Deutschlandticket

The Deutschlandticket (lit. 'Germany ticket'), also known as the 49-Euro-Ticket, is a subscription public transport ticket for all local public transport, valid in the whole of Germany, that costs 49 euros per month. The Scholz cabinet introduced it in May 2023 as a permanent successor to the 9-Euro-Ticket which had been offered in Summer 2022. The German federation (Bund) and the federal states (Länder) initially participate in the financing with 1.5 billion euros per year until 2025.[1]

Official logo

Ticket conditions

Validity

The ticket is valid on all local and regional buses, trams, metros, S-Bahn trains, and local and regional trains (RB/RE) across the whole of Germany. It is not valid on long distance trains (such as Intercity Express (ICE), Intercity (IC) and Eurocity (EC) trains operated by Deutsche Bahn) or on long distance bus coaches (such as those operated by Flixbus).[2]

The ticket is only valid for transportation in second class. Children under 6 years old travel for free, but older children need their own ticket.[3] The Deutschlandticket does not include transportation for pets or for bicycles in cases where they require a separate ticket.[3]

Sales

The Deutschlandticket is sold as a monthly subscription at a cost of 49 euros per month. The ticket is valid for a calendar month, and is automatically renewed, with payment taken by direct debit from the user's bank account or by credit card. The subscription can be cancelled by the 10th day of each month.[4] Users wishing to purchase a new subscription for the current month on the 11th day of the month or later must pay for at least the current and the following calendar month.[5]

The Deutschlandticket is sold by participating local transit authorities. It is issued as a digital ticket via mobile apps offered by local transit authorities.[6] It can also be issued on a chip smartcard using the "eTicket Deutschland" standard. Employers can subsidize the ticket for their employees, and university students can upgrade their "Semesterticket" to a Deutschlandticket.[6]

The BahnCard 100, a rail card offered by Deutsche Bahn allowing unlimited travel on its trains, includes a Deutschlandticket at no additional charge.[7]

History

After the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, energy prices in Germany rose significantly. In response, the government introduced the heavily subsidized 9-Euro-Ticket, which allowed unlimited use of public local transportation across Germany at a cost of 9 euros per calendar month. It was available for June, July, and August 2022.[8] After the end of this 3-month period, politicians called for a permanent successor ticket that would offer similar simplicity,[9] though there was debate about its price.[10]

At the end of November 2022, transport ministers reaffirmed the commitment to the monthly ticket for 49 euros and it was planned to start in April 2023, as an earlier start already in January was considered too early for implementation.[11] But the start has been delayed further by one month as there was still opposition from the local and regional transportation services like the Munich MVV that wanted more refunding from the federal and the state governments.[12]

On March 31, 2023, the Bundesrat approved the bill passed by the Bundestag for a nationwide ticket for local and regional public transportation at a monthly price of 49 euros.[13] The monthly tickets started on May 2023, but can only be purchased by subscription. There is no paper tickets for the subscription – with the possible exception at the start-up phase;[14] the users have to authenticate digitally (either via smartphone app or chip card).[15]

The ticket price is to be adjusted to inflation each year, although the 49 euro price is intended to be fixed for at least the first two years of operation of the ticket.[16]

See also

References
  1. "49-Euro-Ticket: Bund und Länder einigen sich auf Finanzierung". Spiegel Online. 2022-11-02. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  2. "FAQ - Mein Deutschlandticket kennenlernen". Transdev. 2022-12-27. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
  3. "The Deutschland-Ticket". www.bahn.com. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  4. Deutschlandtarifverbund-GmbH (2023-04-03). "Tarifbestimmungen für das Deutschland-Ticket" (PDF).
  5. Rundfunk, Bayerischer (2023-04-27). "49-Euro-Ticket: Wo man das Deutschlandticket kaufen kann" (in German). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. "FAQ zum Deutschlandticket | Bundesregierung". Die Bundesregierung informiert | Startseite (in German). Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  7. "Ab Montag verkauft die DB das Deutschland-Ticket". www.deutschebahn.com (in German). Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  8. "Germany introduces 3 months of cheap travel – DW – 05/20/2022". dw.com. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  9. Küstner, Kai. "Wissing wirbt für bundesweit gültige Nahverkehrstickets". tagesschau.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  10. NACHRICHTEN, n-tv. "Ampel streitet weiter über bundesweites Ticket". n-tv.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  11. "Verkehrsminister tagen zum Deutschlandticket: 49-Euro-Fahrkarte soll zum 1. April kommen". 2 December 2022 (in German). 30 November 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  12. "49-Euro-Ticket im MVV-Raum nur mit Finanzierungszusage" [49-euro ticket in the MVV area only with funding commitment]. www.br.de (in German). 2 December 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  13. "Letzte Hürde genommen – Auch Bundesrat stimmt für 49-Euro-Ticket" [Last hurdle cleared - Bundesrat also votes in favor of 49-euro ticket]. www.welt.de (in German). 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  14. "49-Euro-Ticket: Für wen sich das Deutschlandticket lohnt" [49-euro ticket: For whom the Deutschlandticket is profitable]. www.adac.de (in German). 31 March 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2023. Das Deutschlandticket wird es als Chipkarte oder als Handyticket geben – übergangsweise ist es auch in Papierform mit QR-Code geplant. [The Deutschlandticket will be available as a chip card or a cell phone ticket - for a transitional period, it is also planned in paper form with a QR code.]
  15. "Bundeskabinett stimmt zu: 49-Euro-Ticket soll als Chipkarte oder per App erhältlich sein" [Federal cabinet approves: 49-euro ticket to be available as chip card or via app]. www.mdr.de (in German). 1 February 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  16. "So soll das "Deutschlandticket" funktionieren". tagesschau.de (in German). 2022-11-03. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
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