Railways refute claims of tampering in its operations
Deutsche Bahn, Germany's national railway company, has been under scrutiny following reports by Der Spiegel that suggested the company may have cancelled trains to improve punctuality statistics. The company has denied these allegations, stating that the decisions to cancel trains are based on operational reasons and not for the purpose of manipulating statistics.
According to Deutsche Bahn, a passenger is considered on time if they are delayed by a maximum of 14 minutes and 59 seconds. The company also records operational punctuality statistics, which record stops that trains reach with a delay of at least six minutes. However, cancelled trains are not included in either the passenger or operational punctuality statistics.
In August, the passenger punctuality figure was around 67%, a slight improvement from the previous month's 60%. Despite this, Der Spiegel reports two cases in September where trains were delayed by one and two hours, requiring passengers to switch to other connections.
One of these cases involved a train that was stopped with the reason 'to improve statistics from Cologne' mentioned in an internal DB system chat. Deutsche Bahn has confirmed the incidents but has refuted the explanation, stating that the decision to stop trains was due to operational reasons.
The specific employee who allegedly made the controversial statement has not been publicly named, but the company has made contact with them. Deutsche Bahn maintains that the employee's formulation was incorrect, and that labour rights of train staff must be taken into account on severely delayed trains.
In certain cases, cancelling trains on partial sections might be sensible to avoid further burdening the network. Direct alternatives for passengers on affected connections are considered in such cancellations. In partial cancellations, only the distance already covered by the train is taken into account.
Deutsche Bahn also records passenger punctuality on a monthly basis, and the company denies manipulating statistics, refuting Der Spiegel's report. The company operates an internal platform for chat-based exchange, but it denies that this was used for recording statistics.
It is important to note that delayed connections can put additional strain on the overloaded network. Deutsche Bahn urges passengers to check their train status regularly and to plan their journeys accordingly. The company is committed to providing a reliable service and is working to improve punctuality and reduce cancellations.
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