Two weeks after the start of the European Football Championship, Deutsche Bahn has drawn a positive interim assessment of the transport of fans and participants. Six million passengers have traveled on Deutsche Bahn’s long-distance trains alone since the start of the tournament on June 14, the company announced. In addition, hundreds of thousands travel on regional and suburban trains every day. Deutsche Bahn counted 100,000 additional passengers per match day at the stations in the host cities. In addition, 120,000 liters of beer have been sold in the on-board restaurants since the opening match.
Several national teams also used the trains to travel to their European Championship matches. According to the company, the Swiss national team took five train journeys to the venue. The Romanian team took four journeys, Georgia and the Czech Republic each took two. The teams from Poland, Belgium and the Netherlands each took the train once.
In the first days of the European Championship, many passengers complained about delayed and overcrowded trains. Foreign media, such as the New York Times or the British Daily Mail, were disappointed by the problems in view of clichés about Germany’s punctuality and good organisation.
“Unreliable and red hot”
Fan groups also complained, including an association of Scottish supporters (Atac). Germany had given them a warm welcome as host, Atac wrote in a Facebook post. However, they had had “bad experiences” with public transport. The trains in Munich and Cologne were “unreliable and sweltering hot” and were also packed with passengers beyond any kind of limit.
Even officials were not spared from the disruptions. Tournament director Philipp Lahm, for example, missed half of the Ukraine-Slovakia match because his train was delayed. The railway company has also admitted to problems and promised to improve.
By train to the European Championships
more on the subject
Z+ (subscription required content); European Championship: How to Deutsche Bahn
Two weeks after the start of the European Football Championship, Deutsche Bahn has drawn a positive interim assessment of the transport of fans and participants. Six million passengers have traveled on Deutsche Bahn’s long-distance trains alone since the start of the tournament on June 14, the company announced. In addition, hundreds of thousands travel on regional and suburban trains every day. Deutsche Bahn counted 100,000 additional passengers per match day at the stations in the host cities. In addition, 120,000 liters of beer have been sold in the on-board restaurants since the opening match.
