The recent departure of Deutsche Bahn’s CEO, Richard Lutz, has prompted criticism of Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder, with the Chairman of the Transport Committee, Tarek Al-Wazir, alleging insufficient advocacy for the rail network.
In comments to the “Rheinische Post” published Saturday, Al-Wazir stated that despite a dedicated fund of 500 billion euros, Minister Schnieder failed to secure adequate funding in the draft federal budget for essential expansion and new construction projects on the railway.
Al-Wazir argued that unless Deutsche Bahn becomes a clear investment priority for the current coalition government, failure is almost guaranteed, regardless of who leads the company. He emphasized that personnel changes alone cannot address the fundamental problems facing the railway and asserted that “firing people does not replace a strategy.
The announcement regarding the early and mutual termination of Lutz’s contract was made by Minister Schnieder on Thursday.