9.000 public transport workers have headed out on strike, bringing buses, trams and U-Bahn trains across Germany to a halt throughout the week. Here’s how different German states will be affected until the strike ends on March 2, 2024.

What transport is affected by the public transport strike?

From February 26 to March 2, buses, trams and U-Bahns will be affected by strike action in Germany. This is because one of Germany’s largest trade unions, ver.di, has called on public transport workers in every German federal state apart from Bavaria to down tools.

This strike affects services which are run by local transport associations and not S-Bahn services, regional or long-distance trains as these are run by Deutsche Bahn.

Which states are affected by the transport strike?

Bavaria is the only state in which public transport will run as scheduled through the week beginning February 26. This is because ver.di has already settled on a new collective bargaining agreement with Bavarian local transport associations on behalf of association employees. In Germany’s 15 other states, such negotiations are still ongoing.

While the umbrella strike wave is set to last five days, each local transport association will individually decide how many of those strike days to take part in. Ver.di has announced that it will inform the public about further strikes at least 48 hours in advance. So far these are the details which have been announced: 

Rhineland-Palatinate

In Rhineland-Palatinate public transport strikes will begin at 3am on February 26 and last until the end of the same day. According to ver.di, the Trier region will be affected by the strikes.

Lowery Saxony

Public transport strikes in Lower Saxony will start on February 29 and last until March 1. The industrial action will affect Hannover, Braunschweig, Osnabrück, Göttingen, Wolfsburg and Goslar.

Berlin

Public transport in Berlin run by the BVG and Berlin Transport will come to a halt from February 29 until March 1 at 2pm.

Saarland

Strikes in Saarland will take place on February 26 and affect the following services: Saarbahn, Saarbahn Netz, Neunkircher Verkehrs, Fahrzeugservice Neunkirchen, Kreisverkehrsbetriebe Saarlouis (KVS/KVG) and Völklinger Verkehrsbetriebe (VVB).

Hamburg and Schleswig Holstein

In Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, from 3am on February 29 until 3am on March 2, those working for the Hamburger Hochbahn and Verkehrsbetriebe Hamburg-Holstein (VHH) will be on strike. 

North Rhine-Westphalia

In Germany’s most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia, public transport run by 32 local transport associations will be affected by the strike from February 26 until March 2. This includes the Kölner Verkehrs-Betriebe in Cologne, three associations in Bonn, Dortmunder Stadtwerker and the Rheinbahn AG in Düsseldorf. For a full list of affected services, check here.

Brandenburg

Staff at local transport associations in Brandenburg are set to stagger their walkouts. On February 28, transport in Templin, Prenzlau, Schwedt and Angermünde run by the Uckermärkische Verkehrsgesellschaft will be affected.

On February 29, transport in Ostprignitz-Ruppiner will come to a halt. On March 1, transport in Potsdam, Spreewald, Brandenburg an der Havel and Frankfurt an der Oder, among others, will be affected. For the full list of services affected in Brandenburg on February 29, check here.

Why are there so many strikes in Germany at the moment?

Germany's 9.000 public transport workers are just some of many who have been striking consistently in recent weeks. To understand what's behind Germany's recent wave of strikes, check out our recent article.

Thumb image credit: penofoto / Shutterstock.com