Where strikes will hit drivers and commuters in Germany this week

People in Hamburg and Bavaria face more disruption this week due to public transport ‘warning strikes’. 

At the same time, motorists will see delays across the road network as workers from Autobahn GmbH are called out on strike.

It comes amid collective bargaining negotiations led by the Verdi union, taking place in almost all German states. 

Where are transport strikes this week?

Hamburg will see strike action affecting local transport this week – beginning on February 17th and lasting until the end of the day on February 19th.

It’s a ‘rolling strike’, which means cancellations will be announced at short notice. On each of the three days, bus services and depots operated by Hochbahn face restrictions. Details of services affected are being updated on Hamburg city’s official site.

On Wednesday, services run by Hamburg’s VHH transport operator are being targeted. A notice on the VHH site said: “The United Services Union Verdi has called for a 24-hour warning strike at vhh.mobility (Hamburg-Holstein Transport Company) from 3am on February 18th until 3am on February 19th. Passengers should expect disruptions from Wednesday to Thursday.”

Buses stand in a VHH depot in Schleswig-Holstein on January 31st. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Bodo Marks

Those in the northern German city should prepare for cancellations and delays to the local transport network at short notice. 

Further south, in the Bavarian city of Bamberg, Stadtwerke buses will run on a reduced emergency schedule on Tuesday and Wednesday. Bus services here will also be completely suspended during the carnival parade on Tuesday.

Note that trains operated by Deutsche Bahn, including the S-Bahn, are not affected by the ongoing strike action.

The Verdi trade union is pushing to negotiate better working conditions for the nearly 100,000 local transport employees nationwide. The union is calling for shorter weekly working hours and shift times, longer rest periods as well as higher bonuses for night and weekend work.

Warning strikes are often used in Germany to increase pressure on employers during disputes. So far, no agreement has been reached.

Disruption on the Autobahn

The Verdi union has also called for a nationwide ‘strike week’ at Autobahn GmbH.

The action is set to hit motorway maintenance depots as well as traffic and tunnel control centres, including the Elbe Tunnel in Hamburg. Motorists are being warned to expect delays. 

On Wednesday, depots affected include those in the Göttingen, Braunschweig, Bremen and Hanover areas, Munich (Rosenheim, Siegsdorf) and Freiburg (Rottweil, Efringen-Kirchen), as well as those in North Rhine-Westphalia (Duisburg, Wünnenberg, Gelsenkirchen), Thuringia (around Erfurt) and Saxony-Anhalt (Weißenfels).

On Thursday, Verdi is calling for industrial action at tunnel control centres, such as the Rennsteig, Hochwald, Alte Burg and Berg Bock (A71) facilities. This will lead to restrictions due to lane closures in both directions. Employees at the Emstunnel (A31) near Leer in Lower Saxony will also be downing tools.

On Friday, workers at the Elbe tunnel control in Hamburg are being called out on strike. One lane in each direction will be closed, which is expected to have a significant impact on transport in the area.

In this dispute, Verdi is calling for a seven percent pay rise – or at least €300 extra per month – for around 14,000 employees at Autobahn GmbH. A deal has not yet been struck.

Why are there so many strikes at the moment?

People in Germany have been experiencing major disruption in recent weeks due to a wave of strikes. As well as public transport strikes, work stoppages called by the union have also hit other public services such as Kitas and garbage disposal services. 

In a separate dispute, pilots and cabin crew at Lufthansa staged a warning strike last week that led to hundreds of flights being grounded.

READ ALSO: What are the rules in Germany for being late to work due to strikes?