Germany’s rail electrification lags behind European leaders - lobby group

Germany’s federal government lacks an overall strategy for the electrification of the country’s railway network, according to the lobby group Pro-Rail Alliance. Citing the latest EU comparative figures, the Alliance said there were large differences in the degree of electrification between the rail networks of European countries. While Germany’s degree of rail electrification is at 60 percent and above the EU average of 54 percent, it’s far behind European leaders such as Switzerland with 100 percent rail electrification, Belgium (86 percent), the Netherlands (76 percent), Sweden (75 percent), Austria (72 percent) and Italy (71 percent). "While our European neighbours are upgrading their grids for environmentally friendly rail transport, we have in Germany a subsidy programme for regional rail lines for which the 2019 federal budget has allocated just 5 million euros," Pro-Rail Alliance Executive Director Dirk Flege said in an interview with daily newspaper Tagesspiegel. “This electrifies three kilometres.” Germany is aiming to reach 70 percent this year.

Read the Pro-Rail Alliance press release in German here.