The big traffic warning strike announced for Monday has led to a run on alternatives. Bookings and searches increased significantly for both rental cars and long-distance buses, according to a survey by the German Press Agency of several providers. There were also some significant price increases for rental cars.
The portals billiger-mietwagen.de and Check24 report a significant increase in rental car searches. Billiger-mietwagen.de showed an increase in user inquiries of 120 percent for the largest German cities compared to the same period a week ago.
Higher demand and higher prices
In Berlin the plus was even 220, in Frankfurt 180 and in Munich 164 percent. From the time the strike was announced on Thursday to Friday morning, Check24 saw a 39 percent increase in rental car bookings. If you only look at bookings that - in line with the warning strike - are picked up from Saturday to Monday, the number has almost quadrupled.
The demand is also reflected in the prices in individual cities. At billiger-mietwagen.de, there was a sharp rise in prices for vehicles to be picked up on Monday. In Berlin, a compact car now costs 83 euros on average, 90 percent more than a week ago.
In Frankfurt it is 92 euros (plus 73 percent). In Hamburg, the increase was significantly lower at 27 percent to 58 euros. In Munich he even stayed away. With the portal, it is assumed that the more relaxed situation with the rental fleets in Munich and Hamburg will make itself felt here.
Other bus providers are also more popular
The long-distance bus provider Flixbus also reported a “significant increase in demand” – especially since Thursday afternoon. In the past few days, additional buses have been planned on central routes for the day of the strike "to cope with the increased booking volume and to transport as many travelers as possible to their destination on Monday," said a spokeswoman.
An unprecedented nationwide warning strike has been announced for Monday, which will affect long-distance, regional and S-Bahn rail transport, local public transport, many German airports, waterways and ports as well as motorways. The railway and transport union (EVG) and Verdi are fighting for more income in different collective bargaining rounds.
Strong restrictions
Deutsche Bahn sees no possibility of an emergency timetable for long-distance traffic for the day of the warning strike. "It's no use driving a short distance with an Intercity or an ICE because you have a train driver and the train then stops somewhere because the signal box is on strike," said a company spokesman in Berlin. The railway also assumes severe restrictions in rail freight traffic.
Lufthansa passengers also have to be prepared for significant failures on Sunday. At Munich Airport, there are no Lufthansa flights on that day - apart from humanitarian flights - as the airline announced. Germany's largest airport, Frankfurt, will also be there on Monday. There will also be no regular flight operations at Stuttgart Airport.
According to the aviation industry, passengers could still feel the consequences of the warning strikes in air traffic when traveling on Easter vacation. "The ongoing chain of so-called warning strikes at our airports is affecting all flight operations, even where there are no wage negotiations," criticized Jost Lammers, President of the Federal Association of the German Aviation Industry (BDL).
