The 49-euro ticket not only stirs the spirits of bus and train drivers. Flixbus boss Schwämmlein demands that long-distance buses are also integrated into the Germany ticket. If that doesn’t happen, he threatens severe consequences. 150 cities in Germany would be affected.
49-euro ticket: Flixbus boss threatens to reduce the route network
André Schwämmlein is a friend of clear words. As seldom before, the Flixbus boss has emphasized his demand that long-distance buses should also be part of the 49-euro ticket.
Otherwise there is a risk of the network being cut down significantly. “We would probably have to 20 percent of the total offer in Germany“, Schwämmlein told the Bild newspaper (via Mirror). In 150 cities in Germany, the offer would deteriorate or even disappear completely.
With the warning of a reduction in the route network, the Flixbus boss resorted to the last resort. For months Schwämmlein has been demanding that long-distance buses also be included in the service catalog of the 49-euro ticket. This is the only way to close the gap between regional and long-distance transport, which mainly exists in rural areas.
The Deutschlandticket is scheduled to start on May 1st. Those responsible only have a few weeks to find a solution. With Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing many conversations have been held, so little sponge. Here have it “positive signals” given.
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Many question marks with the Deutschlandticket
It is not only the scope of services that is still unclear for the Deutschlandticket. Some federal states want to offer the ticket for low earners cheaper, while others do not. In Lower Saxony, the bus companies are currently opposing and have announced that they will not accept the Deutschlandticket in its entirety. And indebted people with negative credit bureau could even be completely excluded from the purchase.
So there is still a lot to clarify before we start.