foto: Von H-stt - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons/Richard Lutz
The post-election reset at Deutsche Bahn begins with Richard Lutz’s exit and DB Cargo’s restructuring. Critics say years of missed targets have caught up with the company.
The government that emerged from the spring elections in Germany has moved to replace the Chairman of the Management Board and CEO Richard Lutz. This occurred in the spirit of German tradition, with Lutz announcing his departure himself on 14 August, even though his contract does not expire until 2027. He will manage Deutsche Bahn AG until the government finds a suitable successor. Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) said that the situation on the railway is dramatic in relation to customer satisfaction, punctuality, and cost-effectiveness. In political circles of the CDU–SPD governing coalition, Lutz had for several months been regarded as a man without prospects.
Lutz worked for Deutsche Bahn in various positions since 1994 and has led it since 2017. He presented himself as a crisis manager who, despite difficulties, publicly promised in 2024 that he would pull the company out of loss-making operations. In recent months, criticism has been repeatedly voiced, and Deutsche Bahn has become a reputational problem for the new government. CDU/CSU politicians have repeatedly called for fundamental management changes and even for the division of the group. Government politicians have publicly — and unusually sharply by German standards — reproached the management for the railway’s failure over many years to keep its promises. Rehabilitation of the rail network and long-distance punctuality are lagging behind.
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German and Foreign Associations Criticise Deutsche Bahn for Failing to Keep Promises
The first calls for resignation appeared after the European Football Championship in the summer of 2024 in Germany. During the tournament, fewer trains arrived on time than the previous average, which also provoked ridicule abroad. Minister Schnieder wants to present an Agenda for Satisfied Rail Customers on 22 September, which is to be a strategic document with the main points of Deutsche Bahn reform. "The company must be leaner and more economical," Schnieder said. "Ideally, we will be able to present a new Chairman of the Management Board and CEO on 22 September."
The opposition believes that the departure of DB head Lutz will not improve anything. Green Party politician Matthias Gastel, who focuses on transport, sees priorities rather in stronger management control by the federal government and a financing perspective. "The financial planning of the governing coalition will inevitably lead to a halt in railway construction and modernisation projects. Electrification and digitalisation would also not continue," Gastel said. The criticism was joined by Peter Westenberger, director of the association of rail freight operators Die Güterbahnen. According to him, Lutz never consistently implemented the proclaimed "return to the railway in Germany." Foreign carrier associations also dealt Deutsche Bahn unprecedented criticism.
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Meanwhile, the Drama at Crisis-Stricken DB Cargo Continues
DB Cargo, the DB AG subsidiary engaged in freight transport and currently in crisis, intends to close a number of its service and repair workshops across Germany. According to information from the German press agency DPA, 10 of 15 workshops are to be closed. Restructuring of the workshop network will consequently mean the elimination of 170 jobs. DB Cargo currently operates 11 workshops with 15 branches throughout Germany. Changes will not spare the main locations either: the workshop in Mainz-Bischofsheim is to be completely closed; in Halle (Saale), Seelze, and Oberhausen, regular wagon maintenance is to be discontinued, and only locomotives will be repaired. DB Cargo currently has this plan in the form of a concept, which must be discussed with the unions in September.
The goal that DB Cargo must be profitable from 2026 still applies. The company was forced to meet this deadline by the European Commission in state-aid proceedings. DB Cargo head Sigrid Nikutta is therefore making forced moves under the motto "what is not profitable will be cancelled." As RAILTARGET reported, DB Cargo did significantly reduce its losses in the first half of 2025, but it still shows an operating loss.
According to the concept, DB Cargo will operate ten workshops in Hagen, Halle (Saale), Cologne-Gremberg, Mannheim, Oberhausen, Maschen, Nuremberg, Saarbrücken, Seddin, Seelze/Lohnde, and five branches in Bebra, Braunschweig, Bremerhaven, Kornwestheim, and Munich. The Mainz-Bischofsheim plant and ten branches — Rostock, Osnabrück, Magdeburg, Senftenberg, Hamburg-Billwerder, Offenburg, Ingolstadt, Regensburg, Emden, and Stendell — will be closed.
Source: RailFreight.com