Deutsche Bahn facts for kids
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| State-owned enterprise (Aktiengesellschaft) | |
| Industry | Rail transport, Logistics |
| Predecessors |
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| Founded | 1 January 1994 |
| Headquarters | Bahntower, , |
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Area served
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Europe |
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Key people
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Richard Lutz, CEO |
| Products | Rail transport, cargo transport, services |
| Revenue |  €56.3 billion (2022) |
 €227 million (2022) |
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| Owner | Government of Germany (100%) |
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Number of employees
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324,136 (2022) |
The Deutsche Bahn AG (called DB or DB AG) is Germany's national railway company. It is owned by the German government and has its main office in the Bahntower in Berlin. DB is one of the biggest railway companies in the world.
Deutsche Bahn is also a very large transport company in Germany. It carries many people and goods by train. In 2022, about 132 million people traveled long distances with DB, and 1.6 billion people used its regional trains. DB also moved 222 million tons of cargo that year.
The company is split into different parts. These include DB Fernverkehr for long-distance trains, DB Regio for local trains, and DB Cargo for freight. Another part, DB Netz, manages most of Germany's railway tracks, making it the largest rail network in Europe.
DB was created in 1994. This happened after Germany became one country again, and two older railway companies, the Deutsche Bundesbahn (from West Germany) and the Deutsche Reichsbahn (from East Germany), joined together.
About half of DB's money comes from running trains. The other half comes from other transport and logistics services. They also earn money from public transport contracts and by maintaining and expanding railway tracks.
Contents
What is Deutsche Bahn?
The Deutsche Bahn Group is made up of different parts. Each part has its own job to do.
Passenger Transport
This part of DB is in charge of all passenger train services in Germany. It used to be called Travel and Tourism. This group manages and runs German passenger trains. It has three main areas: DB Fernverkehr, DB Regio, and Arriva.
Arriva
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Deutsche Bahn bought Arriva in 2010. Arriva runs buses and trains in many European countries, especially in the United Kingdom and Ireland. In 2023, Deutsche Bahn agreed to sell Arriva to another company. This sale is expected to be finished in 2024.
DB Fernverkehr
DB Fernverkehr AG is the part of Deutsche Bahn that runs long-distance passenger trains. It was started in 1999.
DB Fernverkehr operates all Intercity Express (ICE) and Intercity (IC) trains in Germany. Some of these trains also go to nearby countries like the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Austria. They also run several EuroCity trains across Europe.
DB Fernverkehr is the main company for long-distance trains in Germany. They run hundreds of trains every day. They also used to run some long-distance bus services called IC Bus.
DB Regio
DB Regio AG is the part of Deutsche Bahn that runs passenger trains for short and medium distances in Germany. These trains are ordered and paid for by the German states (called Bundesländer).
Some states have long-term agreements with DB Regio. DB Regio has several regional companies for its rail services:
- DB Regio Nord for northern states
- DB Regio Nordost for Berlin and nearby states
- DB Regio NRW for North Rhine-Westphalia
- DB Regio Südost for Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia
- DB Regio Mitte for Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, Hesse, and parts of Baden-Württemberg
- DB Regio Baden-Württemberg for the rest of Baden-Württemberg
- DB Regio Bayern for Bavaria
- S-Bahn Hamburg (a city train system)
- S-Bahn Berlin (a city train system)
- RegioNetz (smaller, independent networks for easier management)
DB Regio also runs many bus services through 25 different bus companies.
Railway Infrastructure
This part of DB is in charge of the railway tracks and stations.
DB Netz and DB InfraGO
The infrastructure part used to have separate units for tracks (DB Netz), stations (DB Station&Service), and energy (DB Energie). In late 2023, DB Netz and DB Station&Service joined together to form DB InfraGO AG. This new company aims to improve how tracks and stations are managed. The "GO" in InfraGO stands for "Gemeinwohlorientierte," which means "focused on the common good" in German.
DB Engineering & Consulting
DB Engineering & Consulting helps with building, planning, and maintaining railways. They work on Deutsche Bahn's construction sites in Germany. They also help other countries with their high-speed rail projects. For example, they assist the California High-Speed Rail Authority in the United States with planning its high-speed rail program.
Logistics and Cargo
This part of DB handles the transport of goods.
The Transport and Logistics division used to include DB Schenker Logistics and DB Schenker Rail. In 2016, the rail freight part was separated and DB Schenker Rail was renamed DB Cargo. This company focuses on moving goods by train.
DB also works with a company called time:matters to transport smaller packages (up to 20 kg) on its fast passenger trains.
International Business
DB also has businesses in other countries. For example, it owns DB Cargo UK, which is the largest rail freight company in the United Kingdom. This company even operates the British Royal Train. DB also has interests in Eastern Europe. You can find train times for journeys all over Europe on Deutsche Bahn's website.
Trans-Eurasia Logistics is a company that DB owns together with Russian Railways. It runs freight trains carrying containers between Germany and China, going through Russia.
Important People at DB
Management Board
- Richard Lutz (CEO, head of the management board) since 2017
- Levin Holle (in charge of Finance and Logistics)
- Daniela Gerd tom Markotten (in charge of Digitalization and Technology)
- Berthold Huber (in charge of Infrastructure)
- Sigrid Nikutta (in charge of Freight Transport)
- Martin Seiler (in charge of Human Resources and Legal Affairs)
- Evelyn Palla (in charge of Regional Transport)
- Michael Peterson (in charge of Long Distance Passenger Transport)
Supervisory Board
- Michael Odenwald (chairman of the supervisory board)
History of Deutsche Bahn
The first railway tracks in Germany were laid in 1835. They were only 6 kilometers long, between Nuremberg and Fürth.
How DB Was Formed
The Deutsche Reichsbahn was the main railway company in Germany from 1920. After World War II, Germany was divided. The railway split into two companies: the Deutsche Reichsbahn in East Germany and the Deutsche Bundesbahn in West Germany. They stayed separate during the Cold War.
After Germany became one country again in 1990, these two companies merged on January 1, 1994. This created the new company, Deutsche Bahn. At this time, Deutsche Bahn also got its current logo and the "DB" abbreviation. The company was designed to be a single, private company running railways across all of Germany.
Deutsche Bahn's main office was first in Frankfurt am Main. In 1996, it moved to the Bahntower in Berlin. This tall office building is at the eastern end of the Sony Center.
From 1999 to Today
In 1999, Deutsche Bahn changed its structure again. All its trains, tracks, staff, and buildings were divided among different smaller companies under DBAG. This was done to allow other train companies to use the railway lines.
In December 2007, DB reorganized once more. All passenger services became part of its DB Bahn arm. Logistics went under DB Schenker, and infrastructure (tracks and operations) went under DB Netze.
The German government owns DB completely. By law, the government must keep control of most of the railway infrastructure.
In 2014, there was a request for Deutsche Bahn to pay back money to the families of Greek Holocaust victims. This was for train fares they were forced to pay during World War II to be taken to concentration camps.
In 2018, there were problems in the United Kingdom with many train cancellations and delays by a DB company called Northern. The British Minister of Transport looked into this.
DB Logo History
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The Deutsche Reichsbahn logo (1920-1945)
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The Deutsche Reichsbahn logo (1924-1993), used in East Germany
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The Deutsche Bundesbahn logo (1946-1993), used in West Germany
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The current Deutsche Bahn logo, used since 1994
Types of Trains
Trains in Germany are grouped by how many stops they make:
- Fernverkehr (Long-distance trains)
- ICE (Intercity-Express) are very fast trains that connect big cities. Some also go to other countries.
- EC (EuroCity) are intercity trains that cross borders and connect Germany with other countries.
- IC (InterCity) are long-distance trains that connect regions and cities. They are a bit slower than ICE trains and make more stops.
- Other international trains that come into Germany:
- ECE (EuroCity Express) are international high-speed trains.
- TGV trains come from France to German cities.
- RJ (Railjet) trains come from Austria to German cities.
- Nahverkehr (Local trains)
- IRE (Interregio-Express) are longer-distance regional trains that connect regions and cities. They are like slower IC trains.
- RE (Regional-Express) serve regions and connect cities. They do not stop at every station.
- RB (Regionalbahn) stop at all stations on their route. They are often the most basic train service.
- S (S-Bahn) are city rapid transit trains. They run often and stop at all stations in larger cities.
How to Buy Tickets
DB offers different ways to buy tickets for long-distance trains:
- The Flexpreis (Flexible Price): This ticket lets you use any train on your chosen route on a specific day. You can buy it anytime, and you can get a refund before your travel day.
- The Sparpreis and Super-Sparpreis (Savings Prices): These tickets are usually cheaper. You must buy them in advance, and they are only valid for a specific train connection. Supersparpreis tickets for long-distance trips can start from €17.90. Sparpreis tickets start from €21.90. These prices can go up closer to the travel date or on busy days.
For local trains (S, RB, RE, IRE), you can also use tickets from local transport groups. These tickets can often be used on buses, trams, and U-Bahn trains too.
DB also has discount cards called BahnCard.
- BahnCard 25 gives you 25% off.
- BahnCard 50 gives you 50% off the flexible price and 25% off savings prices.
- BahnCard 100 lets you travel as much as you want on all Deutsche Bahn trains.
Other special tickets include Länder-Tickets, which allow unlimited travel on local trains within a specific German state. These tickets also offer group options, so up to five people can travel together on one ticket. Interrail passes are also available for wider European travel.
People who travel often can buy weekly, monthly, or yearly passes for their route or region.
Train Accidents
- Bad Aibling rail accident
- Brühl train derailment
- Eschede train disaster
- Garmisch-Partenkirchen train derailment
- Hordorf train collision
- 2012 Stuttgart derailments
See also
In Spanish: Deutsche Bahn para niños
- DB Fernverkehr
- DB Regio
- DB Cargo
- Rail transport in Germany
- Railway electrification system
- Transport in Germany
