#CrossBorderRail 2023 - what to expect
Crowdfunding for my #CrossBorderRail 2023 the Germany borders project has now started
You can find out more about the project here ??
And the crowdfunding page is here ??
But what am I trying to do with this project? Why do this in May 2023? What’s the purpose of this?
This is where I am going
In 2022 I crossed every internal border of the EU you can cross by train (this map shows where I went), but notably I did not test every single cross border line.
The basic issue is this: when you cross a border by train in Europe, everything gets more complicated. Trains are less regular, timetables are not coordinated, tickets are harder to get.
If we are to boost rail’s market share
I develop this more in the video summary of #CrossBorderRail 2022 ??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_l6bnvI7zQ
Between 2nd and 15th May I am going to explore 30 current, past and future cross border lines from Germany to its neighbours. These are the ones I intend to explore, and the transport means I will use to cross them
?? Aachen ???? - Welkenraedt ????
?? Cheb ???? - Schirnding ????
?? Furth im Wald ???? - Domazlice ????
?? Gouvy ???? - Troisvierges ????
?? Gronau ???? - Enschede ????
?? Lauterbourg ???? - Berg (Pfalz) ????
?? Saarbrücken ???? - Sarreguemines ????
?? Sebnitz ???? - Dolní Poustevna ????
?? Simbach (Inn) ???? - Braunau am Inn ????
?? Wasserbillig ???? - Konz ????
?? Wernstein ???? - Passau ????
?? Rail border between Selb-Pl??berg ???? and A? ????, #CrossBorderRail 2022
?? Aachen ???? - Montzen ????
?? Aachen-Vetschau ???? - Bocholtz ????
?? Alst?tte ???? - Broekheurne ????
?? Avantis ???? - Spekholzerheide ???? - Planned line
?? Barlo ???? - Winterswijk ????
?? Bocholt ???? - Aalten ???? - Former 750mm gauge tramway
?? Borken-Burlo ???? - Winterswijk ????
?? Cheb ???? - Schloppach ????
?? Coevorden ???? - Emlichheim ????
?? Ebersbach ???? - Jiríkov-Filipov ????
?? Forst (Lausitz) ???? - Zary ????
?? G?rlitz ???? - Zgorzelec ????
?? Gronau ???? - Glane ????
?? Konstanz ???? - Kreuzlingen ????
?? Leer ???? - Bad Nieuweschans ????
?? Niedaltdorf ???? - Bouzonville ????
?? Puttgarden ???? - R?dby (DK)
?? Wegliniec ???? - Horka ????
?? Wissembourg ???? - Schweighofen ????
?? Cycling from Ahlbeck ???? to ?winouj?cie ????, #CrossBorderRail 2022
But there is something else happening in May 2023…
Germany introduces the flat-rate #49EuroTicket, also known as the #Deutschlandticket. And EVERY train I will take within Germany will be one on which this ticket can be used. No ICs or ICEs!
Doing this project in May will also act as a kind of test of Germany’s regional trains
?? Day 0 - RE4 Bad Kleinen - Lübeck Hbf (DB Regio AG Nordost)
?? Day 9 - RE2?Karlsruhe Hbf -?Konstanz (DB Regio AG Baden-Württemberg)
?? Day 10 - RB17 Plattling - Regensburg Hbf (agilis)
领英推荐
?? Day 12 - RE2?Ebersbach -?Zittau (trilex)
(My photos, from various previous trips)
What am I going to be doing and seeing this time?
ABANDONED LINES
For example on Day 3 between Coveorden ???? and Neuenhaus ????, and Day 6 between Winterswijk ???? and Bocholt ????
Would it make sense to re-activate any of these?
?? Abandoned track between Nijmegen ???? and Kleve ????, from #CrossBorderRail 2022
POSITIVE SURPRISES
Once in a while a cross border service turns out better than you expected? Day 4 (RB64 Münster (Westf.) Hbf - Enschede) and Day 12 (U28 Bad Schandau - Rumburk) could be better than expected?
?? U28 at Dě?ín ????, from #CrossBorderRail 2022
BROKEN BRIDGES
The line between Groningen ???? and Leer ???? has been interrupted for almost a decade after a ship damaged the bridge over the Ems - I will visit that on Day 2
?? The Kamp-Karnin rail bridge, part of the Dücherow ???? - ?winouj?cie ????, from #CrossBorderRail 2022
MISSING SERVICES
There is a line between Rumburk ???? and Ebersbach ????, but nothing runs on it. On Day 12 I will hop on my bike and investigate this one, and see if running services here would make sense.
?? Rumburk ???? station, pic taken from the drone during #CrossBorderRail 2022
Or “open window” in English. Some of the trains on branch lines still do not have air conditioning, so you can enjoy the fresh breeze coming in through the window. Joyous, if the weather is nice!
?? Somewhere in northern Czechia ????, during #CrossBorderRail 2022
EVENTS
I am organising as many events as I can en route. So far events are in planning in Kiel, Hamburg, Oldenburg, Münster (Westfalen), Aachen, Saarbrücken, Karlsruhe, Mühldorf, Nürnberg, G?rlitz and Berlin
?? Conclusions event at the end of #CrossBorderRail 2022 - at Stadler Pankow
NICE PLACES
Some of the places I stumbled across in 2022 were simply interesting and slightly melancholy places to be. There will no doubt be more of those in 2023!
?? The line that is not in use between Breinig ???? and Raeren ????, from #CrossBorderRail 2022
POSTCARDS
I sent 2 postcards every day of the 2022 project - one to European Commissioner Valean, and one to one of my funders. I will be doing similar this time, only the political postcard will go to a different person each time.
If you’ve funded my project and would like a postcard, let me know here
?? Postcards about to be sent from Warszawa ????, from #CrossBorderRail 2022
ABSURD POLITICS
It was *the* picture from #CrossBorderRail 2022 - the bridge across the Nei?e between Zgorzelec ???? and G?rlitz ????. The countries agreed to electrify this line in 2003. Poland did its job - and electrified to the middle of the bridge (pictured), but Germany… well nothing has happened!
And that’s why #CrossBorderRail matters as a project - to highlight things like this!
Trainer specialized in internationalization in education and intercultural competence
1 年Let's goo! I'm taking the Nightjet from Utrecht to Zürich next week. So far so good. Just wanted to say it's such great work you are doing; I can't wait to take more trains across European borders in the future!
Writer and creative consultant | story mapping | data stories | screw your courage to the sticking-place
1 年Brilliant project
Berlin-based US Documentary Filmmaker building bridges, not walls | Special Jury Award Winner IDFA, Official Selections @Hot Docs & Sheffield | Currently touring Martin Greenfield documentary "The Presidents' Tailor".
1 年What an amazing journey. Thanks for all your rail advocacy work. It’s vital to improving inner-European transportation.