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RE10 chaos: Commuters despair because of train cancellations and lack of staff!
Numerous train cancellations on the Niersexpress RE10 endanger commuters in Viersen. The causes are a lack of staff and defective signal boxes.
RE10 chaos: Commuters despair because of train cancellations and lack of staff!
In the last few days, the Niersexpress RE10 has been struggling with serious problems. How RP Online Reportedly, broken interlockings and signals, along with broken down vehicles, are the main causes of the inconvenience. The situation has worsened drastically and many commuters and passengers have had to have strong nerves for years or are looking for alternative travel methods.
According to information from WZ The reason for the recent difficulties was a defective signal box in Nieukerk. This disruption led to the closure of the route between Geldern and Kempen - a decision that came unannounced to many commuters on Thursday morning. Additional buses were deployed to make up for the lost connection, but the uncertainty over the duration of the disruption placed an additional burden on travelers.
Acute staff shortages
What makes the situation even more complicated is the acute staff shortage that is affecting the rail industry throughout Germany. Loud daily news Hundreds of dispatchers are unavailable. These people are crucial to the operation of the signal boxes, which must work correctly to plan train journeys and monitor level crossings. Overworked employees, often working 55 hours per week, struggle to cope with the shortages, which usually leads to further disruption.
The Verkehrsclub Deutschland (VCD) recently described the enormous problems with the Niersexpress as unreasonable. The challenges that passengers are confronted with are growing like a guilty conscience that won't go away. Commuters in particular, who rely on irregular train services, express their dissatisfaction with the constant inconvenience.
Digitalization and its pitfalls
Interestingly, many of Deutsche Bahn's signal boxes were digitized some time ago. Before this change they were often reliable, but the technical problems have apparently resurfaced. A dispatcher who remained anonymous mentioned that inadequate staffing, especially in the newer signal boxes, often leads to failures, which means that entire routes have to be closed or trains have to be rerouted.
Deutsche Bahn is trying to cope with the staff shortage. A training initiative was launched to fill the vacancies, such as daily news reported. But it will probably take until the end of 2025 until full capacity is reached. In the meantime, we can only hope that passengers no longer have to resort to alternatives and will soon be able to travel smoothly again.