Harz narrow -gauge railway in the crisis: rising prices and dark forecasts!

Harz narrow -gauge railway in the crisis: rising prices and dark forecasts!

The Harz Schmalspurbahn, one of the most famous tourist attractions in the Harz, is in a serious financial crisis. Despite the popularity of the historical steam locomotives, which enable nostalgic journeys to chunk and attract around one million visitors every year, the company has an alarming deficit of 5.6 million euros. According to the MDR, the sudden increased costs for personnel, material and energy are the main cause of this predicament. The companies were given the necessary financial resources during the Corona crisis and as a result of the Ukraine War, so that urgent expenses are now due.

price increases are before

The Situation forces the Harz narrow -gauge railway to raise higher ticket prices in order to compensate for the financial losses. Currently, passengers have to pay 55 euros for a return trip on the Brocken; However, further price increases can be expected for 2025. The enormous cost increases also concern the shareholders of the railway company, including several counties and cities, which together have to raise an additional 650,000 euros per year in order to receive government support from Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. A view of the Brocken and the Harz National Park could be made more difficult in the future by increasing ticket prices.

Since the Brockenbahn's restart in July 1992, passengers can climb the highest summit of northern Germany at a relaxing pace. The DAMPLOKs manage the demanding route in about 50 minutes. But the impending price increases throw a shadow on the future trips. The importance of the Harz narrow -gauge railway for the local economy and the question of maintaining jobs is also fired, since every eleventh job in the region is directly or indirectly linked to the railway company.

The Harz narrow -gauge railway therefore remains in a critical condition, while it tries to stabilize her finances and to secure the continuity of its popular trips, which is also of great importance for tourists. For more information about the routes and tariffs, interested parties can visit the Official website of the Harz Schmalspurbahn . You can find out more about the current challenges and price adjustments on news38.de .