There is still hope - the government is about to abolish the state-guaranteed monopoly. http://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article12492654/Bahn-verliert-ihr-Monopol

There is still hope - the government is about to abolish the state-guaranteed monopoly. http://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article12492654/Bahn-verliert-ihr-Monopol-bei-den-Fernbussen.html http://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article12492654/Bahn-verliert-... [German] Of course, public transport is a complex issue - the government as the current owner of the railway system is still trying to protect some routes, so we have to wait and see how the licensing for long-distance routes is working out. And the Deutsche Bahn (German Railways) is also the biggest provider of bus travel, so it will be quite hard for new companies to get into the market.