Germany’s price‑cap rule for freight and passenger rail services in regional transport has been found to violate EU law. The European Court of Justice ruled that a fixed mathematical formula for calculating charges undermines the independence of infrastructure operators’ management. Luxembourg judges emphasized that operators must have some flexibility in setting fees to maintain independent conduct. However, the German regulation leaves operators with too little leeway, a restriction that runs counter to the objective of making rail transport efficient and competitive.
The court also rejected the Bundesnetzagentur’s request to temporally limit the judgment’s effects. The agency argued that a retrospective application would cause significant economic disruption.
Following the ruling, the National Association of Regional Rail (BSN) expects additional costs in the billions. Peter Panitz, BSN president, urged the federal government to promptly close the funding gap created by the EU‑law‑violating price cap. He stressed that regional rail transport remains a key public service and that operators will continue running unchanged because millions of passengers depend on them daily.
The Federal Ministry of Transport issued a cautious statement, noting that the ECJ judgment provides legal certainty and will inform its internal reviews of a route‑price reform. The ministry sees an opportunity to redistribute costs among the various rail transport sectors and is preparing proposals that it will soon share with stakeholders.