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European railroad CEOs in Vienna pledge help for Ukrainian railways: EU must support infrastructure reconstruction

European railroad CEOs in Vienna pledge help for Ukrainian railways: EU must support infrastructure reconstruction
photo: Knopp / ÖBB/DB CEO Lutz and other CEOs in Vienna pledge help for Ukrainian railroads: EU must support infrastructure reconstruction
12 / 07 / 2022

On the sidelines of the Community of European Railways (CER) summit in Vienna, the heads of leading European railroad companies declared their solidarity with Ukraine and promised support for the Ukrainian Railways. The signatories, including DB CEO Richard Lutz, pledged to supply technical equipment and spare parts and support the Ukrainian railroads in the reconstruction efforts.

DB CEO Richard Lutz: "The Ukrainian railroad workers are doing an impressive job. They are keeping the country running. Despite the repeated attacks on lines and stations, operations are continuing. Because only a functioning rail system will be the key to the country's future reconstruction, Ukraine needs sufficient funding and integration into the trans-European transport network in parallel to the admission to EU process."

Deutsche Bahn supports Ukrainian Railways (Ukrzaliznytsia/ UZ) with protective work clothing worth up to 500,000 euros. There will also be an exchange of know-how and technical expertise. The supply of passenger cars is also under consideration, although they will have to be converted to broad gauge.

Ukraine's rail infrastructure, weakened by the war, is to be rebuilt as quickly as possible. DB and other European railroads appeal to the EU to provide sufficient funding for this purpose. The Ukrainian rail infrastructure should be integrated more closely into the trans-European transport network, in particular, by developing new corridors. This way, Ukraine and Moldova would be connected to the EU railroad network. The corridors are crucial for the export of agricultural raw materials and the export of ores, steel, and machinery.

Deutsche Bahn's relief efforts

Since the start of the war, Deutsche Bahn has helped hundreds of thousands of people leave the country safely for Germany. Around 450,000 people have so far traveled free of charge on trains and buses with the #helpukraine ticket. The ticket is now also available digitally.

For three months now, aid supplies have been rolling directly into the war-affected areas. Entire container trains - loaded with food, drinking water, generators, first-aid kits, and power banks - bring urgently needed goods via Krakow directly to terminals near Kyiv. So far, four hundred container loads have rolled by rail and another 400 on trucks. For the transport of the raw materials from Ukraine, DB has found new transport solutions for grain, iron ore, and sunflower oil together with Ukrainian Railways. Since mid-May, container loads have been rolling into the European Union via ports on the Black Sea and Poland.

DB has already been offering refugees from Ukraine career prospects since March with a job and counseling program. In addition to a telephone hotline, the Group has opened counseling centers in Berlin, Cologne, and Frankfurt am Main, together with the German Federal Employment Agency. The program also includes orientation and language courses. Over 1,500 counseling sessions have been held in the past three months. Around 30 refugees have already received a concrete job offer - including interpreters, engineers, and a recruiting coordinator.

 

Source: Deutsche Bahn Press Releases

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