According to the Hessian state labor court, the planned train drivers’ strike by the German union GDL can take place as planned; an urgent application by Deutsche Bahn (DB) was rejected. The freight transport strike began on Tuesday evening at 6 p.m., while the passenger transport sector has been on strike since 2 a.m. according to union plans. And the strike will also affect travelers to and from Germany. The end of the strike is announced for Friday evening at 6 p.m.
The strike does not affect ÖBB traffic via the Deutsche Eck, but the long-distance connections of Deutsche Bahn (DB) and ÖBB to Munich or even further north. Because trains that start or end in Germany only travel to the respective border station on the Austrian border or are canceled completely because the train drivers are swapped at the border. However, trains will sometimes be routed to Munich via the Brenner route, the ÖBB said.
ÖBB and DB have found a solution for the Salzburg-Munich route: their tickets are also valid for hourly local transport. Westbahn trains, on the other hand, travel to Munich because the train drivers are not changed at the border.
Deutsche Bahn and the union have been negotiating new collective agreements since the beginning of November. The main sticking point is the GDL’s demand for a reduction in weekly working hours with full wage compensation. The DB has so far rejected this and is only prepared to negotiate an adjustment to the election models.