Freight transport across Germany remains heavily impacted due to a recent nationwide disruption in rail services, with significant delays expected in logistics operations.

Following a nationwide rail disruption caused by a failure in the digital communication system GSM-R, approximately half of all freight trains are still immobilized. The situation has been described as ‘extremely tense’ by Neele Wesseln, chair of the association representing freight rail operators, who indicated that it could take several days to resolve the backlog.

While passenger services have largely resumed, freight transport continues to face significant challenges as goods, regional, and long-distance services are all waiting to proceed. The disruption, which lasted about two hours, was triggered by a planned technical component replacement in the GSM-R system, affecting operations particularly during nighttime when freight trains typically run.

The association has called for a thorough investigation by Deutsche Bahn into the incident, emphasizing the need for complete transparency. Philipp Nagl, head of the infrastructure company DB InfraGo, confirmed that they are prioritizing the analysis of how the disruption occurred, but further details have not been disclosed.