The recent departure of Deutsche Bahn’s CEO, Richard Lutz, has prompted criticism of Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder, with the Chairman of the Transport Committee, Tarek Al-Wazir, alleging insufficient advocacy for the railway’s needs.
Speaking to the “Rheinische Post” on Saturday, Al-Wazir stated that despite an earmarked fund of 500 billion euros, Minister Schnieder failed to secure adequate funding within the draft federal budget for crucial expansion and new construction projects on the rail network.
“As long as the railway does not become a clear investment priority for the current governing coalition, it doesn’t matter who is at the helm – renewed failure is preprogrammed” Al-Wazir asserted.
He further emphasized that “firing people does not replace a strategy and a change of leadership alone will not solve the problems at Deutsche Bahn”. The announcement regarding the early and amicable termination of Lutz’s contract was made by Minister Schnieder on Thursday.
