The rail strike is ongoing – and most trains in Hesse are at a standstill. Deutsche Bahn has set up an emergency timetable by Thursday evening. The impact on local transport is also massive.
Regional rail traffic in Hesse was also severely affected by the warning strike at Deutsche Bahn on Thursday. Despite an emergency plan in place, travelers must expect massive restrictions, according to a press spokeswoman. If possible, she advises passengers to postpone their journey until after the strike, she said early Thursday morning.
Otherwise, you should find out about the planned train connections in good time before you start your journey. A significantly reduced timetable applies, including for the S-Bahn in the Rhine-Main area.
Buses, trams and subways in local public transport are not affected by the warning strike.
More than four out of five long-distance trains are said to be canceled
The nationwide Walkout, which the German Train Drivers’ Union (GDL) had called on, among others, train drivers, train attendants, workshop employees and dispatchers, is scheduled to end on Thursday at 6 p.m. The warning strike began on Wednesday at 10 p.m., and some connections were stopped earlier.
The railway assumed “massive impacts” on rail operations. She expected more than 80 percent of all IC and ICE journeys to be canceled. “In regional transport, the aim is to run a greatly reduced offer,” said a railway spokeswoman.
The railway’s emergency timetable will initially continue to apply after the strike ends at 6 p.m. on Thursday evening, said railway spokesman Achim Stauß on Thursday. “Our whole priority is to get traffic moving again tomorrow on this important Friday.” Freight transport was also hit hard. Hundreds of trains, some with time-critical goods, are backlogged. They want to resolve this quickly with special shifts.
Bahn wants to offer a “stable basic offer”.
After Information from the Rhine-Main Transport Association (RMV) Regional trains and S-Bahn trains in the RMV area were affected by the strike on Thursday: “There could be massive effects.” The S-Bahn trains in Rhine-Main stopped running on Wednesday from 10 p.m. until the end of operations. The DB is trying to offer “a stable basic offer” for Thursday, it said.
Until the end of the strike, S-Bahn lines S1, S3, S5, S6 and S8 should run every 1 hour. The S5 line only runs between Friedrichsdorf and Frankfurt-Rödelheim.
No train service between Gießen and Herborn
According to RMV, there are partial failures on lines S2 and S4. A shuttle service with S-Bahn trains has been set up between Offenbach-Ost and Dietzenbach and between Niederhochstadt and Kronberg. S9 journeys will therefore be canceled completely until 6 p.m. Alternatively, line S8 runs from and to Hanau main station.
According to RMV, lines RE5, RE30, RB48, RB51, RE60 and RB11, RB12, RB15 and RB16 are expected to be canceled until 6 p.m. on Thursday. There will be partial cancellations on lines RB22, RB34, RB40, RB41, RB49, RB61, RB67/68, RE20, RE70 and RE99 on Thursday. From around 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., no train service between Gießen and Herborn is possible due to an unmanned signal box in Ehringshausen, according to the RMV.
The Frankfurt transport company (VGF) announced that it wanted to run three-car trains, i.e. longer subways than usual, on the U1, U2, U6 and U7 lines.
Train cancellations in the NVV area
In the north of Hesse, passengers are also feeling the effects of the GDL strike on local transport. After Information from the North Hessian Transport Association (NVV) you have to expect cancellations on the regional train lines. The trains operated by Deutsche Bahn are particularly affected.
This applies to the lines RE30, RB4, RB38 and RB39, i.e. the connections between Kassel and Frankfurt, Korbach, Treysa or Bad Wildungen. The RE5 (RMV) and RE50 between Bebra and Frankfurt and the RE97/RB97 from Brilon via Korbach to Marburg are also affected. According to the NVV, all lines not listed should run regularly. Buses and trams are also running normally, and this probably also applies to the RegioTram.
Frankfurt-West signal box unoccupied
According to the railway spokeswoman, the signal box in Frankfurt-West remained unmanned early on Thursday morning. This led to cancellations on the S-Bahn lines between Frankfurt-Rödelheim and Frankfurt Central Station.
However, other railway companies such as the Hessische Landesbahn (HLB), Vlexx and Vias were not on strike. “Thank God the strike did not affect us,” said an HLB spokeswoman on Thursday afternoon. According to a spokeswoman, the rail company Vlexx also ran according to the regular timetable with “few restrictions” on Thursday.
Early in the morning there were partial cancellations on two trains between Frankfurt Airport and the main train station. The reason for this was a strike at the stadium signal box, it was said. Otherwise the trains ran according to plan.
Passenger rights
According to the railway, all passengers who would like to postpone their planned trip due to the GDL strike can use their ticket at a later date. The train connection has been lifted. The ticket is valid for the journey to the original destination, even with a changed route. Seat reservations can be canceled free of charge.
In addition, the other tariff or statutory provisions apply Passenger rightsso that, for example, a ticket refund is possible under the appropriate conditions.
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Union wants working hours reduced
With the warning strike, union boss Claus Weselsky is already tightening the pace of the collective bargaining dispute after the first round of negotiations. The GDL and Deutsche Bahn have only been negotiating a new collective agreement since last Thursday.
Die In collective bargaining, the union is demanding, among other things, 555 euros more each Month for employees as well as an inflation compensation bonus of up to 3,000 euros. “We have come a lot closer to our goal. But our demand is also that our employees are generally relieved. This also refers to a 35-hour week,” said the district chairman of the GDL Hessen-Thüringen-Mittelrein, Rudolf Schultheis, Mr.
“We have been doing extra work for many years. The shifts are getting longer and harder at the same time. The sickness rate is not only so high because we have the flu or bad weather right now. The employees are simply overworked everywhere,” complained Schultheis. The railway has already described the GDL’s demand for a reduction in working hours from 38 to 35 hours with full wage compensation as unfeasible, citing the additional staff requirements.
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The post first appeared on www.hessenschau.de
