New fleets and funding aids Covid-19 recovery

摘要

AS Germany and the rest of Europe hopefully turn a corner with mass vaccination sparking a recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, the rail industry should also begin to recover this year. The German passenger rail sector saw passenger numbers drop by 60-70% during the spring and autumn lockdowns, but never to the low levels seen in some neighbouring countries. The substantial drop in revenue for DB Long Distance was one reason the German government announced €6bn of additional coronavirus funding for German Rail (DB), adding to €20bn over a decade promised as part of the country's Climate Package to promote modal shift to rail. Political debate about how and whether this money should be provided was still continuing in late 2020. Open-access operators led by Flixtrain received no government funds. Flixtrain resumed some services in July 2020 but suspended operation again in November. Passenger traffic rebounded in summer 2020 to around 70% of 2019 numbers during a short lull between waves of the virus - with both DB Long Distance and Flixtrain running full trains at peak times, suggesting that passengers will return - and in substantial numbers.