Workmen in the new main station of the railway development project Stuttgart 21 (Image: Getty)
Germany is known as a country that is efficient and orderly. For that reason you could be forgiven for thinking it’s rail network carries passengers at high speed and on time.
But you would be wrong. According to data reported by B1M, in 2023 on 64% of long-distance trains ran on time.
In fact, Deutsche Bahn had to cover €130M in refunds due to delays — a 43% rise on 2022.
As Deutsche Bahn conceded earlier this year: “The infrastructure cannot cope with the constantly growing volume of rail traffic. The system lacks robustness, resilience and capacity reserves. Considerable quality deficits are the result.”
Workmen constructing the station on the Stuttgart 21 project (Image: Getty)
One of the major rail projects that could revive the rail network in the south of the country is the Stuttgart 21 project.
At £9bn, the Stuttgart 21 project will be costly. It’s also late, very late. The project was first started in 1994 and has been delayed again to 2026.
However, when it’s completed the new Stuttgart underground terminal will have 16 tunnels and 18 bridges and high-speed modern route will be layed between the city and Ulm to the south.
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The steps inside the station being put into place (Image: Getty)
Embarrassingly, the Stuttgart 21 terminal’s name comes from the fact that it was meant to be delivered in 2021.
As well as being at least five years late, the project has been met with fierce local protest. The cost and environmental impact have seen residents assemble to condemn the plan. Further, the site has been under construction since 2010, when building commenced – another sore point for residents.