Train conductors on Deutsche Bahn (DB) regional services were subjected to almost 1,000 attacks in the first half of the year. There were 989 attacks in total, DB Regio announced on Monday. These included 781 cases of common assault, pushing, grabbing and spitting, as well as 185 cases of attempted assault. Twenty-two employees were victims of grievous bodily harm. The company announced that a pilot project for audio recording on bodycams will start in the autumn.
"The bare figures, but also the accounts given by rail employees, are deeply distressing," said Federal Transport Minister Steffen Bilger (CDU). "In the face of this development across society as a whole, we must not be paralysed by shock, but must together take countermeasures that are level-headed yet determined." Safety on trains, he said, is a basic prerequisite for a functioning public transport system.
"We are doing everything we can to increase the safety of our staff during ticket inspections and, with a stronger staff presence, to defuse tense situations more effectively," said DB Regio chief executive Harmen van Zijderveld. He announced that audio recording would be trialled as a first step in the Rhein-Neckar-Pfalz region from 1 October at the latest, running for two months. A step-by-step nationwide rollout is to follow immediately afterwards.
The death of a train conductor following an attack in early February triggered a debate about improving safety for conductors. The 36-year-old was critically injured by a fare dodger in Rhineland-Palatinate and later died in hospital. The killing caused shock and dismay across Germany.
Deutsche Bahn had already decided to equip all rail employees who have contact with customers, on regional and long-distance services as well as at stations, with bodycams. Train conductors are also being issued with stab-proof vests. In addition, all staff working in customer operations are to be given an emergency button.
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