Train cancellations in the north: who is to blame for the problems?

Train cancellations in the north: who is to blame for the problems?

The northern German railway landscape is currently facing major challenges, especially the metronome trains in the Hamburg-Hannover-Bremen triangle, where massive train cancellations are causing a lot of frustration. Last week the number of canceled trips was an impressive 178. Interestingly, only five of these cancellations were caused by Metronome itself. The main cause of this inconvenience is technical problems at Alstom, the maintenance company responsible for maintaining the Metronome trains. This is also confirmed by the article az online.

The problems are diverse: Alstom is not only struggling with a lack of materials, but also with long waiting times and inefficient maintenance processes. To make matters worse, a software update in January caused additional complications for the 147 series locomotives. According to Alstom, although many problems have been largely resolved, there are still technical irregularities in two train sets, which are currently being intensively examined.

The future of the metronome

Metronom has announced that it will operate regularly in the north again from June 2026, but only on certain routes. What is particularly relevant is that the Uelzen-Göttingen route will be taken over by DB Regio in the future. Meanwhile, the state local transport company (LNVG) is planning to re-award the contract for the northern lot of the Hanseatic network. As early as December 2023, Metronom had asked the LNVG to terminate the transport contract in order to be able to negotiate under new conditions. The company now has to prove that it can deliver the quality that passengers expect, how ndr.de described in detail.

In the future, the Hanseatic network will be distributed among several operators, which could increase hopes of improving the situation. Malte Diehl from the Pro Bahn passenger association has already expressed concerns about the reliability of the metronome, especially given the many delays and train cancellations. The RB31 between Hamburg and Winsen was one of the least punctual trains in Lower Saxony last year. Even daring guests complain about unclean trains and broken toilets.

The impact on travelers

These problems are further exacerbated by external circumstances such as embankment fires, overhead line disruptions and even bomb defusals, which brought rail traffic in northern Germany almost to a standstill on July 1, 2025. Travelers had to expect long waiting times, not only on regional trains but also on long-distance trains. Particularly critical situations occurred on the routes between Hanover and Berlin, where diversions and delays of up to 90 minutes were commonplace District newspaper reported.

In summary, the situation in northern German rail transport is currently tense and both Metronom and Alstom urgently need to work on improving their services in order to regain the trust of travelers. For the future, it is crucial that those responsible effectively address the causes of these problems and increase the quality of services in order to ensure sustainable mobility for passengers.