Public transport is missing billions - federal and state governments postpone payment

display

Anyone who wanted to drive through Berlin at night in the past few weeks could rely on subways and buses. Despite the curfew between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., local public transport continued almost regularly in the capital. Those who have to go to work during this time also need a way to get there, argued in Berlin. There were and are some cities like Hamburg where local transport was significantly restricted during the curfew. But buses and trains continued to run in most regions.

This is an expensive decision for the operator. Because with the number of passengers, the income of the transport companies has been falling since the beginning of the pandemic. That is why the federal and state governments had already decided on a rescue package worth five billion euros for the local transport companies last year, but the money is slowly running out. According to industry circles, many operators could only hold out for a few more weeks without additional support. It should be tight for the first companies by the end of May at the latest.

Above all, operators who have concluded so-called net contracts with the municipalities are said to be facing considerable financial problems.

The companies do not receive a fixed amount for buses and trains running, but receive the income directly from ticket sales.

But that has now collapsed massively for over a year.

display

For a long time, the income of the public transport companies had not developed as negatively as the industry feared at the beginning of the Corona crisis.

This was mainly due to the monthly and annual tickets, which many customers did not cancel even though they were no longer traveling by bus and train, or at least much less often.

But the longer the pandemic lasts, the more frequently these subscription tickets are also being scrutinized.

According to the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV), the decrease in season tickets in 2020 was only around seven percent, but since the beginning of this year the value of cancellations has doubled to around 15 percent.

And since business travelers, tourists and other customers are still lacking, the minus for many companies is threatening.

VDV President Ingo Wortmann emphasized that traffic should also be maintained in coordination with the federal and state governments so that the system-relevant professions can get to their places of work.

"The resulting loss of income, which is now increasingly leading to liquidity bottlenecks, must now be compensated for with the support of the federal and state governments," the association president demands.

Industry demands an additional two billion

display

Overall, the industry is asking for another two billion euros in addition to the five billion euros from last year.

As early as mid-April, the federal state conference of transport ministers decided that half of the money should come from the federal government, even though the federal government is not actually responsible for public transport.

But negotiations between the federal government and the states have been stalling for weeks.

On Wednesday, the North Rhine-Westphalian Prime Minister and CDU Chancellor candidate Armin Laschet joined the demands of the industry. "We need strong public transport in the pandemic and after the pandemic," he said. Finance Minister Olaf Scholz must now release the funds for this. Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) said: "With another one billion euros, we can keep environmentally friendly public transport running efficiently and reliably."

Laschet said that people in cities and rural regions should be able to move reliably and safely with public transport, especially during the pandemic.

The loss of income would still have to be absorbed.

"For the time after the pandemic, we have to ensure that we continue to have efficient local public transport - especially for climate protection."

display

The SPD in the Bundestag also advocated a second rescue package.

"The federal states will not be able to cope with the additional costs in local public transport caused by the third lockdown," said SPD parliamentary deputy Sören Bartol.

"The federal government has to help with up to a billion euros if the states pay half of the damage."

It would be fatal if the slump in the number of passengers solidified and public transport were saved in this way.

"Local transport is the backbone of the traffic turnaround, so local public transport must grow out of the crisis."

But the finance minister and SPD candidate for chancellor Scholz is more cautious.

"I can generally point out that the budget preparation process for the 2022 budget is underway," said a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Finance on Wednesday.

"The draft for it will be presented in June, the negotiations for it have to be awaited."

The federal government was unhappy with the first public transport rescue

That doesn't sound like a quick transfer, and there are reasons for that: According to WELT information, the federal government is not at all happy about how the first public transport rescue went.

Last year, both the federal and state governments each pledged 2.5 billion euros - and the federal government also provided the money.

But then the crisis - also because of the stable monthly and annual ticket customers - was not as expensive as feared.

Instead of five billion euros, the 2020 pandemic cost just 3.3 billion euros.

And they were paid for with federal money for the time being.

The dissatisfaction can also be seen in the report by the Federal Ministry of Transport for the Conference of Transport Ministers in April.

Now the federal government wants to prevent things from going again like last year, which is why the federal states should first pay in their share of the additional money - around one billion euros.

The federal states, in turn, want to see the billion from the federal government first.

The negotiations on the part of the federal states of Bremen, Saarland, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg are still ongoing.

Overall, the VDV assumes that the pandemic will lead to another loss of revenue of around 3.6 billion euros for the transport companies this year.

This would increase the total costs of the Corona crisis to around seven billion euros in public transport.

In any case, Laschet's cabinet colleague, the North Rhine-Westphalian Transport Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU), emphasizes that NRW is ready to bear part of the additional corona costs for public transport.

display

"Even in Corona times, commuters and travelers are dependent on safe, reliable mobility options," he told WELT.

“We keep our word and provide our part as a country to compensate for the loss of income.” This is how one further strengthens public transport in the pandemic.

"The second tranche of the rescue package relieves the municipalities and our partners in public transport enormously," said Wüst.

In North Rhine-Westphalia alone it is about 278 million euros.

Whether the seven billion euros will actually be needed in the end or possibly not enough will not only depend on the duration of the corona measures.

Above all, the decisive factor will be whether people will switch to buses and trains again after the pandemic.

After all, some who have now canceled their annual tickets may have got used to their cars or bicycles again.

"Everything on shares"

is the daily stock market shot from the WELT business editorial team. Every morning from 7 a.m. with the financial journalists from WELT. For stock market experts and beginners.

Subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Amazon Music and Deezer. Or directly via RSS feed.