The train drivers’ union GDL ended its strike earlier than planned. The trains have been running again since 2 o’clock tonight. However, there are still restrictions in BW.
The strike by the train drivers’ union GDL has ended since 2 a.m. on Monday morning. This was announced by a railway spokeswoman. The company announced that the regular timetable will now be offered again. “Nevertheless, there will still be isolated restrictions in the long-distance transport offering over the course of Monday. There may still be regionally different restrictions in regional transport too,” the company warned.
In Baden-Württemberg, train travelers and commuters can breathe a sigh of relief at the start of the week. The Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (AVG), for example, has announced that numerous light rail lines affected by the strike will be running again according to plan this morning. According to AVG, there may still be disruptions in both the Karlsruhe region and the Heilbronn area.
Bahn had set up an emergency timetable
The GDL strike began on Wednesday. The emergency timetable of the railway in Baden-Württemberg was stable at the start of the strike, a railway spokeswoman said in a recent conclusion. According to Deutsche Bahn, the emergency timetable should ensure “a very limited train offering” in long-distance, regional and S-Bahn traffic. Many travelers had also prepared for the strike, so things remained quiet at the country’s train stations.
An almost empty train station hall in Mannheim – many people had prepared for the strike. SWR
Bahn and GDL want to negotiate again
The strike was originally supposed to last until Monday evening at 6 p.m. On Saturday, however, it became known that Bahn and GDL had been able to agree on new negotiations and that the strike would end on Monday night. It was said that all topics were discussed in a “constructive atmosphere” and formed into a roadmap for further negotiations. The payment of a 1,500 euro inflation compensation bonus was already agreed in March. The issue of working hours, which is particularly important for the GDL, is also on the agenda for the upcoming negotiations.
The company and the union have also agreed on a peace obligation until March 3rd. As things currently stand, strikes at the railways will not be an issue in the next five weeks. From February 5th until the end of the peace obligation, the railways and the GDL want to negotiate new collective agreements behind closed doors.