Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing assumes that Deutsche Bahn will be more punctual next Christmas than it is currently. As soon as the Riedbahn – an important route between Frankfurt am Main and Mannheim – is renovated, the first improvements will be noticeable, the FDP politician told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “That will be at the end of the year, around Christmas traffic in 2024.”
The Riedbahn is currently responsible for a lot of delays. “Every seventh long-distance train passes through this route. Due to its poor condition, there is at least one service disruption every day.” The 70 kilometer long Riedbahn between Frankfurt and Mannheim is to be completely closed for almost six months as part of the renovation.
With a view to the further general renovation of important routes in the coming years, Wissing gave passengers further hope: they want to complete the renovation by 2030, which is ambitious. “Until then, things will gradually get noticeably better for passengers and companies.”
Last year, almost two thirds of long-distance trains were delayed.