Heading East
October 30, 2009
SNCF is planning to offer high-speed services between Germany's financial center Frankfurt and Berlin and Hamburg, according to Die Welt newspaper.
Deutsche Bahn seems to be have been caught napping by the plans of the rail company, which is famous for its flagship TGVs - the world's fastest trains. Ulrich Homburg, director of passenger transport for DB, told Die Welt that the company was surprised to hear SNCF's intentions.
Blood on the tracks
He also prophesied that the competition would have damaging effects on both companies. "It will be a bloody battle that will leave deep scars in the balance sheets," Homburg told the Financial Times Deutschland (FTD). "In a war there is no winner," he added.
The project is likely to put additional strain on relations between the two state rail companies.
Deutsche Bahn has complained in the past that it is prevented from competing in France, while SNCF's public transport subsidiary Keolis already runs local trains in Germany. Homburg called on Chancellor Angela Merkel to defend German interests.
Intensified inter-city competition
Germany's rail market has been opened up in recent years, and there are some 320 private rail companies now operating in the country. However, the majority of these firms carry freight, and Deutsche Bahn remains practically unchallenged on long distance routes.
In a collaborative venture between Deutsche Bahn and SNCF, TGV trains currently operate on routes between Paris and Frankfurt and Stuttgart. Another Bahn director, who was not identified by the FTD, warned that existing cross-border cooperation could be jeopardized by this step.
SNCF would not be able to realize their plans before 2011 as next year's railway timetables have already been completed. However, DB will face another challenger on inter-city routes from 2010 onwards.
Berlin-based Locomore Rail will operate several times a day between Cologne and Hamburg from next summer, managing director Derek Ladewig told Die Welt. The new company is believed to be financed by a foreign investor.
jg/AFP/dpa/AP
Editor: Nancy Isenson