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9-Euro-Ticket

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Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#361

Post by pwdisswordfish0 »

stavros wrote: post #321
pwdisswordfish0 wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I expect that if the ticket is a success, it will be replaced by real free rides in the future. What’s your confidence level here? Because if you can make me believe that the ticket is effectively a vote for ticketless/free ÖPNV I will buy them for everyone I know.

What's the difference between this and completely free rides? AFAIK, making it "almost free" is usually preferable, as it prevents some abuse ("it's free so I'll take it even when I don't really need it", which depletes the resource), while still making it effectively free.

The point is, it's rodonculous.

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#362

Post by Aperocky »

rad_gruchalski wrote: post #334
kappuchino wrote: post #127

For anyone wondering why 9€? Not 10€ or 15€ or ... - its consistent with 101 consumer psychology. First: Its not free, its subsidized by the state. Free would suggest for some "not worth it". Not you, most likely, but this is why some free offers are not taken (seriously). If you want to see what free does, look for the Luxemburg experient: https://www.mobiliteit.lu/en/tickets/free-transport/ Second: Higher price poi…

> First: Its not free, its subsidized by the state. „The state“ doesn’t have its „own money“. It is subsided by the taxpayer.

> It is subsided by the taxpayer.

That used to be completely true, but seeing the US government consistently spending 150% of its revenue every year make me doubt that. Money printer and price go brr

At least Germans are getting train tickets and not shiny new drone missiles.

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#363

Post by cjrp »

ivan_gammel wrote: post #333
smlacy wrote: post #323

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure what "Wait at location because there was no better train" means? Are you massuming a 3h40m trip for a specific time-based appointment? I think the use case of this kind of train is more similar to a flight with one or more nights at destination, so that the specific arrival time is not that important.

Let’s say you have an appointment at location 15 minutes away from train station at 9:00 and your train arrives at 7:45. You will have to wait for 1 hour and probably spend this time unproductively and maybe even at extra cost (e.g. you choose to get a cup of coffee and a sandwich in a restaurant nearby).

If I was driving I'd aim to arrive pretty early too (random traffic happens).

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#364

Post by 2143 »

rootsandstones wrote: post #297
2143 wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

(I haven't yet had the good fortune of visiting Europe). I can see why you said the train takes 221 minutes. However, "225 minutes" for bus? I know y'all are known for punctuality, but are buses in Switzerland/Germany that precise?! Also, is it customary to tell such durations in minutes, as opposed to something like "4 hour 45 minutes" or "4 and 3-quarter hours"? Where I'm at, nothing runs on time unfortunately. Ove…

In 2021 91.9 percent of the trains in Switzerland were on time (tolerance is 3 minutes) Source: https://news.sbb.ch/artikel/109510/puenktlichkeit-2021-zweit...

What about buses? Are they also super-punctual?

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#365

Post by nani8ot »

mbg721 wrote: post #92
butterlesstoast wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For all the Americans. Converting from euros to USD and liters to gallons, gas is roughly $12 a gallon at this moment.

Out of curiosity, for people who live in small towns/villages in Germany, how much driving is expected on a typical day? Most Americans commute about half an hour, twice a day, right?

I live in a village 15km from the next big city (33th in terms of population). If I take the bus it'll take 40min because they take the longest route and stop at every little village with multiple stops each. The next town is 5km from my village and about the same from the city and the train takes 7-13min, depending on whether it's an RB or RE (they have more stops). Both train and bus arrive on a 30 min schedule from roughly 05:00 to 01:00.

Edit: As a student I pay 90€ for a "semester ticket" once every 6 months.

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#366

Post by Pamar »

IMTDb wrote: post #316
jstummbillig wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If the train number begins with RE or RB, you’re good, but of course, those are the slow ones that stop in every village along the way. Well, that is not exactly true now, is it. REs do actually skip the vast majority of "villages" and are far from being the slow ones, comparatively. Anyway, for comparisons sake here is some Hamburg -> Berlin options: - By car (with low traffic, according to GMaps): 3h20 - Regional…

This is assuming that your trip starts and stops exactly next to the train station and that there is a non-delayed train available precisely at the right time. In practice that's not the case and those time add up quickly . Car trip will look like: 1. Travel from start to location (3:20) 2. Find parking (0:5) 3. Walk from parking to location (0:10) Total time of 3:35 Your train trip will look like: 1. Go from start t…

I, too, have some questions about your 1:00 waiting due to "no better train being available"

I am familiar only with Italian and German trains (i.e. use these regularly, but occasionally I also used trains in/to Austria, Luxembourg, Hungary).

You seem to think that in order to go to Berlin by train someone living, say, in Rostock, first goes to the station then looks when the next available train departs.

In reality you can just use apps on your phone to get not only a timetable of departures but also find out how long it will take for you to get to the station using public transportation.

Example: this Sunday I go visit friends near Hamburg. I have booked a 7:08am train already (with iPhone) and on Sunday morning, depending when I am ready, I can walk to the station (25 mins) or look what bus to take and at what time from the nearest bus stop (5 mins from home).

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#367

Post by steven_pack »

MandieD wrote: post #51

Very important caveat for all of you who are thinking, “woo hoo, no need to buy that EuRail pass! Or to buy an expensive ICE ticket!” These tickets are good for all “Nah- und Regionalverkehr,” explicitly excluding ICE, IC, EC (international) and long-distance busses (like the one between Munich and Zürich) If the train number begins with RE or RB, you’re good, but of course, those are the slow ones that stop in every…

Did this 20 years ago, it was called Schoeneswochenende Fahrkarte "Good weekend" ticket. You could get all over the country, but real slow. I met loads of people and got invited to people's homes, because they didn't typically see an Aussie backpacker on a local train. Great times, go do it.

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#368

Post by MandieD »

misja111 wrote: post #311
MandieD wrote: post #51

Very important caveat for all of you who are thinking, “woo hoo, no need to buy that EuRail pass! Or to buy an expensive ICE ticket!” These tickets are good for all “Nah- und Regionalverkehr,” explicitly excluding ICE, IC, EC (international) and long-distance busses (like the one between Munich and Zürich) If the train number begins with RE or RB, you’re good, but of course, those are the slow ones that stop in every…

> There does not appear to be any residency requirement, but remember, you’re not the target market for this (unless you live here and are struggling with fuel prices…) I'm not sure what you're trying to say. Do you mean that non Germans should refrain from buying these tickets?

I’m trying to say that although anyone is free to buy them, they’re not designed for city-to-city tourist convenience or even as a good substitute for the IC/ICE product for long-distance, car-comparable-speed travel.

They’re for making short, local trips more affordable in a country that has a lot of people struggling with fuel and inflation, and for encouraging drivers to consider transit instead more often, and long-distance trips to the sea shore and mountains are a nice side benefit that is a pleasant thing to discuss when we all feel like there’s a shortage of pleasant things to discuss.

That they’ll make local transit uncomplicated for visitors (no trying to work out where to buy a given city’s tickets, or exactly which fare you need for a particular subway ride!) is also a nice incidental, and I, a taxpayer here, will be happy to see tourists using them, but that’s not why the Bundestag is spending 2.5 billion EUR on this.

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#369

Post by newaccount74 »

lucioperca wrote: post #251
jansan wrote: post #243

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, as with all train connections, you have to add the time to get to/from the station and some buffer.

As usual in big cities you need to add the time for walking to your car and for finding a parking space in the end.

And add 30 minutes that you are stuck in downtown traffic because your meeting starts at an inconvenient time.

I can't speak for all of Europe, but here in Austria trains, trams, and subways are way more predictable than taking the car. Sure, sometimes there are delays, but 99% of the time you get to your destination on schedule. When you drive you always have the risk of random delays due to traffic.

Re: 9-Euro-Ticket

#370

Post by stavros »

LosWochosWeek wrote: post #359
stavros wrote: post #321

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the difference between this and completely free rides? AFAIK, making it "almost free" is usually preferable, as it prevents some abuse ("it's free so I'll take it even when I don't really need it", which depletes the resource), while still making it effectively free.

We've also seen the opposite being true. In Germany, oddly enough. It was called "Praxisgebühr" and it was a 10€ fee that you had to pay once per quarter year (if you went to a doctor in that quarter). Turns out, once people paid the 10€ they got into a all-you-can-eat frenzy and visited more doctors than they normally would have done, because "well, I paid for it, so might as well take advantage of it".

That's not so much the opposite, but I agree. If it were 5€ per visit, you'd probably see a lot less of this.
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