Bilger wants to tie Deutsche Bahn board bonuses to punctuality targets

Bilger stressed that the federal government, as the owner of Deutsche Bahn, bears a shared responsibility for steering the company. The federal government wants to ensure that board remuneration must be measured against the company's actual performance.

Federal government as owner

The ministry said the goal was a clear link between bonuses and punctuality developments. If punctuality declines, this must have immediate consequences for variable salary components.

At the same time, Bilger made clear that operational responsibility for running the company lies with Deutsche Bahn's board itself. Political interference in day-to-day operations is not planned, but stricter oversight of incentive systems certainly is.

Deutsche Bahn had recently stated that long-distance punctuality was significantly below its own targets. There have also long been bottlenecks in regional transport and infrastructure, repeatedly causing delays and train cancellations.

Reactions from trade unions and the supervisory board

In political Berlin, the announcement is being interpreted as a signal to the rail company to implement its restructuring and investment programs more consistently in the coming year. These include measures to renew tracks, signal boxes, and bridges.

Bilger also announced talks with Deutsche Bahn's supervisory board. Concrete targets for variable remuneration and reporting obligations toward the federal government are to be discussed there.

The reaction from the trade union ranks was cautiously positive. It was said from union circles that the announced linking of bonuses to targets must actually be implemented in the next remuneration round.

Outlook on the next steps

Meanwhile, travelers and commuters across the country continue to wait for tangible improvements in their daily lives. Whether the new incentive mechanisms will already take effect this year initially remained unclear.

Observers see the initiative as part of an overall tougher stance by the federal government toward the state-owned company. In addition to remuneration, topics such as the financing of infrastructure and the future significance of rail in the Mobility Act are also on the agenda.