VDV and Allianz pro Schiene demand a boost in electrification of routes

The federal government is significantly behind schedule in electrifying Germany's rail network, lament the Allianz pro Schiene (Pro Rail Alliance) and the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV). The federal government will no longer be able to achieve its coalition agreement goal of 75 percent electrification by 2030 at the current pace: around 4,500 track kilometers are still missing. Furthermore, both associations believe there needs to be an ambitious update of the goals to make the rail network more resilient, close electrification gaps, and reduce bottlenecks for rail freight transport.

"So far, only 62 percent of the federal rail network in Germany is electrified. To achieve the 75% target as planned by 2030, the federal government would need to increase its current pace eightfold. This is, as regrettable as we find it, completely unrealistic given the current state of implementation," said the Managing Director of Allianz pro Schiene, Dirk Flege, at a joint press conference in Berlin.

Martin Henke, the Managing Director of Railway Transport at the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV), called for more speed. The industry is hoping for significantly faster progress.

"We consider an electrification target of 80% by 2035 not only desirable but also realistic," Henke said.

More speed through less bureaucracy

The Railway Acceleration Commission set up by the federal government, in which both associations were represented, already made proposals at the end of 2022 on how to speed up electrification.

"In addition to stable financing, it's essentially about reducing bureaucracy. Otherwise, it often takes many years to implement," said Flege. "Specifically, we propose not conducting a cost-benefit analysis for each individual electrification project anew, as there is a clear goal for more overhead lines and electrification is economically sensible for a certain level of track usage. Thus, cumbersome approval processes for smaller electrification projects can also be avoided. Moreover, a fund solution would help simplify and accelerate the financing of electrification projects."

Both associations also pointed out that significantly more cost-effective standards for overhead lines on secondary routes have now been developed. Martin Henke pointed out that until now, overhead lines were always designed for speeds of at least 160 km/h, even if a route was only operated at significantly lower speeds. This is often unnecessary and causes unnecessarily high costs.