MCC analysis for the Ariadne energy transition project shows 30 percent more rail journeys. The announced increase in price to 58 euros per month undoes half of this.
Meanwhile in North America, Canada's VIA is operating on a shoestring and being further threatened ... and in the last 50 years the US has pulled up most of the rails that were installed in the previous century. We're stuck with airplanes, hybrid metro-transit, and what's left of Greyhound. But, hey, we've got a world to police!
It's an effect that our conservatives from CDU and CSU as well as liberals from FDP are denying to exist and are decrying the fact that it costs money (and helps the average guy, but they can't say that out loud)
That is why we can't have nice things. Everything needs to make a profit and cannot simply be good.
Infrastructure shoudn't be required to make a profit. They are there for the public good. What's next? Paying for sitting on public benches and entering public parks? Paying for the privilege to exit your house and use the public sidewalk? We already have to pay to use public toilets in some cases...
These things should be available to everyone for free and build and financed via general taxes.
Meanwhile in North America, Canada's VIA is operating on a shoestring and being further threatened ...
Meanwhile in Germany the 49€ ticket is on the verge of dying and will be soon the 58€ ticket - all while the railroads are practically falling apart and the FDP, who is in charge of the transportation ministry, wants to feed 100 million to save an air taxi startup. lol
Maybe be a bit careful with what kind of "success" story you want to flaunt around.
This is totally unrelated but we don't use that comma after 'Guess' in English. I'm reminded of it because I'm learning German and it's been very difficult for me to remember to put commas after "I think" etc.
The argument that they make is that more ticket sales -> more funding -> better service -> more riders
But honestly they spent so much on enforcement, it eroded the funding argument, and having to pay for €100 tickets every month, paying increased fines, and pass through slow ticket gates erodes the better service argument.