Before the introduction of free train rides for the Bundeswehr, the Ministry of Defense ordered impeccable behavior for all soldiers. According to an internal directive, "soldiers performing private trips in uniform must be aware of their particular role model and duty of conduct". The aim of the project is to "shape the public opinion of the Bundeswehr positively," warns the paper.
The desired behavior is explained in the instruction with examples. Thus, the ministry expects "always an active helpfulness in general life situations". However, the soldiers should not act as deputy sheriffs. Despite the uniform, they had "no sovereign or legal powers, but only the so-called 'universal rights'", so the directive from mid-November.
Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer wants to sign the contract for the free rides as soon as possible. Shortly after assuming office in the summer, she had engaged herself in the faltering negotiations with the railways, as the deal threatened to burst. But now all soldiers of the German Armed Forces from 2020 on privately in uniform are allowed to travel by train for free.
Seat reservations are paid by the soldiers themselves
In the negotiations, the railway had several times expressed the fear that the soldiers could provide for the peak season at the beginning and end of the week in the already well-filled trains for overcrowding. Some railway managers also feared that groups of soldiers traveling home together after service would not necessarily increase the attractiveness of the train to ordinary travelers.
Kramp-Karrenbauer, meanwhile, prevailed, in the end accepted the state-owned company a flat rate for the soldier tickets. The minister is obviously extremely interested in the measure. As in the past few weeks, the problem arose that the free tickets must be taxed as a pecuniary advantage, she was again generous and took over the cost of about one million euros.
As a result, all soldiers will be able to order so-called eTokens on the German Federal Armed Forces's intranet as early as mid-December, enabling them to use the train app to buy free tickets in the second class. A seat reservation or the surcharge for the first class must be borne by the soldiers themselves. In the directive, the ministry stresses that the tickets are personal and can not be shared.