Faced with rising prices for fuel and electricity, the need to invest in new infrastructure, and falling passenger numbers due to coronavirus, a number of German public transport companies have said they have no option but to raise their prices in the coming year. The increase varies significantly from region to region. 

Public transport to get more expensive across Germany

The rising price of fuel is making driving in Germany more expensive. But even those who use public transport to get to work will soon also have to pay more. Prices are not only increasing for long-distance trains in Germany, but also on public transport in many regions. 

Depending on the transport association, the average ticket price will increase by up to 5,5 percent in 2022, according to new figures available to the German Press Agency. In some regions, however, prices will not change at all. 

Fares going up in Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Cologne and Frankfurt

One of the largest associations to announce a hike is the Hamburger Verkehrsbund (HVV), which said on October 31 that fares would go up by an average of 1,3 percent at the turn of the year. “Nobody is happy about that,” the association in Hamburg said. “Please bear in mind during the discussion: Everything will be more expensive.” 

The Transport Association for Greater Nuremberg (VGN) also announced that it would put up its tariffs for bus and train travel for the first time in three years, by an average of 5,5 percent. Only in the city of Nuremberg itself will fares remain static, with the help of millions of euros from the city’s coffers. 

In Munich and the surrounding area, passengers can expect to pay an extra 3,7 percent on public transportation from the middle of December. “The coronavirus pandemic brought us enormous revenue shortfalls,” the transport association said. In Stuttgart and the surrounding area, fares are going up by 2,5 percent. 

The rise announced by the Verkehrsbund Rhein-Ruhr - which covers a large portion of North Rhine-Westphalia including Düsseldorf, Dortmund and Mönchengladbach - is not so steep, averaging 1,7 percent. The Rhein-Sieg Verkehrsbund, which covers Cologne and Bonn, and the Rhein-Main Verkehrsbund, which covers large parts of Hesse, including Frankfurt am Main, will increase prices by 1,5 percent. 

Elsewhere, Deutsche Bahn announced a tariff surcharge of 1,7 percent for trips not covered by transport associations. 

In some regions, however, prices will remain stable. In Bremen, parts of Lower Saxony, Berlin and Brandenburg, transport associations are keeping prices stable to encourage customers to start using buses, trams and trains more frequently once again.