According to the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV), the Germany ticket for 49 euros a month for local public transport will probably not be introduced until May.

"The time to start will be May 1st," predicted VDV CEO Oliver Wolff in an interview with the FAZ. It wasn't possible much earlier.

Corinna Budras

Business correspondent in Berlin.

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Johannes Pennekamp

Responsible editor for business reporting.

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There is still a lot to do before everything is administratively settled.

He cited the complex process of tariff approval as an example, and the tariff systems of the transport associations would also have to be changed.

He criticized that politicians had still not given a specific start date.

The industry of transport companies must finally implement the introduction and need clear guidelines.

Behind the scenes, there is still a dispute about costs and possible loss of income associated with the "flat rate".

In Berlin, Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) is currently working on the legislative implementation of the ticket.

The cabinet has just approved a significant increase in the regionalization funds with which the federal government supports the federal states in financing public transport.

In addition, the federal and state governments want to pay a total of 3 billion euros each year to compensate for possible losses.

A ticket for 49 euros per month means a significant reduction to almost half of the previous price in many transport associations.

quarrel about money

From the point of view of the municipalities and the transport companies, the question of financing has not been finally clarified.

They insist that the transport ministers address the issue again at their special conference this Tuesday and signal their willingness to inject more money in an emergency.

"Three billion euros will not be enough," VDV general manager Wolff and Helmut Dedy, general manager of the German Association of Cities, agree.

They expect an even greater loss of income and, at the same time, higher energy and personnel costs.

"We think the Deutschlandticket is a very good idea - but only if it's properly financed," emphasized Dedy.

However, this is not the case with the Deutschlandticket.

"The federal and state governments are trapped in the symbolism they have created," criticizes Dedy, thereby clearly distancing himself from the optimism that the federal and state governments are spreading on the issue of financing.

"You want the 49 euro ticket," he clarified, emphasizing: "We didn't want it." There is a responsibility on the part of the author.

According to today's forecast, the ticket cannot be financed.

Therefore, the municipalities could not get involved in dividing the costs into thirds.

Dedy criticized that after a two-year evaluation phase, a decision should be made at the end of 2024 on how to proceed in 2025.

"It's a crazy idea," criticized Dedy.

Preliminaries were required both for the awarding of orders and for the deployment of personnel.

“That has to happen sooner.” Although he concedes that transport policy is also a municipal task, the municipalities can only make a contribution if they sit at the table.

"That was not the case with the Deutschlandticket."

The Greens politician Oliver Krischer, Minister of Transport from North Rhine-Westphalia, expressed understanding for the demand that the federal and state governments should relieve the municipalities in the event of higher costs.

However, this should not end in a “fully comprehensive mentality”.

There is not a single tariff in Germany that is free of financial risk.

In addition, the public transport system could be made even more efficient.

Buses and trains are not always filled to capacity.

Krischer – who, like Federal Minister of Transport Wissing, will be on stage at the FAZ mobility summit in Berlin this Thursday – called for a “signal from all levels of government”, including the municipalities, to guarantee the financing of the ticket.

The transport companies pointed out that the Deutschlandticket would result in a "completely incalculable loss situation" in fare income - specifically where the "music is playing", as Wolff put it, i.e. with the high-priced subscriptions.

These would probably become completely obsolete in the foreseeable future.

With the Deutschlandticket, you are now entering a phase where “entrepreneurship is no longer entrepreneurship” because there is little scope for setting your own tariff.

VDV manager Wolff pointed out that this is a "loss compensation industry" in which the companies do not make any profits, but the state compensates for the industry's losses in the individual transport associations via a complex compensation system.

With the introduction of the Deutschlandticket, compensation is becoming more complex.

Wolff called the introduction of the ticket a “maximum paradigm shift”, which he fundamentally welcomes.

With a view to the federal and state governments, he said: "But then you can't get in line with maybe 500 million euros on each side." Municipalities and transport companies warn that if there is underfunding, the public transport offer must be restricted.