With the CDU having expressed scepticism about the Deutschlandticket throughout its election campaign, many people feared that the party’s win would spell the end of the public transport scheme. Now, however, a new working paper has shown that the SPD and CDU are trying to figure out a way to keep the Deutschlandticket on offer during coalition negotiations. 

CDU/SPD working paper outlines long-term plan for Deutschlandticket

A paper put together by the Transport and Infrastructure, Construction and Housing Working Group, formed of members of the CDU, CSU and SPD parties, has outlined how the Deutschlandticket can continue to be offered and funded in the long-term. 

The paper, seen by ntv, secures the ticket’s state funding until 2026, meaning it can continue to be offered at the price of 58 euros per month until the end of 2026. From the beginning of 2027, however, subscribers will be asked to take on a bigger share of the scheme’s costs and will see their subscription prices increase “gradually and in a socially acceptable manner”, the paper writes. 

It’s not clear exactly how much the cost of the Deutschlandticket would go up by, but ntv speculates that the price increase could be “significant”. 

It’s important to note, however, that the working paper does not amount to a final agreement; the proposal needs to be discussed by the SPD and CDU parties’ chief negotiators, and even if they do accept it, they will still need to allocate funding for it in their final coalition agreement. There are still several stages to get through before that can happen. 

Funding for German public transport ticket only secured until 2026

Funding for the nationwide Deutschlandticket is currently only guaranteed until the end of this year. The federal government and federal states each agreed to put 1,5 billion euros towards the financing of the scheme, to offset the revenue losses experienced by public transport companies. In January this year, the price of the monthly ticket went up by 9 euros, from 49 euros to 58 euros per month. 

Nearly 14 million people in Germany currently have a Deutschlandticket. Earlier this week, the general manager of the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV) told the Funke Media Group that the ticket was “a success story that simplifies access to public transport” for residents of Germany and called on the likely coalition parties to agree on a long-term solution.