As of: January 25, 2024 8:27 a.m
The strike by the train drivers’ union GDL at Deutsche Bahn continues to cause massive disruptions in local public transport. This affects long-distance and regional rail transport as well as the S-Bahn, which offers emergency service in Hamburg.
With six days scheduled, this is the longest strike ever at Deutsche Bahn. Passenger traffic has been on strike since 2 a.m. on Wednesday night. Travelers must expect significant restrictions until Monday next week at 6 p.m. Freight transport has also been on strike since Tuesday evening.
Emergency operation on the S-Bahn – subways and buses run
Die Hamburger S-Bahn offers emergency operation similar to previous strikes. There should be a 20-minute service on lines S1, S2 and S3. The S5 to Stade should run every hour. This largely worked on the first day of the strike. However, due to the length of the strike, both the Pro Bahn passenger association and the GDL are expecting major difficulties. Subways and buses are not affected by the strike. However, the Hochbahn had announced in advance that an extension of the timetable was not possible.
Videos
1 Min
Karsten Sekund reports on the situation at Hamburg Central Station on Wednesday morning. 1 min
Regional and long-distance traffic massively affected
In regional and long-distance transport German train massive disruptions occur. Since the signal boxes are also to be on strike, there may also be failures at railway companies that are not on strike, such as Metronom, Nordbahn and AKN. Important for commuters between Hamburg and Lübeck to know: The RE8 and RE80 should run every hour. The RE7 and RE70 lines between Hamburg, Neumünster and Kiel should run every two hours. According to the railway, around 80 percent of trains in long-distance transport are canceled.
The emergency timetables set up by Deutsche Bahn should work as planned, as a DB spokesman announced early on Thursday morning. The railway asks all travelers to find out about their connections in advance – on the Railway websitein the DB Navigator app or by phone on the free number 08000-996633.
Crowded streets on the first day of the strike
The first day of the train drivers’ strike began with traffic jams for many drivers in Hamburg. The traffic situation was lively and the rail strike was clearly noticeable, said a spokesman for the traffic control center on Wednesday morning. On the A7, southbound traffic was backed up for eight kilometers between Hamburg-Volkspark and -Waltershof. To the north, traffic was at a standstill between Seevetal-Fleestedt and Hamburg-Hausbruch. Vehicles were backed up on the A1 from the Hamburg-Südost triangle to Billstedt. The closure of the parallel Unterer Landweg road meant that many trucks had to switch to the motorway, it was said.
Further information
Traffic jams, construction sites, danger warnings and obstructions on the roads – the current traffic situation in and around Hamburg. more
On the A7 towards Hanover, a lane was temporarily blocked due to a broken down truck. Drivers were also said to be making slow progress in the south of Hamburg on the B73 and the Ehestorfer Heuweg, which is popular with commuters from Lower Saxony. A burst water pipe on the Nincoper dike, which connects the A26-West with Finkenwerder, also affected traffic.
Airport boss: “Our normal process is being disrupted”
The train drivers’ strike is also affecting operations at Hamburg Airport. “It will be more difficult for people to get to the airport,” explained the airport’s managing director, Christian Kunsch, on Wednesday morning. Many passengers arrive at the airport two or three hours earlier than necessary for fear of missing their flight. The terminals are therefore more crowded than usual. Long queues form in front of check-in, even though the counters are not yet open. “Our normal process is being disrupted,” Kunsch said. On its website, the airport advises using subways and buses to get there.
According to the airport boss, the six-day strike until Monday has had little impact on flight bookings. There was not enough capacity to switch from the train to the plane at short notice. “The planes are well utilized,” said Kunsch. There are only a few free places left and the prices are extremely high.
Companies expect millions in damages
Hamburg residents could expect not only a lot of empty tracks, but also empty shelves in the coming days as a result of the rail strike. Michael Thomas Fröhlich, general manager of the Association of Business Associations in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, which represents over 100,000 companies in the north, said this on Monday. If the strike actually lasts six days, it would mean economic damage of at least 50 million euros per day, said Fröhlich.
Since food deliveries in particular would have to be moved from rail to road, but the supply of rental cars is not sufficient, Fröhlich is expecting delivery difficulties and production interruptions. At a time when companies are still suffering from the consequences of the corona pandemic, the war in Ukraine and inflation, a strike of this magnitude is irresponsible from the companies’ point of view.
Fourth strike in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute
The railway and the GDL have been negotiating new collective agreements since the beginning of November. The crux of the matter is the GDL’s demand for a reduction in weekly working hours with full pay. Shortly before the start of the new strike, the union made a proposal to the railway in order to reach an agreement. However, the railway rejected this and spoke of the GDL’s well-known maximum demands. The current industrial dispute is the fourth in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute. Before the turn of the year, the GDL paralyzed large parts of passenger traffic in two warning strikes, followed two weeks ago by a three-day strike with a similar effect.
Further information
Travelers switch to buses, rental cars or planes. The North German economy is expecting a loss of 50 million euros – every day. more
However, Deutsche Bahn’s emergency timetables with a very limited train offering should work as planned. more
The GDL is on strike again. Massive disruptions to rail traffic are expected until Monday. What can rail customers do? more
This topic in the program:
NDR 90.3 | NDR 90.3 Current | 01/24/2024 | 11:00 o’clock