Malcolm’s delighted five minutes with the time-lapse camera (see previous post) stirred him to note that the story of Deutsche Bahn buying into Channel Tunnel passenger services keeps going the rounds. [The image (left) is ripped shamelessly from one of many by eisenrah at Flickr.]
It popped up again last Friday under Ben Webster’s by-line, in the Times business pages:
Germany is seeking to buy Britain’s share of Eurostar in a move that would leave the high-speed international train service entirely under foreign control. Passengers could benefit from direct services between London and several new continental destinations, including Cologne, Frankfurt and Amsterdam.
Deutsche Bahn (DB), Germany’s state-owned railway, may also use Eurostar trains to operate a rival service through the Channel Tunnel, with competition resulting in cheaper tickets to Paris and Brussels. But the Government, which is preparing to sell the third of Eurostar that it controls, would lose the ability to influence the development of the rail link to the Continent.
Webster reminds us that the Germans are already here, owning Chiltern Railways and EWS, and with strong and growing interests in London Overground.
And good show, says Malcolm.
Just last week he was on the newly-upgraded line between Munich and Nuremberg. At full belt, and if the trip’s on expenses, the gorgeous ICE trains do it in under an hour and a quarter. The Regional Expresses (stopping trains) for ordinary mortals are scheduled for half-an-hour longer: this can include an extended wait at Ingolstadt while the ICE goes through.
It was a tale of two journeys.
Malcolm arrived at Munich airport, and took the S-bahn into town. Ample time for the interchange, and then RE4012 out of Munich at 1.05pm, due into Nuremberg at 2.47pm. All went well until well past Ingolstadt, and after passing the immaculate white Audi plant.
A slack through one of the new tunnels, and a long halt at Kinding.
Now, if it wasn’t for the adjacent autobahn, Kinding (Altmühltal) could qualify as the Baverian counterpart of Adlestrop:
Yes. I remember Adlestrop—
The name, because one afternoon
Of heat the express-train drew up there
Unwontedly. It was…
… well, early December actually. But the air-con was set quite high.
There were frequent announcements,
in German (natch),
which Malcolm could not quite catch
(“a poet,
and he doesn’t know it”).
With the help of others, Malcolm learned there was a problem “in the Nuremberg area”, that they would return to Ingolstadt and transfer onto the other (older) line.
So it happened. Malcolm twice crossed the Danube, once heading north, then back south. After half-an-hour standing on Ingolstadt station, another train pulled in. A double-decker, no less (the lady in Malcolm’s life had demanded no less).
Eventually, turning west, the caravanserai set off again (with no apologies to the blessed Joni):
He’s looked at Audi from both sides now,
From North and south, and still somehow
Its cloud allusions he recalls,
He really doesn’t know Audi at all.
As darkness closed in, it became a rural route, stopping at every eine-pferde town. Eventually, at going-past-six-o’clock, the train made Nuremberg. Over three hours late.
Even Homer can nod.
Even Deutsche Bahn can have problems.
And coming back?
The RE4011 “taglich” out of Nuremberg at 11.10, into Munich at 12.52. Both right to the minute.
Superb.
Boring!
The bottom line
What is missing there is that Malcolm’s expedition (three adults: himself, his lady, his sister-in-law) from Munich airport, into the centre of town, the onward journey to Nuremberg, and any forward journey by the local transport, was covered by a single Bayernticket (other Länder operate parallel schemes):
- Price: €27, available in numerous languages from any automated machine. Don’t let the helpful DB guy at the ticket-machines at Munich airport tell you you want a local transport ticket (about €18 for a small party for a day): if you’re heading out of Munich you want the real thing (it’s a button down the right-hand side of the machine).
- It’s €19 for a solitary passenger.
- Valid for any public transport inside the province for a day. Bavaria is pretty generous in its interpretation of how far the ticket can work: it certainly includes Ulm, which is in Baden-Württemburg, and even down to Salzberg.
- And for up to five adults at a time. So, look for the day-tripping groups of pensioners and back-packers, and prepare to be included in a beer and Würst party.
- The DB website is a delight. Schedules across Europe are exemplary. It even tells which platform the service runs from and to. It sells tickets, but not Ländertickets.
