18.8. 2015
To the Transport Committee with the Danish Parliament and to the Minister of Transport and Public Works
>> Annex with quotes from DSB about these issues
With the time table for 2015 it became more difficult to choose to travel climate friendly and comfortably by train from Denmark to Germany and the rest of Europe, as the popular night train disappeared.
The outlook for rail travel to Europe is only worsened since then: All while commissioning of a Fehmarn tunnel is delayed and remain uncertain, the existing connections with day trains will not be maintained, and DSB rejects to reintroduce a night train; which DB else would like to run again in a new, though reduced version.
To our inquiry DSB calls a political statement about the southbound international train traffic.
If politicians find that is should be possible to drive by train to Europe in the future, then it is high time that DSB will know!
BR 605 in Nykøbing Falster en route to Berlin. Picture Tjalfe Bjørnson.
As shown in the attached Annex, the German railways, DB, wanted to reinstate an international night trains with sleeping and couchette cars to Denmark in a new and reduced version from May 2016 and only in the high season from May to September. It’s not ideal, but still an improvement upon the status quo. DSB, however, has not responded to the request.
At the same time DSB has announced the that the combination of track works on the line to Rødby from 2017 and the retirement of the German-Danish DMUs BR 605 will mean reductions in train services Copenhagen – Hamburg and cancellation of Copenhagen – Berlin from the timetable change in December 2016 and later reductions Aarhus – Hamburg (albeit in a year will have improved conditions due to double track in southern Jutland). From Copenhagen we will fear that there might only be three daily connections, and perhaps with longer travel time via regional train to Nykøbing F and here change trains to IC3 train further on to Hamburg.
During this time span, travelers from Zealand and Sweden completely forget that they can drive the train to Germany. For immediate harm to the climate (air traffic is completely unchallenged from Denmark) and to the detriment of the introduction of an upcoming Fehmarn connection.
We call for the minister and Parliament to clarify to the DSB that train connections to Germany should be upgraded and not downgraded in the coming years. We ask the Minister to supervise that this political wish already should be reflected in the DSB timetables from December 2015.
With kind regards
Council for Sustainable Traffic
Kjeld A. Larsen (chairperson)
Poul Kattler (board member)
Niels Wellendorf (board member)