Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

theocharis.dev

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

691–700 of 1001 posts

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#691

Post by hulitu »

mc32 wrote: post #388
rjzzleep wrote: post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The German rails network went downhill when they decided to socialize the losses and privatize the profit. Failure is blamed on the grunt workers, which are absolutely not interested in taking responsibility as a result of this. The fact that there are rotting railways everywhere and the DB waits until it gets so bad for cities to step in and take over part of the cost is a wonderful example of this. The new ICE's sp…

Could be. It used to be that to get phone service in Germany could take up to a month after putting in the order, that’s when it was state controlled. After the reforms installations were quicker. So to me, there doesn’t seem to be a panacea except to hold the services accountable in some way.

> After the reforms installations were quicker.

And everybody has the same "market" price.

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#692

Post by alexfoo »

bad_username wrote: post #465
indiantinker wrote: post #17

DB is weird. They seem to make their own rules and then run the game and “dont tell the rules to anyone”. I was on my way to catch a flight from Munich to my home (Madrid). I didn’t knew that apparently at one point the train splits into two parts and the front part goes to the airport and the other part just goes to the nearby cattle farms and comes back in 3 hours. Google Maps - No idea Citymapper - what? English a…

Your ticket was without assigned seat? Because if there was assigned seat, surely the seat would be in the correct carriage?

> surely the seat would be in the correct carriage?

You’d think so but you’d be surprised how un-joined-up things can be.

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#694

Post by cameronh90 »

samiv wrote: post #449
BloondAndDoom wrote: post #131

I feel like we lost humanity somewhere in modern world. I grew up in 3rd world country and if this were to happen, train would literally stop somewhere, anywhere. (With the assumption it’s safe from crewing into another train). But the idea that you go 55 minutes just because of policy; and skip 15 stations is crazy to me. Again with the assumptions that it can safely stop somewhere for 5m and I’m pretty sure the ans…

There's a saying "In a developing country nothing works but everything is possible. In a developed country everything works but nothing is possible" In Lord of the Rings, fellowship of the ring when Gandalf arrives in Shire and Sam runs to meet him he says, "you're late!" to which Gandalf replies, "Deutsche Bahn is never late but arrives precisely when it means to".

And in Germany - it seems - nothing works and nothing is possible?

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#695

Post by N19PEDL2 »

NoMoreNicksLeft wrote: post #544
this_user wrote: post #403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So much in German work culture - and also culture in general - is about covering your own arse. If you follow the procedure, even if the outcome is disaster, you are not at fault; you were just implementing the rules, and you cannot be held accountable. It's the fault of whoever came up with the rules, except that is usually not a single person, but some amorphous entity that ran through some decision making process…

Didn't the Germans get in trouble for "just following the rules" back in the mid-20th century?

"I was just following orders." --Any German soldier after 1945

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#697

Post by ivan_gammel »

britzsquad wrote: post #666

For my job, I travel all over Germany very often. I take the car, train, bus, or sometimes even the plane. The train is the most comfortable means of transportation in Germany. Of course, there are delays, and sometimes mistakes happen that result in very long delays. But where doesn't that happen? I find traveling by car to be the worst. How many times this year have I been stuck in traffic jams for several hours wi…

I don’t think it’s ridiculous. A complex system that delivers customer further from destination than they were originally from, is flawed by design. And we all know what the problem is exactly: it is the design for capabilities that the company could not afford based on its budget/planning/KPIs. DB did not invest enough in infrastructure to support the big dream, and now they also have huge aging and retiring workforce problem. So let’s not pretend it’s normal and business as usual: complexity is not an excuse for mismanagement.

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#699

Post by estherney »

T0Bi wrote: post #525
indiantinker wrote: post #17

DB is weird. They seem to make their own rules and then run the game and “dont tell the rules to anyone”. I was on my way to catch a flight from Munich to my home (Madrid). I didn’t knew that apparently at one point the train splits into two parts and the front part goes to the airport and the other part just goes to the nearby cattle farms and comes back in 3 hours. Google Maps - No idea Citymapper - what? English a…

When was this? Took the train (S1) last week and every single screen at the stations and in the train explains this in detail and there are probably 20 announcements both in German and English telling everybody which coach goes to the airport and which to Freising. It's not that complicated.

(Also, the S8 is usually quicker anyway...unless you somehow ended up at Laim, Moosach or Feldmoching.)

Re: Kidnapped by Deutsche Bahn

#700

Post by paxys »

Didn't realize I should file a kidnapping charge every time the train I'm on randomly decides to go express and skip my stop. The MTA is apparently the largest kidnapper and human trafficker in history!
Post reply on HN