Germany
Grube continues the fight against seperation
While German Rail (DB) is performing well financially, it still faces some tough challenges as it deals with threats to its existence as a fully-integrated railway and copes with the aftermath of past misjudgements. DB’s CEO Dr Rüdiger Grube (pictured) reveals in an exclusive interview with David Briginshaw how the railway is addressing these issues.
largest railway is jinxed. Just as one problem is solved, another seems to emerge. Over the last few years, DB has faced a very public scandal in which it was found to have spied extensively on its own staff, the high-profile Berlin S-Bahn has suffered major disruption since 2009 due to poor train maintenance and inspection and as a result part of the 331km network is being put out to competitive tendering, and DB has faced major opposition to its controversial Stuttgart 21 project. On top of this, DB’s cherished status as one of the few remaining fully- integrated railways in Europe, albeit with an infrastructure subsidiary - DB Networks - is under threat. Grube, like his predecessor Mr Hartmut Mehdorn, is a strong believer in integrated railways, but the European Commission (EC) seems determined to force through the separation of infrastructure from train operations as part of the Fourth Railway Package. Grube, however does not see vertical separation as inevitable. “We will see whether the EC comes up with a proposal on the issue and how it is seen by the European Parliament and the Council,” he says. “In my opinion, it is crucial that the principle of model neutrality is preserved. I’m confident that the track record of our integrated system regarding transport performance, benefits for the customer, public expenditure, and the development of competition will prevent politicians from eliminating this option for the future. “Specifically, the situation in Germany and Britain confirms that competition can develop very successfully irrespective of the rail organisation model, provided market access is subject to effective rail
T IRJ September 2012
HE amiable CEO of German Rail (DB), Dr Rüdiger Grube, must at times wonder whether Europe’s
respective businesses,” Grube told IRJ. “In my opinion, it would be a really bad idea to insist that complete separation of rail operations and infrastructure is the only permissible model in Europe.” I asked Grube what he regards as the main dangers for DB of separating the infrastructure from train operations, and whether he believes there are any benefits from separation. “It is important to keep in mind that current European railway legislation already provides far-reaching unbundling requirements. When it comes to full ownership separation, I’m convinced that such an obligation would cause considerable harm, not only for DB, but for the railway sector in Germany and Europe as a whole.” Grube explains that DB’s structure
regulation. Given the current discussions about reintegrating infrastructure and transport operations in Europe, especially in France and Britain, the EC should not determine a model.” Grube says that about 98% of the world’s rail traffic is carried on vertically-integrated railways, including those deemed to be among the best performers such as Swiss railways, US Class I freight railways and Japanese passenger railways. “These are often referred to as benchmarks in their
has proven to be very successful and has enabled public funding of the railway to be reduced by 35% between 1994 and 2010. During the same period, railfreight in Germany increased by 60% and passenger traffic by 30%, while by 2010 the market share of open-access competitors had risen to around 21%. By implication, DB’s ownership of the infrastructure is not impeding competition, although some of DB’s competitors would probably disagree. In June EC competition authorities launched an investigation into allegations of anti-competitive pricing of traction current by DB subsidiary DB Energy.
Nonetheless Grube argues an integrated structure provides incentives for infrastructure investment. “This is why DB invests about ƒ1bn per year of its own money in railway infrastructure,” he says.
This month Berlin will play host to
the large number of railway managers and engineers from around the world visiting InnoTrans. So will they be able to depend on the S-Bahn to get around the city? “Every day the Berlin S-Bahn
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