Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr took aim at Deutsche Bahn at a forum on the networking of the various modes of transport. Munich Airport, for example, is still not connected to the DB long-distance network, he criticised on Tuesday at the IAA Mobility car and transport fair in Munich.
Travellers do not want to transfer with suitcases
Travellers do not want to change trains unnecessarily often with their suitcases and choose – where possible – more convenient alternatives. Deutsche Bahn board member Michael Peterson admitted that the railways were overloaded in the face of growing demand and that there were too many disruptions.
“We have invested too little in infrastructure over decades.” He said he was all the more pleased that the federal government was now making a lot of money available for this: After the gradual renewal of the network, the railways will have a much better infrastructure in ten years.
Greentech IAA: “Biggest customer is car industry”.
Lufthansa CEO Spohr said: “Our biggest customer is the car industry.” The industry represents ten per cent of freight volume and one per cent of passengers. Nevertheless, he called on the car industry not to dispute the airlines’ scarce synthetic fuels, the e-fuels, which they needed for more climate-friendly air transport.
The president of the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA), Hildegard Müller, defended her demand for e-fuels with a view to the countless petrol and diesel cars on the roads. With e-fuels, they could drive cleaner immediately.
USA attracts with huge investment programmes – China as well
Shortly before the official opening of the IAA by Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), she again made clear her concern about an exodus of industry: “We want to invest here. But the conditions have to be right for that,” Müller said.
“That is our message to the government.” The USA was luring with a huge investment programme, China was supporting its car industry to the best of its ability, and in Germany there is very expensive electricity. “We need cheaper energy.”
