One Ticket: The 9 Euro Plan
The 9 euro ticket was a 2.5 billion euro subsidized program by the Germany Federal Government, where individuals could purchase a train/bus ticket for only 9 euros. This ticket allowed unlimited travel on the U-Bahn train in Berlin, regional trains from Hamburg to towns along the North Sea, and local buses for a single month (June, July, August) during the summer of 2022. This was largely done as part of a relief package to mitigate the influence steep inflation and rising energy costs due to the Ukraine-Russia war.
Impacts were massive for German citizens and foreign travelers alike. A total of 38 million individuals purchases the ticket, which early on in June lead to heavy overcrowding on trains, which later resolved itself as travelers became more accustom to the heavy traffic.
The program was discontinued into the fall of 2022, ending in after August. In early March of 2023, the Bundestag voted to approve plans for a 49 euro ticket, and while that is almost 5 times more than the 9 euro ticket, it is a steep discount compared to normal prices. A day ticket in Berlin can be as much as 9 euros and over the course of the summer could be upwards of 90 to 150 euros. This vote will be decided at the end this month. The general consensus is that the vote will be passed and begin in May, and while this seems like a great plan to continue a discounted train ticket, it doesn’t have any plans on improving Germany’s ageing transportation infrastructure.
Die Linke is the democratic socialist left party of Germany. In September 2021, the party just barely squeezed into the Bundestag with 4.9 percent of votes, the worst results since the party’s founding in 2007. In general, democracy, freedom, equality, justice, internationalism and solidarity are the party’s fundamental values. Their values believe business and politics should be centered around the vital needs and interests of the majority of the people. With this being said, from the perspective of Die Linke, their position on a discounted train ticket would be very positive.
Auf Wiedersehen und alles Gute!
Max Rajendran
