board for the next connection.

Germany is the easiest country to find out about the next relevant train to take when you miss the connecting train , or that train is cancelled, or something else going amiss. Of course, it is a nuisance and aggravating if this happens to you but you simply manage.

If a delay means that you end up stranded and need a hotel it is Deutsche Bahn that has to provide you with one. As a general rule you should never end up out of pocket because the railways messed up.

How does this work? If you are stranded in Munich or some big city, you can go to the main office and speak to someone. But what if you are stranded in a smaller city with no one to ask? Do you just find a hotel and get reimbursed later?

tommyquicksand, you will find the answer in this FAQ of Deutsche Bahn (in German language):
https://www.bahn.de/faq/wann-habe-ich-anspruch-auf-eine-uebernachtung-und-werden-mir-die-kosten-erstattet

See also #7 of these FAQs in English:
https://int.bahn.de/en/booking-information/passenger-rights/legal-regulations

The moral of the story for new travelers, or even some experienced ones:

1) Never make very tight connections. You never know what hurdles may come your way;

2) Download apps for the transportation providers and sign up for notices. (Not all do this). This is also good to help you find alternatives;

3) Learn what you can do if there is a problem. (What the rules may be, who you can contact with questions, etc.)

4) Realize, in the scope of travel, it rarely goes 100% to plan. Learn to roll with the punches and have back up plans. Know your options.

In my travels I've come up against strikes, maintenance issues, weather issues, other issues. I never panic. I just try to figure out my options. Sometimes I can do this online, at other times I need to reach out to someone.

My train from Nuremberg to Leipzig departed 45 minutes late today.

After about 30 minutes, I received a message in the app that I could take any train to Leipzig.

About 10 minutes before the actual departure, there was an announcement, only in German, that my train would depart from a different track. As I saw people starting to walk away, I asked someone who told me of the change--in English.

Matching news from today:
"Deutsche Bahn must expect significantly more competition in long-distance rail transportation in the future. According to a report in the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”, it is not only the Italian state-owned company FS that wants to operate its own trains in Germany, but also its arch-rival Italo. The plans envisage investing billions in 30 to 40 high-speed trains. Italo is apparently thinking of hourly or two-hourly connections within Germany ...

According to the FAZ, Italo headquarters in Italy did not wish to comment on this information. However, the plans are reportedly well advanced. A wholly-owned subsidiary in Germany is said to have already been founded and the application to operate a rail transport company in Germany was submitted in October. Whether the plans will ultimately be realized depends, among other things, on whether the company receives planning security for its investments - in the form of long-term contracts for railroad track access. The Italians would like these so-called framework agreements to run for 15 years. Ultimately, politicians and the Federal Network Agency, which is responsible for regulating the railways, will have to decide on the conditions for network access."

Source: https://www.n-tv.de/wirtschaft/Deutsche-Bahn-bekommt-mehr-Konkurrenz-im-Fernverkehr-id30002176.html

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

One news seldomly comes alone - regarding a post above: "Hamburg-Hanover line assessed profitable:
The Federal Ministry of Transport has assessed the draft Hamburg-Hanover high-speed rail line along the A7 and through the Lüneburg Heath as economically viable. The traffic forecast for 2040 assumes an increase in passenger volumes, according to a letter to Green Party member of parliament Matthias Gastel. This could lead to a new construction instead of an extension of the existing line. The benefit-cost ratio (BCC) is now listed at 1.5. Any value above 1 is economical." (source ZDF ticker)

I travel through Germany quite regularly. I have family in Belgium and travel between Belgium and Switzerland several times a year. My strategy is always to leave early, and book the fastest schedule offered. I do not add extra padding, or lengthen the transfer times.

Don't forget that if your train is late, the train you change to may be late as well. In my experience it is more common that a short transfer becomes a long transfer, than the other way.
And while I know that there is a 50% probability that I will be half an hour or even an hour later than planned at my destination I do not see the point in making a 50% probability a 100% certainty by adding a buffer.

Just remember: The moment you encounter delays your ticket reverts to being a flexible ticket for a route, so just take the next train going the right way...

A wholly-owned subsidiary in Germany is said to have already been founded

The Italian state-owned FS has an advantage here, as it has had such a company for many years: Netinera, a subsidiary of the Italian state railway FS, which maintains an entire empire of local transport companies through its German subsidiary Regentalbahn / Laenderbahn. Netinera could operate long-distance transport in Germany at any time. So far, they have not done so because it is naturally less risky to operate local transport paid for by the state than to run long-distance trains on their own account.

But that could change soon. The Laenderbahn's contract to operate the Munich–Furth im Wald (- Prague) line will expire in two and a half years, and Netinera only retained it in the last tender because the handover to ÖBB failed due to a legalistic technicality. If Netinera loses the contract, it will have a large number of employees and a large network of workshops throughout Bavaria that will suddenly find themselves out of work. In this situation, it could be cheaper to use that capacity for setting up a long-distance Munich-Prague line together with a Czech partner such as RegioJet or Leo Express. There is no doubt that this would be a success, as the current model of linking two regional trains with its many stops is only a poor workaround (a necessary one, as the statal Bavarian railway company, on whose behalf Netinera operates, is not allowed to run long-distance services). Competition from DB would hardly be a concern, as it would have neither the trains nor the personnel to operate the line in the medium term.

So this could be a starting point from which to conquer further routes. However, that will not be easy, as DB Fernverkehr will not give up a single slot without a fight.

@WengenK

Just remember: The moment you encounter delays your ticket reverts to being a flexible ticket for a route, so just take the next train going the right way...

I vaguely recall reading that you need to get a note from the conductor to prove this. Is this not required anymore?

Does this also apply to trains that are late for only 1min but causes you to miss the automatic assigned connecting train? This is a bit hard to prove though.

@Mark

tommyquicksand, you will find the answer in this FAQ of Deutsche Bahn (in German language):

Thanks. I can see alot of grey area here to prove your attempt to contact someone. I think this basically assumes expect for the worst and hope for the best situation. -> "If you nevertheless use a self-organised alternative, you cannot claim compensation for the costs unless you have made unsuccessful efforts to contact the railway company's ticket office or information point, or staff on the train used."

tommyquicksand you sort of demonstrated that this isnt something that Bob and Carol and the kids are going to want to screw with on holiday. As pointed out above, get long connections or try to avoid trains with connections; especially in Germany. By cheap tickets so if the worst happens you dont loose much (better to just toss the 30 euro loss than spend hours trying to figure it out and still get it wrong and get fined or thrown off the next train). Remain as flexible as you can with 2 screaming brats worn out from the experience. Bring duct tape.

tqs: A saver fare ticket becomes flexible when the delay is so long that it causes you to MISS your connecting train. A scheduled layover of 15 minutes does not turn flexible just because it's 1 minute late. Once upon a time, getting "flex" authorization from train personnel was required for missed connections due to delays, but not now.

when the delay is so long that it causes you to MISS

Bob, Carol and the kids had a scheduled connection of 18 minutes (pretty typical on DB).
The train was 13 minutes late so the connection time was 5 minutes.

Its a big station with stairs down at each platform, then down long halls to stairs back up to the next platorm.

• 173 riders under the age of 40 made the connection. This included 117 experienced train riding Germans who got up early, got their luggage down, pushed and shoved to get as close to the door as possible so when it opened they could jump out and make their way to the next platform.
• By the time Bob and Carol and the kids got organized, got their luggage and got off the train, well, they just didnt make it to the nex train in time. All little Ralphie's fault ... he was throwing an temper tantrum.
• One old fart with too big a suitcase took 3 minutes getting down the train door stiars because he uses a cane ... had to wait for the elevator down and back up to the next platform and missed the train.
• One middle aged gentlemen in good health read the board wrong and ran to track 22 when he should have gone to 2, by the time he figured it out he missed the connection.
• One just figured they wounld expect you to run to the next train so didnt stand at the doors waiting for them to open, and got caught behind a group of backpackers that took their sweet time getting off the train and so missed the connection.

Do any who missed the train ride for free on the next train, and how do you know with certantity. Who decides, and when. And if the answer is no, and they try anyway, what is the consequence for their action.

My daughter & I will be riding some of the trains as we go from Salzburg to Munich to Stuttgart to Strasbourg. I purposely made all of our cities as direct train connections since this is during the Christmas markets season. Wow, I didn’t realize the punctuality I’ve experienced in the past is no longer the norm!

@MR Ê 🇺🇸 🇺🇦 🇭🇺

FYI my post was penned not to defend DB but to correct tqs' misunderstanding of the somewhat vague DB rule.

That said - what less-ambiguous "fix" do you suggest for handling the fictitious and inept travelers in your examples?

And what is the real-world evidence for your concern that the handling of such passengers by train personnel on the connecting train has been less than fair? How many of those 10-15 million daily passengers, many of whom bought saver fare tickets and presented them to train personnel, are actually getting fined and booted off trains after a delay results in a missed connection? If you are like me, you haven't heard a single anecdotal case of unfair treatment in this situation. If poor judgment with the application of this rule were common practice, I'd expect to hear complaints about getting tossed or swindled (as we do so often with car rentals) or about lawsuits, but I read only complaints about the delays and missed connections... so my guess is that 99% of such situations result in completed trips to the final destination on the original saver-fare ticket.

I would also remind everyone that a missed connection to a regional train will NOT jeopardize a saver fare ticket. Example:

Nuremberg > Munich (ICE) + Munich > Füssen (RB): No obligation to ride the next train if the first train is late. You can get off in Munich for a 3-hour, 3-beer lunch if you wish and then ride ANY regional train to Füssen that same day. The only travel segments that are train-specific are the long-distance train (ICE, IC, EC, RJ) segments.

Russ, wooooo..... sorry. I thought your post was excellent and fair.

My post assumed nothing about DB service, nor did it make any judgments or anything else about DB and its staff but asked the question of what would happen in the scenarios. I really dont know the answer because the written standard is vague and undefined and I often get let down a lot when I assume. I believe, and you know, as you said, "A scheduled layover of 15 minutes does not turn flexible just because it's 1 minute late." So when does it turn flexible and who decides and do I want to gamble on my reason for missing the train being good enough? Wouldn't it be grand if DB said "if your connection time is reduced by 25% or becomes less than 5 minutes your ticket is good on any ....." as opposed to the large undefined grey area? But it doesn't say that, so when traveling i will assume, maybe not the worst, but not the best either. And I dont want to rely on long discussions or arguments because I am a guest in Germany and I dont speak a word of German. Not that I am correct in this, but its my holiday and I will do those things that increase the possibility of my pleasure with my likes and dislikes and personality.

One example published today illustrates a part of the problem which is caused by aged infrastructure.

"Due to damage, the railroad bascule bridge over the Hunte in Oldenburg can currently only be used on one track. According to Deutsche Bahn, long-distance trains will be canceled for weeks [remark: canceled trains are not part of punctuality statistics].

According to Deutsche Bahn, there are delays and cancellations on several regional routes due to the defective bridge.

Deutsche Bahn is aware of the importance of the Hunte bascule bridge for the region, according to a statement. More than 100 trains pass the approximately 70-year-old structure every day, including around 90 passenger trains and more than 30 freight trains. The railroad is working on repairing the damage as quickly as possible."

Source, translated with DeepL.com (free version)

I can see alot of grey area here to prove your attempt to contact someone. I think this basically assumes expect for the worst and hope for the best situation. -> "If you nevertheless use a self-organised alternative, you cannot claim compensation for the costs unless you have made unsuccessful efforts to contact the railway company's ticket office or information point, or staff on the train used."

I don't see where the gray area is here. The quote refers to hotel accommodation, which the railway company has to provide if you are unable to continue your journey in the evening due to a train delay. They distinguish between two cases: (1) You arrive at a larger station and can find a contact person there (your conductor/the information point/the ticket office): they will arrange accommodation for you. (2) You are stranded in the boondocks of central Bavaria—no contact person available: you organize accommodation yourself and submit the bill for reimbursement.
However, if in case (1) you decide to travel the remaining 200 km by taxi or stay rather in a five-star hotel, you will not receive any compensation. What is unclear about that?

Does this also apply to trains that are late for only 1min but causes you to miss the automatic assigned connecting train? This is a bit hard to prove though.

There is a standard transfer time defined for each station. These are listed next to the station names in the timetables (PDF) and are incorporated into the website, meaning that you will not be shown any connections that cannot be made within the standard transfer time. And they are quite generously calculated. For example, when, coming from Salzburg, I transfer to my follow-up train in Munich, I have to walk from the northern wing to the southern wing of the station (approx. 500 m). I have 20 minutes to do this, but in fact I can easily do it in 6-7 min. Still, if my Salzburg train was so late that I don't have the 20 min transit time, the train binding of my saver fare ticket is of course lifted (and other tickets don't have train binding, unless in Italy or France). Finally, anyone with a disability, who cannot do the transfer within 20 min, can request assistance via the website at any time the day before.

In Germany I don't count on the punctuality or even relative punctuality re: the ICE or IC that I had enjoyed in years past.

I listen for the announcements on the dep/arr times, track changes, at which letter the train is pulling in , etc and watch the electronic board on the the platform. Often the announcement is given only in German as it is in France only in French. In the old days that was certainly the case. You pay attention.

By the time Bob and Carol and the kids got organized, got their
luggage and got off the train, well, they just didnt make it to the
nex train in time. All little Ralphie's fault ... he was throwing an
temper tantrum.

Bob and Carol not just miss their train, they miss their station, as by the time they will have made it to the door it will be closed and the train will already have started moving again. The standard stop time is something like 50 seconds.

So yes, maybe Bob and Carol need to inform themselves on how to take a train.

I will repeat: Do not overthink it. My last train I took in German was over an hour late. But my plan had always been to "when I get to Basel I will take whatever comes next in the direction of Interlaken", so I relaxed. Do not add extra buffer, because taking a later train is fine. Taking an earlier train than planned because your train happened to be on time against expectations however is not permitted...

And yes, Germany is different in that the DB staff does not treat passengers as if they are the enemy, like eg SNCF staff does.

Also again an appeal to see things in perspective.

In Germany a train is late if it is more than 6minutes delayed. So the statistics say you have a 51% chance of having a delay of less than 6 minutes....

WengenK, ... for long-distance trains only.

Right scope of perspective is important.

I spent 15 nights in Germany in August-September 2024. I vaguely remember that at least some trains didn't show up at the originally given times. The amount of time I was waiting was far too low to come close to ruining my trip. On one trip I got on a train that arrived earlier than the train I had bought a ticket for because I was done with a place and I didn't want to keep waiting for the actual train I had bought a ticket for... an employee came to look at my ticket... I pulled my printed ticket out and immediately tried pronouncing, in German, that I got on the wrong train... he didn't say anything... nothing bad happened... also, Planes don't always leave at the originally scheduled time...

It is not always the case that a ticket is only good for the train you selected when purchasing. In fact, the default is for tickets to be for a route, not a train.
So do not assume that if you get on a different train that you are on the wrong train :-)

Update of KPIs for November:

• Punctuality of long-distance trains was 54.5%, so little improvement but not back on already disastrous level of September.
• Punctuality of travelers using long-distance trains: 61.7% (+4,3%), same comment
• Punctuality of regional trains: 85.2% (unchanged bad status from October)
• Overall punctuality of DB's passenger rail traffic: 84.5% (+0.1%) - illustrates large share and significance of regional train traffic.

For details and KPI table click on second link in original post. DB updates the status and overview monthly.

And a reminder that being 5 minutes late isn't considered as a failure to be "on time". I've missed two connections in the past month buy such short margins. Missed a couple others by over 20 minutes.

The worst part is that many of the "stations" are now just platforms, and after 1800 you may not be able to find anything open when you have an hour, or more, until the next train.

I took four long distance DB trains in November. All four were late. Anywhere from 15 minutes to 50 minutes.

Excuses--late arriving train, track construction, signal failure and waiting for a connecting rail replacement bus.

One train had a track change five minutes before departure. No announcements in English.

I've learned with DB that I should never plan a tight connection.

One thing that I loved about German culture was the emphasis on being on time.
We lived there over thirty years ago and trains were never late.

We found last year that punctuality is no more in Germany. Is this a change in German culture?

We found last year that punctuality is no more in Germany.

Well, how much of Germany do you really know?
Remark: I have no intention to defend the bad punctuality of Deutsche Bahn. But building an opinion about a whole nation based on delays caused by a single transport company would be an inappropriate and unreasonable conclusion in my opinion.

Did you know that originally the word punctuality was not used for being on time? After medieval age a brick layer for huge buildings such as cathedrals was working punctually when he was very precisely or accurately (on point) which was important for the stability of the building. From these times the old saying "pünktlich wie die Maurer" comes from. Today every older / aged civil engineer in Germany has a completed base education as brick layer or carpenter - also my father. Today's engineering students do not need this.

Is this a change in German culture?

In my perception during decades no. Do you know the "akademisches Viertel" for example?

Mark,
I sincerely hope that you are right.

Is this a change in German culture?

Not without evidence from other arenas of life. Do doctors expect their patients to show up late for their appointments? Do employees not suffer consequences when they miss or ignore deadlines? I suspect answers to these questions have not changed much recently. Deadlines in Germany are still deadlines. (Germans actually borrow the word "deadline" from English when speaking German, just as they do certain other English words which they find useful for matters that are important to them.)

You might also look at the reaction of the general public in Germany to the delays and other irregularities of today's high-speed rail service in Germany. I get the feeling that Mark's dissatisfaction with DB is shared by the vast majority of his fellow countrymen. They aren't putting up with the demise of punctuality service in silence, which says something about the culture, I think.

Deadlines in Germany are still deadlines.

In most cases yes. The word deadline is in my perception rarely used. Germans like more the terms "Plan" (planned), "Liefer" (delivery) and "Ziel" (target), e. g. "Lieferdatum".

Just a funny but real insider saying from a large German company.
Example:
Q: "Will this be ready for IFA fair?"
A: "Sure."

The saying: "Always commit a date, never commit a year.".

In some projects all participants are waiting who is first raising the hand that a planned milestone (result to a date) will not be reached. From my experience this is very international business behavior.

But this is mostly blue chip cosmos not Germany.

What was taken over is launching beta versions - delivery of low quality or unfinished quantity for time-to-market - but in the meantime companies learned that this is a real bad idea because esp. for product launches and innovations companies never have a second chance for a first impression. Travel example was BER airport opening planned for May 2014 which was cancelled only few weeks before. I had already tickets booked for BER , then moved back to TXL.

Key take-away for travelers: do not trust or minimum double re-check opening dates for hotels, station,s etc. which are published too early, e. g. months before opening date.

from NPR, National Public Radio:
"Germany's train service is one of Europe's worst. How did it get so bad?"

Little bit too much on surface imo. They do not even mention a paper of Deutsche Bahn reporting on 30 years reformation of Deutsche Bahn (link to PDF). Another good source explaining delays is not mentioned: an animated analysis of influencing factors of delays from second German public broadcaster ZDF (link to source).

A cartoon published today illustrates that would be a business on its own to place bets on punctuality of DB long-distance trains, here explicitly ICE 506 from Munich.So, do not assume that Germans take the current status without humor.

NPR is wildly of the mark here. Compared to eg. France or Spain the German railways are still a lot better. Its easy to be punctual when you run 1 train every two hours on a line build for 20 trains per hour (like in Spain). Germany runs 20 tph on lines build for 10 tph, and yes, it does not always go to plan...

But you aren't saying that the odds of a traveler arriving on time, on a long haul route, is better or even as good in Germany as in France or Spain?

I’m underwhelmed by train travel in Europe. We have traveled many times on trains in Europe and this time had been the worst by far. We are on our third longer train trip and all three have had delays and major problems. Currently we have been sitting for about 90 minutes just inside Germany on our route from Strasbourg to Stuttgart because of some train malfunctions. The plan is now to take us to Kehl and board a replacement train Karlsruhe.
Our earlier trips from Vienna to Nurnberg and Nurnberg to Strasbourg had major delays and missed transfers.
Oh well, I guess you just have to go with the flow and not get too upset. We still have had a fun Christmas market trip.

I really regret to read that., Brian. I hope for the best for the rest of your journey.

You likely know how you can check your passenger rights in those cases, e. g. partly refund.

I just want to mention to also look at Flixbus as alternative mean of transport.

Good luck!

Brian, sorry you are having problems with the trains. Sounds like a real pain.

I am not a big fan of trains simply because they are trains. In other words, I dont have the love of the rails that many do. But if someone does, then thats great and nothng else really matters.

Here in Hungary, I will always choose the train first. Why? Because its free. Hard to beat free and worth putting up with some discomfort and inconvenience.

But I am surprised (and not) that things are so unreliable and so complicated with regard to train travel. Well, at least for a novice holiday traveler. Just look at the posts here. How many are are about how to buy tickets or figuring out routes or what to do with their luggage or ..... on and on. Imagine if the same number of similar questions come up about air travel. People would go wild and demand change. And the prices now? There are routes where the train costs more than a flight.

But still, trains can be a low pressure laid back means of transportation for those with the right attitude and the time. They can be really efficient for getting around, but not always as you demonstrate today. Again sorry about that.

As to making one's connection given 6 to 7 minutes, as long the train station is one level, eg, Frankfurt Hbf or Leipzig Hbf, Kiel Hbf , Hannover Hbf, Düsseldorf Hbf, you can make it. If the locals can do that, I had better be able to do that too.

The worst Hbf to make a connection is Hamburg Hbf.

Mr É, the big difference is the way Germany handles iregularities, compared to France or Spain.

I have now just made two train trips through Germany. Last Monday I travelled Interlaken - Amsterdam, and Friday I returned. Today I am going back to Amsterdam again. The trip north was fine, with all trains on time till we reached the Dutch border. There we got stuck behind a broken down freight train. That shows a bit the issue in Germany. The Dutch invested in a new high capacity freight railway from Rotterdam to Germany. The Germans promised, then neglected, to build a connecting line on their side. So freight and passenger trains all have to share the busy stretch from Emmerich to Arnhem. In the end we arrived 20 minutes late in Amsterdam.

On the way back I first went to Belgium for a few days, and then took the train from Brussels back to Interlaken. Train left Brussels on time, but arrived with 15 minutes delay in Köln. The reason here was the stupid border theatre Merz introduced recently. But that was not a huge issue, as I had a generous connection there. But my train to Basel was delayed as well, and in the. end only went as far as Badisher Bfh. So I took the tram to SBB, (with some tourists in tow that needed to get to Interlaken) and there we still made the train.

And that is where Germany differs from France or Spain. We did not have to buy a tram ticket to get from Bad to SBB, as the railway had arranged for train. tickets to be valid on the tram. The pragmatism with which you can take alternative transport makes up a bit for the chaos. Of course, travellers who are not used to making their own way will be confused by this.

In France otoh, in the case of disruption do not expect anything from the railway. SNCF would run its trains without passengers if it could get away with it. I had a situation where the TGV to Luxembourg was cancelled. So I wanted to take a TER in stead. Well, I had to buy a new ticket for that. (And luckily I know how).

Yesterday I watched a youtube video of a place outside of Paris (Gisors) that is a popular day trip destination, and that you can easily reach by train, but you cannot get a valid ticket... So people travel without a valid ticket, and the SNCF has been fining them in droves...

And don't get me started on Spain. You cannot take an ALVIA with an AVE ticket and vv. And you cannot buy tickets between most possible origin-destination pairs in Spain, even if they are both served by RENFE. And if you cobble a route together yourself with multiple tickets you need to plan 90 (ninety!) minutes minimum transfer time...

No, give me Germany, were a train is still a train, and not a brand, and where a ticket is still for travel from A to B.

I'm about to head north back to Amsterdam again. Will see how it goes, but am confident I will arrive at my planned time give or take half an hour...

Arrived in Amsterdam all right btw. Had three transfers, Basel, Mannheim and FRA, and all trains were on time, except the last one that arrived in Amsterdam 20 minutes late.