Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe

The Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (German: "Berlin Transport Company") is the main public transport company of Berlin, the capital city of Germany. It manages the city's U-Bahn underground railway, tram, bus, replacement services (Ersatzverkehr, EV) and ferry networks, but not the S-Bahn urban rail system.

Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG)

Type	State-owned
Founded	1928
Headquarters	Berlin , Germany
Area served	Berlin
Key people	Eva Kreienkamp (CEO)
Services	Public transport
Owner	State of Berlin (100%)
Number of employees	14,417 (as of 31 December 2016)[1]
Website	www.bvg.de

The generally used abbreviation, BVG, has been retained from the company's original name, Berliner Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft (Berlin Transport Corporation).[2][3] Subsequently, the company was renamed Berliner Verkehrs-Betriebe. During the division of Berlin, the BVG was split between BVG (Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe Gesellschaft in West Berlin) and BVB (Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe in East Berlin, also known as the Volkseigenes Kombinat Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe, BVB). After reunification, the current formal name was adopted.

History

Former BVG headquarters on Potsdamer Straße

A Berlin bus during the strikes of 1932

The Berliner Verkehrs Aktiengesellschaft was formed in 1928, by the merger of the Allgemeine Berliner Omnibus AG (the operator of the city's buses), the Gesellschaft für Elektrische Hoch- und Untergrundbahnen (the operator of the U-Bahn) and the Berliner Straßenbahn-Betriebs-GmbH (the operator of the city's trams). On 1 January 1938, the company was renamed Berliner Verkehrs-Betriebe, but the acronym BVG was retained.[4]

From 1 August 1949, the BVG networks in West Berlin and East Berlin were operated separately. The two operators were originally known as BVG (West) and BVG (Ost), but from 1 January 1969 the eastern operator was renamed as the Kombinat Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe or BVB. After the reunification of Berlin, the two operators were recombined into the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe on 1 January 1992.

Prior to the division of Berlin, tram lines existed throughout the city, but BVG (West) abandoned all the tram lines in its part of the city, replacing them all by buses by 1967. However BVG (Ost) retained its tram lines, and on the reunification of Berlin the BVG inherited a considerable network of routes in the eastern half of Berlin.

On 9 January 1984, BVG (West) took over the responsibility for operation of the S-Bahn services in West Berlin. This urban rail network had previously been operated in both halves of Berlin by the Deutsche Reichsbahn, the state rail operator of East Germany, but had been subject to a boycott in the west after the building of the Berlin Wall. With the reunification of Berlin, responsibility for the S-Bahn reverted to Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG), the state rail operator of Germany. The S-Bahn is currently managed by the S-Bahn Berlin GmbH, a subsidiary company of DBAG.[5]

BVG (West) also took part in the Berlin M-Bahn project, an urban maglev system, in the period between 1984 and 1992. The project used a section of the U-Bahn right of way that was out of service due to the building of the Berlin Wall, and was dropped with the fall of that wall.[6]

The BVG launched the MetroNetz on 12 December 2004 which remodeled the tram and bus network to create 24 tram and bus lines (with M prefix) covering parts of the city that weren't served by S-Bahn or U-Bahn.

In September 2019, BVG launched first in the world large scale Mobility as a service project “Jelbi” [7] together with a Lithuanian mobility startup Trafi.

Chief executive officers

Name	From	To
Fritz Brolat	1929	1931
Ernst Lüdtke	1929	1933
Wilhelm Majerczik	1929	1930
Gotthard Quarg	1929	1933
Hermann Zangemeister	1929	1933
Wilhelm Bennighoff	1933	1938
Georg Thomas	1933	1934
Max Reschke	1934	1937
Alfred Lorenz	1935	1938
Otto Ulmer (Landrat)	1937	1945
Max Mroß	1939	1945
Franz Fink	1939	1945
Walter Schneider	1945	1963
Wilhelm Knapp	1945	1949 (Went to BVG-Ost)
Walter Struwe	1945	1970
Johannes Warnke	1945	1960
Fritz Neubecker	1947	1968
Richard Timm	1952	1958
Karl König	1960	1965
Heinz Goltz	1971	1975
Joachim Piefke „Der Mann mit der Fliege“	1971	1986
Bruno Frank	1972	1982
Hans-Erhardt von Knoblauch	1977	1986
Willi Diedrich	1980	1988
Harro Sachße	1983	1994
Helmut Döpfer	1986
Konrad Lorenzen	1988	1994
Rüdiger vorm Walde	1994	2001
Andreas Graf von Arnim	2002	2005
Andreas Sturmowski	2005	2010
Sigrid Evelyn Nikutta	2010	2019
Eva Kreienkamp	2020

Operations

The latest model of Berlin's U-Bahn called Icke in Olympia-Stadion U-Bahn station (2015)

Berlin trams (2009)

A Berlin double-decker bus (2005)

A zero-emission BVG ferry (2014)

Metro-Bear-Berlin: This Buddy Bear with its map of the Berlin U-Bahn can be found in the Alexanderplatz station.

U-Bahn

BVG operates the U-Bahn, an urban rapid transit rail system. The U-Bahn now comprises nine lines with 173 stations and a total length of 147 kilometres (91.3 mi). Trains run every two to five minutes during peak hours, every five minutes for the rest of the day and every ten minutes in the evening and on Sunday.[8][9]

U-Bahn service is provided by 1266 carriages, of which 500 are used on the earlier small-profile lines (U1 to U4) and 766 are used on the later large-profile lines. These cars travel 132 million km (83 million miles), carrying 400 million passengers, over the year.[8][9]

Trams

BVG operates a tram network comprising 22 tram lines with 377 stops and measuring 293.78 km (182.55 miles) in length. Of these, nine are designated as part of the MetroNetz, which provide a high frequency service in areas poorly served by the U-Bahn and S-Bahn. These MetroTram tram lines are recognisable by an M prefix to their route number, and are the only tram routes to operate 24 hours a day.[9]

Tram service is provided by 391 carriages, of which 154 are modern low floor carriages and 237 are older carriages. Virtually all of the remaining network is within the confines of the former East Berlin, as all the routes in the former West Berlin were abandoned during the period of the city's partition. However, there have been some extensions of routes across the former border since reunification, most remarkably to the city's new main railway station Berlin Hauptbahnhof (lines M5, M8 and M10).[9]

Buses

BVG operates a network of 149 daytime bus routes serving 2634 stops and a total route length of 1,675 kilometres (1,041 mi), together with a night bus network of 63 bus routes serving 1508 stops and a total route length of 795 kilometres (494 mi). Seventeen of BVG's bus routes are designated as part of the MetroNetz, which provides a high frequency service in areas poorly served by the U-Bahn and S-Bahn. Like the MetroTram tram routes, these MetroBus routes can be recognised by an M prefix to their route number. A further 13 BVG-operated bus routes are express routes with an X prefix to their route number.[9]

BVG bus service is provided by a fleet of 1349 buses, of which no fewer than 407 are double-decker buses. Whilst such buses are common in Ireland and the United Kingdom, their use elsewhere in Europe is extremely uncommon.[9]

Route 218 is partially operated by ex-BVG vintage vehicles now in preservation but used in revenue-earning service. The services depart from Theodor-Heuss Platz every two hours from 11:15 to 19:15 and return from Pfaueninsel from 10:00 to 20:00.

Ferries

Berlin has an extensive network of waterways within its city boundaries, including the Havel, Spree and Dahme rivers, and many linked lakes and canals. These are crossed by six passenger ferry routes that are operated by the BVG.[10]

Fares

The BVG is a member of the Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg (VBB), the transport association run by public transport providers in the German states of Berlin and Brandenburg. This body provides a common fare structure that allows travel on various operators in and around Berlin.

All BVG services form part of the VBB's common public transport fare structure. This covers the city of Berlin and approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) beyond the city boundaries. The area is split into three zones. Zone A is the central parts of the city (inside the Ringbahn), and zone B is the outer parts of Berlin City. Zone C covers an area beyond the city boundaries. Ticket fares have a slight price difference between these three zones. For instance in June 2010, a one-day ticket for zone A+B was priced at €6.10, a zone B+C one-day travel ticket was €6.30, and for all three zones A+B+C, the price was €6.50.[11][12]

Media

navi

The navi is a monthly published overview of planned line deviations and changes due to construction measures or events. In addition, it offers alternatives to avoid them and informs about line and timetable adjustments. It is enclosed with the PLUS magazine. The first edition was published in August 2013.

PLUS

PLUS is the monthly customer magazine of the BVG. The 40-page booklet is available in buses, trams and subway stations, among other places.

Subsidiaries

BVG Beteiligungsholding GmbH & Co. KG

BVG Beteiligungsholding GmbH & Co. KG (BBH) as the managing holding company has the task of managing the investment companies administratively and strategically and to provide commercial services for the affiliated companies as well as to carry out the investment management for the BVG. On the basis of BBH offers services in the areas of human resources, finance, accounting, controlling, IT and insurance. In addition, their 100% participations include cash pooling and profit transfer agreements. These include the BT, URBANIS and IOB.

BVG Beteiligungsholding Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH

BVG Beteiligungsholding Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH (BBV) manages BBH's business as a general partner exclusively.

BT Berlin Transport GmbH

Berlin Transport (BT)'s core business is to provide bus and subway services for the BVG. In addition, the company provides occasional travel services for both — the BVG and third parties.

URBANIS GmbH

The core business of URBANIS is the development and rental of commercial usable areas, especially in the area of Berlin subway stations.

IOB Internationale Omnibusbahnhof-Betreibergesellschaft mbH

Logo of the IOB

The IOB Internationale Omnibusbahnhof-Betreibergesellschaft mbH (IOB) operates the Zentraler Omnibusbahnhof Berlin (ZOB) in Berlin on behalf of the BVG. The core business of the IOB consists in the control of the remote bus procedures as well as the economic use of the real estate on the ZOB.

Projektrealisierungs GmbH U5

Projektrealisierungs GmbH U5 is a wholly owned subsidiary of BVG and takes over in connection with the realization of the gap closure of the subway line in Berlin in particular project management and controlling as well as project marketing for the BVG.

BVG-Fahrzeugfinanzierungsgesellschaft mbH

BVG-Fahrzeugfinanzierungsgesellschaft mbH (BVG-FFG) was founded on 1 January 2016 as a 100% subsidiary of the BVG. As a result of the organizational separation between the core business of the BVG and rail vehicle procurement, the assignment for financing and realization of vehicle procurement by the BVG-FFG. As part of to financing the procurement of metro and tram vehicles, it is entitled to a comprehensive representation of the BVG and trades in the name and on account of the BVG. The tasks of the society include the admission of credits to financing the rail vehicle procurement of the BVG, the financing management and the provision of procurement finance and accounting services including controlling.

See also

• Transport in Berlin

References

1. "BVG Geschäftsbericht 2016". Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe. 8 May 2017. p. 41. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
2. https://www.bvg.de/images/content/unternehmen/medien/plus/2019/BVG_PLUSNAVI_0119_barrierefrei.pdf#page=19 "Dazu gründete er die Berliner Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft – kurz, BVG."
3. https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no98123055.html
4. "Die Geschichte der Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe" [The history of the Berlin public transport] (in German). BVG. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
5. Hardy, Brian (2000). The Berlin S-Bahn Handbook. Capital Transport Publishing. ISBN 1-85414-185-6.
6. Hardy, Brian (1996). The Berlin U-Bahn. Capital Transport Publishing. ISBN 1-85414-184-8.
7. "From U-Bahn to e-scooters: Berlin mobility app has it all". 24 September 2019.
8. "The Berlin metro (U-Bahn)". Means of Transport & Routes. BVG. Archived from the original on 20 August 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
9. "BVG in Zahlen" [BVG in figures] (in German). BVG. 31 December 2009. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
10. "Linien, Netze & Karten – Verkehrsmittel & Linien – Fähre" (in German). BVG. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
11. "Tickets / Ticket fares". Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
12. "Tickets & Tarife" [Tickets & Fares] (in German). BVG. Retrieved 16 June 2010.

External links

Media related to Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website
• Tram Travels: Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG)