At its regular meeting on September 27, 2023, the Supervisory Board of Deutsche Bahn AG decided to merge the two infrastructure lines of business of Deutsche Bahn Group (DB Group). This represents a further key milestone on the way to a common good-oriented infrastructure. With an entry in the commercial register, DB Station&Service AG, which is responsible for the railway stations and traffic stations, can now be merged with DB Netz AG, which has been responsible for the operation of the rail network up to now. The new company is to trade under DB InfraGO AG and will start as part of DB Group on January 1, 2024. The "GO" in the company name stands for common good-oriented (“gemeinwohlorientiert”).
The purpose of the company is to operate the rail infrastructure as a commercial enterprise with particular regard to common good-oriented objectives and the respective funding basis.
This means: The basis of DB InfraGO AG is a demand-oriented, high-performance and efficient rail infrastructure with high capacity, quality and resilience. This applies to both operation as well as expansion and maintenance of the rail infrastructure. The management of the rail infrastructure should be efficient, holistic and user-oriented.
DB InfraGO AG fulfils the legal requirements for transparency and participation as well as equal treatment with regard to access and fees. The company also aims to promote cross-border rail transport as well as innovation and climate protection, in particular through a shift in the mode of transport in passenger and freight transport.
In order to achieve the common good-oriented objectives defined by the Federal Government, DB InfraGO AG will implement a comprehensive modernization program for the rail network and stations. The Federal Government has already taken important decisions on the financing and held out in prospect additional funds of about € 40 billion. At the same time, the cabinet launched a reform of the German Federal Rail Infrastructure Extension Act (Bundesschienenwegeausbaugesetz; BSWAG) in June. It provides for more leeway for the use of financial resources and new funding possibilities for the Federal Government in the future.