For shipping on Lake Starnberg, the 2021 season was better than 2020, in parts even better than 2019. However, the number of passengers this summer was still well below those of previous years.
For 2022, the shipping company plans to start the season regularly at Easter.
Starnberg / Tutzing -
The 2021 shipping season on Lake Starnberg was a small ray of hope for Bayerische Seenschifffahrt. Although the passenger numbers were again significantly below those of the pre-Corona period, they were not quite as low as in 2020. In figures: around 166,000 guests were on the ships, in 2020 there were only 120,000. In 2019, before the pandemic, shipping counted 220,000 passengers. Above all, September and October polished the balance a little - and a ship.
According to Managing Director Michael Grießer, the season could not start at Easter as planned, but only around a month later - which is already missing in the passenger numbers. Then, until August, it was still mandatory to wear a mask on the ships, even outdoors, which must have discouraged some from a tour; three hours in the sun on the steamer with a mask is not necessarily a pleasure. The numbers picked up from August, and in September and October they were even slightly above those of 2019. “In the end, you have to be satisfied,” says Grießer.
The new EMS Berg, the largest electric ship of its kind in Germany, has made a contribution to this. There were often inquiries about when the ship was sailing because visitors wanted to see it and try it out. The new "mountain" has fitted in very well. The company "went much better than we had imagined," says Grießer. After all, the technology is new. At first it happened that individual battery blocks were not charged or the backup was blown. However, the company's evaluations showed that the “Berg” still had a reserve of around 20 percent when it returned after a day on the lake and round trips of up to eight hours (especially on the southern routes). This also has to be the case if the ship ever has to go faster due to a storm or the like.Incidentally, the battery capacity of the e-ship is precisely tailored to the timetable.
The experienced captains quickly developed the necessary driving experience, since the “Berg” is to be steered a little differently than the other steamers. It is, says the managing director, like with an electric car. The big advantage of the new "Berg" is that you can take bicycles with you - on the old "Berg" this was not possible for safety reasons. The new jetty in Tutzing, where two ships can now dock at the same time (as in Starnberg), has also proven itself. Grießer also thinks it looks good.
The winter work is currently starting, i.e. repairs to the ships and the jetties. The "Bernried" comes ashore in Starnberg for the big check, which is due every five years. Plans are underway for 2022, and Grießer is currently assuming a regular start at Easter. But you can't be 100 percent sure about that. It is foreseeable that prices will rise by an average of around five percent, also because of generally rising costs. Fuel plays a major role here, especially since the ships do not drive from the filling station with diesel, but with a special, synthetic fuel that causes more than 30 percent less nitrogen oxide and is therefore more climate-friendly.
The declining passenger numbers let the revenue of the shipping, which has to finance itself, collapse.
That is why she is stretching investments, no new ship for Lake Starnberg is specifically planned for the time being.
The 73-year-old MS Bayern, which is currently mainly used as a replacement ship, needs to be renewed.
"Corona thwarted our plans," says Grießer.
It will also have TÜV approval by 2025, and shipping must also supplement the fleet at Tegernsee, for example.
“But first we have to earn money again,” emphasizes Grießer.