In Germany, Deutsche Bahn train cancellations rise to a two-year high
In Germany in the first half of 2026, 8% of Deutsche Bahn long-distance trains were fully or partially cancelled. In fact, almost every twelfth train did not complete its route in full.
This is evidenced by data from the German Federal Ministry of Transport, cited in a response to a request from the Alliance 90/The Greens faction in the Bundestag.
The indicator has noticeably worsened compared to last year. In the first half of 2025, the share of fully or partially cancelled long-distance trips was about 5%. Thus, over the year it increased by three percentage points.
The current 8% is the second worst result since at least 2019. A higher share of cancellations was only in the first half of 2024 – 12%. Then the statistics were significantly affected by strikes by the GDL train drivers' union.
Problems with cancellations are compounded by Deutsche Bahn's low punctuality. In January-June this year, only 58.7% of long-distance trains arrived on time.
However, Deutsche Bahn's punctuality statistics do not take into account cancelled trips. A train is considered late if it arrived at least six minutes later than scheduled. Therefore, the actual reliability of the system for passengers is lower than the share of punctual trains shown.
Bundestag deputy from the Greens Matthias Gastel stated that the authorities and Deutsche Bahn should not ignore the high level of cancellations and delays. According to him, a significant part of the problems is related to technical malfunctions of the rolling stock.
Among possible measures, he named strengthening preventive technical maintenance, as well as placing additional reserve trains and personnel at major transport hubs.
The punctuality situation remains problematic even after the end of the first half of the year. In July, only 52.6% of Deutsche Bahn long-distance trains arrived without a delay of at least six minutes. The company itself explained the problems by a large number of infrastructure failures, construction works, and the impact of abnormal heat.
