DB Arriva business unit
Development in the relevant markets
European passenger transport continued to suffer immensely in the first half of 2021 from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The European railways had already ceased cross-border connections from March 2020 to a considerable extent and, in some cases, drastically reduced their national services, primarily in Spain and Italy, among others. State-supported basic services in regional and long-distance transport remained in place, however. The Covid-19 restrictions and disruption to passenger operations extended into the first half of 2021. Some easing of the restrictions led to an increase in services in most European countries as of May 2021, along with the continuation of strict hygiene and safety measures. Nevertheless, demand remained weak.
European long-distance bus services came to a complete standstill back in 2020, except for a brief resumption in the late summer and fall of 2020. Operations have been gradually resuming since spring 2021.