Deutschlandticket: What's next - and how should it be financed?
How will the Deutschlandticket be financed starting in 2026? The state transport ministers, together with Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU), sought to clarify this issue at a special meeting on Friday. However, the meeting failed to provide an answer – once again. The decision was postponed until early fall.
There was general agreement that the popular ticket would remain. "The federal and state governments are committed to this," said Saarland Transport Minister Petra Berg (SPD). Transport Minister Schnieder also stated that he would continue to support it, Berg reported.
However, it remains unclear how potential additional costs for the transport companies will be offset. There was also no agreement on the future price of the subscription, which currently stands at €58 per month.
Since May 2023, the Deutschlandticket has made public transport much easier. A single ticket is sufficient for travel throughout Germany on buses, subways, suburban and regional trains. The current cost is €58 per month. 13.5 million people currently use the ticket. But future funding is uncertain.
The financing of public transport is technically a matter for the federal states. The federal government provides annual subsidies, the regionalization funds. However, these are insufficient for the Deutschlandticket, because many users are switching from more expensive subscriptions to cheaper D-Tickets, and revenues are declining. Therefore, the federal and state governments are each spending an additional €1.5 billion per year on the Deutschlandticket between 2023 and 2025. But even this will not be enough in the foreseeable future, because personnel and energy costs are rising. Therefore, funding will be shaky from 2026 onwards. The distribution of revenue among the federal states and transport companies is also not yet fully clarified.
The federal states have so far also disagreed among themselves regarding future financing. Berlin's Mayor Kai Wegener (CDU) and Bavaria's Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter (CSU), for example, would prefer the federal government to fully fund the Deutschlandticket. On Friday, however, the states agreed to stick to their joint share of 1.5 billion euros.
Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) also supports the continued existence of the ticket, but also not to contribute more than €1.5 billion. He proposes a fixed pricing mechanism, according to which the ticket could, for example, increase in price in line with inflation. The SPD opposes price increases. In the coalition agreement, the CDU/CSU and SPD agreed to continue the Deutschlandticket. User prices are to increase only from 2029 onwards: "gradually and in a socially acceptable manner." The monthly price would remain at €58 until 2028.
The distribution key, for example, shows that revenue from the D-Ticket goes to the federal states and from there to the transport associations and companies. However, the distribution of revenue is complicated, partly because the more than 60 associations in Germany partly cross state borders. It's also still unclear whether the revenue will flow back to the place where the Deutschlandticket was purchased or to where it is used.
There's also a patchwork of regulations: Some federal states offer additional benefits, such as discounts for the socially disadvantaged and seniors. In Hamburg, for example, schoolchildren travel free with a D-Ticket. There are also differences between transport associations – in some cases, you can take children, dogs, or bicycles for free, but then have to pay extra in neighboring associations.
Another problem is now being addressed: ticket fraud. In May 2025, the transport companies and associations agreed on improved security standards. The most important changes are expected to take effect by the end of June. The massive fraud has already caused damages in the hundreds of millions, heise online reported.
The transport ministers are now expected to meet for another special conference in September. Long-term planning and reliability were the key points that both the states, transport associations, and transport companies had already wanted to achieve on Friday. Now, it's again projected that a narrow agreement won't be reached until autumn at the earliest.
For their part, transport companies would like to expand public transport nationwide. However, this would entail high costs: A new study by the industry association VDV estimates that public subsidies for this would have to increase by at least €1.44 billion annually.
The D-Ticket is the successor to the successful 9-euro ticket, which was introduced from June to August 2022 to make public transport more attractive in light of the energy crisis and high fuel costs. The joint project between the federal and state governments was spearheaded by then-Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing. He subsequently also pushed for the launch of the Deutschlandticket starting in May 2023 – initially for 49 euros per month. Starting in 2025, it will cost 9 euros more.
(with dpa material)
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