Federal transport minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) said that, after reviewing Deutsche Bahn’s 2025 financial results, the groundwork for a new start has been laid. A ministry spokesperson told the dts news agency on Friday that the balance figures will now be examined in depth.
Schnieder acknowledged that many challenges remain-especially in quality, service and punctuality-but the rising passenger numbers confirm that the rail network is still needed.
Deutsche Bahn released its 2025 balance sheet earlier that morning. While operating results return to profitability, the total balance, including depreciation, still records a loss of several billion euros.
In 2025, the DB group’s rail passenger traffic grew by 3.4 % year‑over‑year to 1.93 billion travellers, and passenger‑kilometres increased by 2.7 % to roughly 87 billion kilometres.