Markets and strategy

In 2021, the German regional rail passenger transport and public transport market continued to suffer from the restrictions related to Covid-19 and the associated changes in demand for mobility among commuters and leisure passengers. In the medium term, however, we expect that the trends for further transport growth in local transport are intact. These include the continued attractiveness of modern metropolitan areas, the influx of families in particular into suburban areas, who commute to the metropolitan areas, and the continued importance of climate protection, as well as increasing acceptance of sharing services. In the short term, the industry solution for local public transport is serving to stabilize local public transport during the Covid-19 pandemic. In the medium and long term, increasing regionali­zation funds will create stability for the coming years. We also expect positive stimuli for German local transport from the Climate Action Program. DB Regional intends to continue to benefit from this positive market environment as the largest provider. DB Regional is oriented towards the Strong Rail strategy and interprets it for local transport under the motto “Regional and urban mobility.” DB Regio­nal understands local transport as bridging different modes of transport and brings together regional rail passenger transport, bus, sharing and pooling offers and, in the future, platform solutions as well. This is done in cooperation with the activities in the New Mobility area.

In order to achieve the objectives, the strategy of DB Regio­nal consists of the strategic building blocks of the Strong Rail strategy:

• More robust: Thanks to modern vehicles and the increasing use of the possibilities of digitalization and automation in operations and maintenance, DB Regional contributes to a sustained improvement in quality and an appreciation in the value of regional rail passenger transport. In addition to these aspects, more capacity is also required. To this end, DB Regional, in consultation with the contracting organizations, intends to gradually increase the strength of its fleet and systematically invest in the redesign of existing vehicles, as well as in a sustainable improvement in quality. Sufficient and qualified personnel are also of great importance for a robust operation.
• More powerful: DB Regional is strengthening its functional operation, maintenance and vehicles with the aim of further improving quality and achieving economies of scale through standardization and transparency. This increases competitiveness and prepares DB Regional for the possible increase in fragmented awarded tenders. At the same time, the DB Excellence System will continue to be implemented in operations and maintenance. Driving assistance systems are increasingly being used, platforms and IT systems are being developed to allow customer assistants to be digitally networked, and new AI-powered planning and scheduling systems are being rolled out. In maintenance, DB Regional combines operations and maintenance by automating data on the technical vehicle condition and transmitting it to maintenance during the journey. The fleet is equipped with sensors and transmission facilities.
• More modern: Together with its intra-Group partners, DB Regional is expanding cross-mobility solutions and making it possible to connect regional rail passenger transport and local public transport to facilitate intelligent expansion. DB Regional intends to defend its position as the leading provider of urban and regional mobility in Ger­­many in future and to strengthen it with innovations and a greater customer focus.
• Greener: To improve our climate footprint, we are reduc­ing the use of fossil fuels wherever possible, for example with an energy-efficient driving styleno. 08 on the part of our vehicle drivers and by using supportive assistance systems. The establishment of alternative drives and the use of alternative fuels offer even greater opportunities to for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in future. We see our environmental responsibility as an integrated duty, and we are therefore also committed to conserving resources, protecting nature and noise protection.