10 days after it became valid, the 49-euro Deutschlandticket subscription has already been purchased just over 7 million times, according to the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV).

Deutschlandticket sold to 7 million subscribers

Germany’s newest reduced-price monthly transport subscription, which offers unlimited use of regional and public transport across Germany, and even in some cities abroad, has already been sold to just over 7 million people. 

Though it had been on presale via the “Dein Deutschlandticket” app since the beginning of April, when the 49-euro ticket became valid on May 1, people gathered in their hundreds to secure themselves a subscription. The Deutsche Bahn website crashed, and metres-long queues formed outside Germany’s biggest railway stations.

Deutschlandticket chip card producers can't meet demand

According to the VDV, of these 7 million, 2 million people didn’t previously have a subscription. When taking out a subscription customers have a choice of which form they would like their monthly ticket to take. So far, around half of the tickets sold were in smartphone format and the other half as a chip card. Until the end of 2023, it is also possible to order the ticket in paper format.

When it comes to the chip card, producers are struggling to keep up with demand and many customers are still waiting for their card to arrive. “We need up to 30 million chip cards for German public transport in the near future,” VDV president Ingo Wortmann said in a press release.

Cancelling a 49-euro ticket subscription

Unlike the 9-euro ticket, which offered the same services for a significantly lower price and was available as a no-strings-attached purchase, the 49-euro ticket is based on a subscription model, with a cancellation policy which involves some minor investigative skills.

Because the ticket is more expensive than its predecessor and requires a little more commitment, some have speculated that sales may not be as high for the Deutschlandticket.

That remains to be seen, and unlike the 9-euro ticket, the Deutschlandticket going to stick around for longer. But so far, the Deutschlandticket’s 7 million sales have a long way to go to match the 52 million 9-euro tickets which were purchased between June and August 2022.

Thumb image credit: Steven Van Aerschot / Shutterstock.com