The passenger union Pro Bahn had urged the railway company to properly inform train passengers. “Nothing is more annoying than waiting for a train during a strike, which then turns out not to be running,” said a spokesperson for the union. In Düsseldorf, commuters had prepared for the strike by leaving or traveling by bus two hours earlier, a traveler told DPA news agency.
In Leipzig the strike leads to chaos on the platform. The digital billboards cannot keep up with the rapidly changing departure times, forcing train staff to switch to handwritten whiteboards to provide travelers with up-to-date information.
‘Strike inappropriate and excessive’
The train drivers’ union (GLD) is demanding more pay, better working conditions and a corona bonus of 600 euros for Deutsche Bahn drivers. Negotiations between the union and the railway company about the collective labor agreement have broken down.
Deutsche Bahn’s leadership has called the strike “completely inappropriate and disproportionate”. The strike falls in the middle of the holiday season, when eleven of the sixteen federal states have school holidays.
Although the director condemns the action, he says in the television program Morning magazine willing to re-negotiate with the union.
Depending on the outcome of these talks, the union will decide whether to continue the strike. That was expected to last until Friday, but the union does not rule out further actions.
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