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How Thursday’s bus strike in Berlin will affect you

Buses in the German capital were at a standstill Thursday as a strike got underway, resulting in other services such as U-Bahn trains being packed out.

Published: 14 March 2019 09:50 CET
How Thursday's bus strike in Berlin will affect you
Passengers leaving a packed-out train at Alexanderplatz Station on Thursday. Photo: DPA.

Trade union Verdi had called earlier this week for bus drivers at Berlin's public transport operator, the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG), to down their tools and walk out as part of a so-called ‘warning strike'.

SEE ALSO: Passengers face disruption as bus drivers in Berlin set to strike

The industrial action started at around 3.30am and was due to last until 10pm. The strike is being held to put pressure on BVG in the current wage negotiations between employers and the union.

Verdi announced that no buses operated by BVG were in operation on Thursday, signalling that the strike was strong.

“The goal is to use this warning strike to increase the pressure on employers in the current negotiations,” Verdi negotiator Jeremy Arndt said.

BVG is the largest municipal transport company in Germany and, with more than 2.9 million customer trips per day, it's the backbone of Berlin's local public transport system.

If you’re travelling in the capital, here's how the strike might affect you, and details of the other services you can use instead of buses.

SEE ALSO: Public service strikes continue as Potsdam talks fail

S-Bahn and regional trains

S-Bahn and regional trains will run this Thursday according to the timetable. These trains are not operated by the BVG, but by Deutsche Bahn and other companies.

Rail replacement services (SEV) on these lines will not be affected. “The S-Bahn does not use BVG buses for replacement transport, it is not affected”, said S-Bahn spokeswoman Sandra Spieker, reported the Berliner Zeitung.

Information sign shows that a bus strike is ongoing. Photo: DPA

U-Bahn and trams

Unlike the strike that took place in February, on Thursday underground trains (U-Bahn) and trams will not be affected. But services are much busier than usual as many people have switched to these modes of transport.

However, replacement services that use buses are affected. The replacement service for the M4 and M13 tram lines will also be on strike, BVG's Jannes Schwentu told the Berliner Zeitung.

It is also expected that replacement services for the underground lines U1, U8 and U9 will start later in the evening. Normally they start at 10 or 11pm, but at the beginning there may be some restrictions.

Private bus companies

The BVG buses will remain off the roads on Thursday. The warning strike lasts until 10 pm, after which it may take some time for all buses to operate normally.

SEE ALSO: IN PICTURES: Berlin public transport strike ends but more disruption expected

Only the routes used by BVG contractors are in operation throughout the day. These are routes 106, 161, 162, 163, 168, 175, 179, 218, 234, 263, 275, 284, 320, 322, 334, 341, 349, 363, 365, 371, 373, 380, 390 and 399.

The following routes operate with slight restrictions: 112, 140, 184, 283, 370 and 893. These routes are operated by private bus companies commissioned by the BVG. These companies are not affected by the tariff dispute.

Emergency shuttle service to Tegel airport

There will be a bus shuttle to Tegel Airport – this time from Jakob-Kaiser-Platz underground station, not from Jungfernheide station as was the case with the first strike in February.

“The Jakob-Kaiser-Platz underground station is half a kilometre closer to the airport,” airport spokesman Daniel Tolksdorf told the Berliner Zeitung.

The so-called “emergency shuttle service” will again use four coaches and will run from 5 am to 11 pm. Tolksdorf recommended scheduling more time for the trip to Tegel Airport in case of longer waiting times or busy services.

Why are workers striking?

Among other things, Verdi wants to implement a 36.5-hour working week with full wage compensation for the approximately 14,000 employees of BVG and its subsidiary Berlin Transport. Today, almost half of the employees have to work 39 hours — these are workers who have been hired since 2005. 

Negotiations have failed so far despite offers by BVG to the trade union.

The latest strike comes during a wave of industrial action sparked by separate disputes that's resulted in office and school closures around the country as well as flights being grounded.

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TRAVEL NEWS

German train strike wave to end following new labour agreement

Germany's Deutsche Bahn rail operator and the GDL train drivers' union have reached a deal in a wage dispute that has caused months of crippling strikes in the country, the union said.

Published: 26 March 2024 09:55 CET
German train strike wave to end following new labour agreement

“The German Train Drivers’ Union (GDL) and Deutsche Bahn have reached a wage agreement,” GDL said in a statement.

Further details will be announced in a press conference on Tuesday, the union said. A spokesman for Deutsche Bahn also confirmed that an agreement had been reached.

Train drivers have walked out six times since November, causing disruption for huge numbers of passengers.

The strikes have often lasted for several days and have also caused disruption to freight traffic, with the most recent walkout in mid-March.

In late January, rail traffic was paralysed for five days on the national network in one of the longest strikes in Deutsche Bahn’s history.

READ ALSO: Why are German train drivers launching more strike action?

Europe’s largest economy has faced industrial action for months as workers and management across multiple sectors wrestle over terms amid high inflation and weak business activity.

The strikes have exacerbated an already gloomy economic picture, with the German economy shrinking 0.3 percent across the whole of last year.

What we know about the new offer so far

Through the new agreement, there will be optional reduction of a work week to 36 hours at the start of 2027, 35.5 hours from 2028 and then 35 hours from 2029. For the last three stages, employees must notify their employer themselves if they wish to take advantage of the reduction steps.

However, they can also opt to work the same or more hours – up to 40 hours per week are possible in under the new “optional model”.

“One thing is clear: if you work more, you get more money,” said Deutsche Bahn spokesperson Martin Seiler. Accordingly, employees will receive 2.7 percent more pay for each additional or unchanged working hour.

According to Deutsche Bahn, other parts of the agreement included a pay increase of €420 per month in two stages, a tax and duty-free inflation adjustment bonus of €2,850 and a term of 26 months.

Growing pressure

Last year’s walkouts cost Deutsche Bahn some €200 million, according to estimates by the operator, which overall recorded a net loss for 2023 of €2.35 billion.

Germany has historically been among the countries in Europe where workers went on strike the least.

But since the end of 2022, the country has seen growing labour unrest, while real wages have fallen by four percent since the start of the war in Ukraine.

German airline Lufthansa is also locked in wage disputes with ground staff and cabin crew.

Several strikes have severely disrupted the group’s business in recent weeks and will weigh on first-quarter results, according to the group’s management.

Airport security staff have also staged several walkouts since January.

Some politicians have called for Germany to put in place rules to restrict critical infrastructure like rail transport from industrial action.

But Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected the calls, arguing that “the right to strike is written in the constitution… and that is a democratic right for which unions and workers have fought”.

The strikes have piled growing pressure on the coalition government between Scholz’s Social Democrats, the Greens and the pro-business FDP, which has scored dismally in recent opinion polls.

The far-right AfD has been enjoying a boost in popularity amid the unrest with elections in three key former East German states due to take place later this year.

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