Print page
Markets and strategy
According to forecasts, the long-distance transport market will continue its current growth rate over the next few years. Despite increasing intra- and inter-modal competition, DB Long-Distance transport intends to further expand its market share through attractive offers. The proportion of the population living in urban metropolitan areas is expected to increase from 62 to 70 million in Germany by 2050, making fast and direct connections between major cities ever more important. At the same time, the connection of people in rural regions to long-distance transport must be ensured.
As an integral component of the Strong Rail strategy DB Long-Distance makes an important social contribution. In the year under review, we integrated our ongoing activities into the new strategy and consistently continued them, but we also put measures to the test and ended them if necessary. By revising our top-project portfolio along the three expansion fields of the Strong Rail strategy, we have further sharpened our focus on our strategic objectives. Our core identity – “Our drive: Connecting people, overcoming distances,” “Our mission: Best possible journey – together with passion and excellence” and “Our promise: Arriving by the time of boarding” – continues to be of central importance.
The central objective is to double the number of passengers to 260 million per year compared to 2015. This requires the expansion and stabilization of production on the one hand and the creation of an attractive travel offer on the other. Through this, DB LongDistance contributes significantly to the desired shift in the mode of transport towards rail and to tackling climate change. In order to achieve the objectives, the strategy of DB LongDistance transport includes the three strategic expansion areas of the Strong Rail strategy:
DB Long-Distance is becoming MORE ROBUST: In order to counteract future capacity bottlenecks, DB Long-Distance is increasing its vehicle fleet and maintenance capacity. In order to improve technical reliability and increase comfort on board trains, more than 200 new trains will be put into operation by 2024 and older ICE 1 and ICE 3 trains are undergoing a general overhaul. By 2024, we are also planning to create about 2,000 new jobs. This means that we must take on several times this number of new employees in order to compensate for fluctuation and age-related departures and to achieve this massive expansion. The focus of the recruiting activities is on the rapid and qualified occupation of positions critical to operations and services, such as drivers and train attendants. In addition, we are continuously working to improve the satisfaction of our employees.
DB Long-Distance is becoming MORE POWERFUL: Our objective is to provide all long-distance trains with the highest quality and at competitive costs through improved processes. In order to increase vehicle availability and quality, material requirements planning and scheduling is to be further digitalized and optimized..
DB Long-Distance is becoming MORE MODERN: DB Long-Distance aims to build a flexible, reliable and high frequency long-distance transport network. Our target is for 80% of the population in Germany to have direct access to long-distance transport through more intensive connection of the regions and a strengthening of the metropolitan network. We are creating attractive and competitive offers not only through expansion of the lines and increasing frequency, but also through shorter travel times. Our digital customer channels support our passengers during their journey. At the same time, we are facilitating access to our system via the digital platform, offering modern and up-to-date journey support and establishing a personal service component through the hosting concept, making us sustainable and competitive