"Once again thwarted," one could say about the German federal government's repurposing of original Corona billions in favor of new energy and mobility solutions, which was stopped by the courts: Funding for digitalization and rail expansion alone is to be cut again by 810 million euros in 2024.
This is evident from the purely mathematical calculations in the revised budget proposal of the Federal Ministry of Finance dated January 10, 2024, which was mandated by the Federal Constitutional Court. The Association of the German Railway Industry (VDB), of which the Swiss manufacturer Schindler is also a member due to parts of its production in Germany, complains that the further savings, particularly in the area of digitalization, are painful for the domestic railway industry.
Digital in Warnemünde
Over the next three years alone, a total of €3.2 billion from the Climate and Transformation Fund (KTF) was earmarked for digital vehicle retrofitting until 2027. "These funds are now missing without replacement following the ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court," laments VDB Managing Director Sarah Stark, criticizing the decision from Karlsruhe, which, from a purely legal standpoint, is of course correct.
This is completely incompatible with the government's transport policy goals. Stark stated: "More capacity, improved punctuality, and greater reliability on the railways require new infrastructure, digital systems, and comprehensive electrification of the network. Record investments in rail transport were announced just last September. The proposed budget cuts run counter to the increasing needs of Germany's increasingly dilapidated rail network."
This also sends a devastating signal to the domestic rail industry, because the digital equipment for railway lines and vehicles is primarily developed and produced in Germany, says VDB Managing Director Axel Schuppe.
Photos: DB
The "Alliance for Rail" echoes this sentiment. Managing Director Dirk Flege states: "If such massive cuts are made to rail freight, the federal government cannot fulfill its promise to increase the market share of rail freight to 25 percent by 2030.".
At the beginning of last year, the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and Transport identified a total funding requirement of €88 billion for rail infrastructure by 2027. To cover this, approximately €45 billion in additional investments would be needed on top of existing funds. Consequently, at the Rail Summit in September 2023, additional funding of €39.5 billion was announced.
Of that amount, €16 billion remains today, of which around €13 billion is to flow to Deutsche Bahn (DB) as an equity increase. An additional handicap: The funds from DB's equity increase cannot truly replace the lost federal budget and KTF funds, since, for example, DB would not be permitted to subsidize the digital vehicle conversion.
P.Maitre/klk.
