Ralf Damde, the head of the overall works council at DB Regio, has called for a single tariff‑consolidating transport association across Germany. “We have dozens of transport associations that are inefficient-one would be enough” he told the RTL and ntv program “Frühstart” on Friday.
Damde explained that such a restructure could save the country roughly €1.4 to 1.5 billion. “With the Deutschlandticket in place, we need only one tariff association, freeing up substantial funds that could be directed toward safety and system improvements” he said. He added that neither the federal government nor the Länder are ready to make the transition.
He also raised the need for more federal police at train stations. “When it takes us a hour and a half for a federal police officer to arrive after being called, it is simply not tolerable” Damde said. He argued that stronger security partnerships between the federal government and the Länder are essential, because travel times to accidents and assaults are too long. “The Bundespolizei is stretched thin with overtime, flying everywhere, and cannot perform its duties” he added. Damde cited the many Bundesliga matches as an example, noting that even those are not the most critical; the Regionalliga games pose an even greater security challenge.