The great wait for storm Xavier in norrn Germany had many faces: tired passengers who got out of hotel trains. Crowds of people who are on track to still moving trains, desperate faces before departure screens or via smartphones. Long snake traveler, who would probably have reached ir destination faster than next train switch. And in middle of it: train employees who didn't exactly feel like y could really still look beyond chaos in ir own company, let alone arrange. How to proceed? Helping information: Error message.

Only a few hours ago, Xavier was swept over norrn Germany on Thursday. His performance was short but difficult to follow: trees or branches landed on tracks, and pylons were torn from foundations. At about 1000 kilometers of railway tracks, no more went to start of weekend. Dozens of trains were pulled out of circulation. Tens of thousands of passengers beached at Germany's railway stations. The fact that heaviest hurricane for years has swept over inland with gusts of more than 120 kilometers per hour and has made so many routes impassable is not to blame for railway. It is also not that it has set operation in many regions in a preprecaution- danger for passengers would have been simply too great.

The staff at train stations often do not know what control stations decide somewhere in country

Local train employees reacted prudently in many places. Passengers praised Unbureaucratic help, some came to destination with taxis paid by train. Twenty of trains at large railway stations allowed many at least one roof above head. And some crews were still sent off during storm to eliminate worst consequences of hurricane.

But Xavier revealed in past days also relentlessly neuralgic point of State group: lack of communication with customer. Even in everyday life, this is one of biggest weaknesses of railway. In event of a crisis, however, it becomes manifestly a serious problem. That thousands of passengers do not know wher it will go on at all, even though decision has long since fallen into some of many group's daughters. That servers are failing in face of onslaught of requests, and train employees also do not know more than an app that documents delays but does not display alternatives. All this is due not only to wear conditions, but to a failure with a system.

If routes are cleared again in next few days, cleaning up of glass group headquarters in Berlin is likely to take off completely elsewhere. The company has to ask why information technology is still lagging behind on railways. Why network displays trains that have long been deleted. And why ride trains again, but passengers don't know about it.

Red Signals Train employees criticize group's storm crisis management. Despite apps and or digital media, company is not able to inform its customers. by Markus Balser more...

Digitisation has been one of most important topics in group for years. Automated offers will change mobility, bring new suppliers to market and also compete with railways. You talk a lot about se great steps by train. But reality is still small steps. For months, for example, railway has hailed a finitely functioning internet on board its long-line trains. And just as storm swept over Berlin on Thursday and Zehntrau sent beached, group presented new information concepts on its innovation day. Prototypes are intended to facilitate travel by app with more up-to-date information from web's vast data treasure. Home? At earliest in two years.

The technology of group is far from where it should be. However, it is not only group's network that is prone to failure. Communication within company is also prone to interference. Since railway reform more than twenty years ago, independent companies have been created for Network (DB Network), ICE connections (db long-distance traffic) and local transport (DB Regio) and stations (Station service). Thus, time-consuming coordination processes have developed between units, those for network and those who operate trains. The staff at train stations often do not know what control stations decide somewhere in country.

The train would actually have to be quickly controlled. But for months an important post remains vacant-politics cannot agree on personalities: Board of Directors for Digital.

Video in land of broken-down train on Ambience Rhine Valley Line, problems of rail network show up . No wonder: Politics is far too much about road traffic. And instead of investing in railroad, y had to pay off large parts of profits. Comment by Marco Völklein more... Date Of Update: 10 October 2017, 12:09