Deutschland-Ticket: Germany launches €49 monthly ticket for nationwide public transport

Germany is taking a giant leap toward sustainable transportation with the launch of one of the world’s most cost-effective public transit options.

From May 1, commuters across the country can enjoy unlimited travel on all municipal buses, subways, and trams for only €49 ($54) per month.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz lauded the new ticket as “an easy and cheap offer that will make public transit more attractive and help us achieve our climate goals.”

Transport Minister Volker Wissing hailed the new ticket scheme as a “role model for the whole of Europe” and a boost for public transport use.

The German parliament cleared the way for the national government to cover half of the scheme’s annual cost of €3 billion for the next three years, with the other half paid for by Germany’s 16 federal states.

The scheme is designed to be most attractive to people who commute in and out of larger cities, where old subscription-based discount schemes are mostly more expensive than €49 a month.

The Deutschlandticket (Germany ticket) will be valid on all local and regional public buses and trains, as was the case with the 9-euro ticket in the summer of 2022. ICE, IC and EC trains will therefore be excluded, as will private coaches. The ticket will also not apply on ships, except for connections that form part of local public transport, such as the ferries in Hamburg or across Lake Wannsee in Berlin.

The ticket will in each case be valid for the current calendar month. In other words, anyone who decides only to purchase the ticket on 15 May will still have to pay the full 49 euros for the period until 31 May.

The €49-a-month ticket scheme followed the success of last year’s €9-a-month ticket initiative, which incentivized travelers to switch to greener forms of transport and provided financial relief to consumers facing the cost of living crisis. The new scheme is aimed at getting more passengers to switch to greener forms of transport and is part of the country’s effort to meet carbon reduction targets.

Available in Digital Form

The “Germany ticket” will be available in digital form via a smartphone app or as a chip card and will work on a subscription model that can be canceled before the 10th day of each month. This means that it may still pay off as a one-off investment for some holidays or weekend trips. Long-distance coaches and trains such as those on the high-speed ICE network are not included in the scheme.