Deutsche Bahn promises more trains and more attractive connections for 2023. But construction sites and price increases have already been announced. Travelers have to be prepared for this.
From the
December 11, 2022
the new Deutsche Bahn timetable for the first half of 2023 is already in effect. With tickets for this, travelers can
from October 12th
stock up. This can be done, for example, via the DB Navigator app, which has been very widespread since the 9-euro ticket at the latest.
But there are still other ticket sources, i.e. purchase via bahn.de, DB travel centers, DB agencies and at machines is possible. Deutsche Bahn promises a lot for 2023, such as faster connections, more seats and attractive travel options abroad. Traveling by train should appeal to even more people in the future. If you want to secure the saver prices, you should strike now for the winter.
But the route expansion will also bring restrictions in 2023. The renovation of the rail network requires “restrictions on some connections due to construction sites,” explains Deutsche Bahn. However, information about the major construction measures planned for the coming year will not be published until December. But it is already clear that the new timetable will make rail travel more expensive.
Deutsche Bahn plans to continue investing heavily in infrastructure and new vehicles. For example, three new ICEs are to be added to the fleet each month, and the planned 37 trains would be a record. The number of seats available on the ICE would thus increase by around 19,000 by the end of 2023.
For the first time, the new ICE 3neo will be used daily between Dortmund, Cologne and Frankfurt from mid-December. On the particularly high-demand lines such as Hamburg-Basel, DB is using further new XXL ICE 4s with 13 cars. With a length of 374 meters and space for 918 passengers, the XXL ICE can carry five times as many people as a medium-haul aircraft. In addition, further seven-car ICE 4s strengthen the fleet.
But it should also get there faster 2023: With the commissioning of the Wendlingen-Ulm high-speed line, the travel time between Stuttgart and Munich will be reduced by around 15 minutes. At the same time, the daily service between the two state capitals will increase by around 20 to 90 trips.
This also benefits travelers between North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria. The existing Dortmund/Düsseldorf-Stuttgart ICE line now runs via Cologne and Mannheim to Ulm, Augsburg and Munich and is almost 15 minutes faster than before.
Connections to other European countries should also become more attractive in 2023. From December there will be an additional continuous return trip between Stuttgart and Zurich. From October 2023, the number of direct connections will continue to grow from eight to 13 daily.
Berlin and Warsaw will connect DB and the Polish PKP from March 2023 with an additional sixth pair of trains (return). The travel time between the two capitals will also be reduced by around ten minutes for all connections from December.
Deutsche Bahn is also making improvements in night travel: A new night train line is to connect Zurich with Berlin and Prague. The existing Zurich-Hamburg night train will change its route from the timetable change in the north and will then also connect Bruchsal, Heidelberg, Darmstadt, Hanau, Verden and Nienburg to the international night train service. In addition, the previous Munich-Venice/Rijeka/Zagreb/Vienna/Budapest night train now starts in Stuttgart and also offers stops in Göppingen, Ulm and Augsburg.
