ESWE Verkehr: Bus schedule reduced until summer school break

Courtesy Photo | Icon to accompany courtesy translations of press releases from the city of Wiesbaden.  

WIESBADEN, HE, GERMANY

04.25.2022

Story by Roland Schedel 

U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden   

Press Release from the City of Wiesbaden from 21 April 2022
Courtesy Translation: Roland Schedel, Public Affairs Specialist

ESWE Verkehr: Bus schedule reduced until summer school break

A bus schedule reduction has been in effect in the network of ESWE Verkehr since March 18. The Wiesbaden-based mobility service provider has now decided to extend these schedule changes up to Friday, July 22, which is the last school day before the start of the Hessen summer school break.

The following restrictions will continue to apply after the end of the Easter school break, starting Monday, April 25. For ESWE lines 1 and 8 as well as 4 and 14, the “holiday” (Ferien) schedule still applies. These times can be found in the column designation "Ferien" on the bus schedules and in the current ”Fahrpan” booklet. All rides of the ESWE line 2 are cancelled. All other lines as well as all additional buses and the school buses (see booklet starting on page 382) continue to operate according to the regular schedule as on school days.

Beginning with the summer school break, the holiday timetable will then apply on the entire network. What will happen after the summer is not yet foreseeable.

As the schedule reduction will last longer than planned, ESWE-Verkehr has decided to update the schedules at all stops of the above-mentioned lines in the coming days. The column "Ferien" will therefore be omitted. This is to ensure that passengers from outside of Wiesbaden will find a comprehensible overview. The digital passenger information systems will also be updated regularly.

In short, the restrictions, which have been in place since mid-March, mean the following:
On lines 1 and 8, on weekdays between 7 and 8 a.m., there will be only six instead of eight trips per hour. On line 4, the number of trips between 7 to 8 a.m. is also reduced to six trips. On lines 4 and 14 there are also currently only six instead of eight trips per hour between 1 to 6 p.m.. The elimination of line 2 eliminates a total of 10 trips on weekdays.

"Our primary goal is to provide our passengers with a reliable schedule" explains Micha Spannaus, press spokesman for the Wiesbaden-based mobility service provider. Therefore, the continued reduction to this small extent is necessary. "The pandemic-related sick leave has eased slightly. We want to keep more reserve drivers on hand due to the planned “9-o’clock ticket”, so that we can flexibly deploy more buses on individual lines when demand is high."

Overall, the staffing situation at Wiesbaden's mobility service provider remains very tight, as is the case in the industry as a whole. In the first three months of the year, for example, 18 employees left the company, because they retired. In the same period, however 17 new drivers were recruited, most of whom are currently still being trained. "ESWE-Verkehr has been working hard for many years to recruit additional bus drivers. The fact that we train new colleagues in our own driving school is a real asset. The security and the social benefits that we offer as a public company set us apart from private providers. We offer a comprehensive company health management system, for example. In addition language courses are offered to make it easier for foreign specialists to join the company and much more," says Spannaus. Despite all these efforts, the mobility service provider is currently short of at least 30 drivers. "We need more people in the driving service in the future," concludes Spannaus.

Source: https://www.wiesbaden.de/medien/rathausnachrichten/PM_Zielseite.php?showpm=true&pmurl=https://www.wiesbaden.de/guiapplications/newsdesk/publications/Landeshauptstadt_Wiesbaden/141010100000420953.php

• Date Taken: 04.25.2022
• Date Posted: 04.25.2022 09:29
• Story ID: 419177
• Location: WIESBADEN, HE, DE