Rail Station of the Year 2009: Award for Usedom’s seaside railway

Berlin. It is now official. The railways stations on the German Baltic island of Usedom are among the most attractive and most customer-friendly in the whole country. At the Baltic resort of Heringsdorf on Saturday, the train-station-of-the-year jury member Karl-Peter Naumann praised the uniform appeal and the high standard that all the 17 stations and stopping points on the Usedom Seaside Railway (UBB) have now attained. “Whether I get out in Trassenheide or in the Kaiser’s resort of Ahlbeck, it always gives me a good feeling,” said Naumann as he presented Jörgen Bosse, head of the UBB, with the winner’s certificate. The ceremony was attended by numerous local and state politicians. The special prize for ‘overall appearance’ awarded to the UBB railway was “thoroughly well deserved” said Naumann. “They are stations like pears on a chain.”

Above all, Naumann praised the UBB railway for not economising on staff. “Customers do not have to deal with ticket machines but can buy their tickets at a ticket office or on the train.” That also reduces the risk of vandalism at the train stations, which are now all barrier-free. There is also no lack of aesthetic appeal at the lovingly restored station buildings in Zinnowitz, Zempin, Heringsdorf or Ahlbeck. “The Baltic resorts welcome you as soon as you arrive at the station,” said Naumann. Funding for the station buildings was provided largely by the UBB without public aid, whereas around seven million Euros of state money went into the construction of the station forecourts.

Every year, the jury of five representatives from the railway organisation Pro Bahn, the passenger association DBV, the German Transport Club VCD, the Autoclub Europa (ACE) and the German Pro-Rail Alliance pay incognito visits to stations across Germany. The title for the best railway station in a small town was awarded to Uelzen on September 2. Erfurt won the award in the city category. The UBB seaside railway was awarded its special prize for the attractive appearance of all of its stations.

The competition for the ‘Railway Station of the Year’ has been awarded since 2004 to Germany’s best station in a city and in a smaller town. Only stations that satisfy the needs of customers and citizens, according to a defined set of criteria, can receive the award. Objective demands such as customer information, cleanliness, integration with the city and connections with other modes of transport are as important to winning the vote as more subjective ‘feel-good’ factors. The previous winning stations were: 2008 – Karlsruhe and Schwerin; 2007 – Berlin Main Station and Landsberg am Lech; 2006 – Hamburg Dammtor and Oberstdorf; 2005 – Mannheim and Wismar; 2004 Hannover and Lübben.

Local councils, private individuals and railway station staff are now invited to apply for the award for 2010. We also welcome recommendations from rail passengers. A letter will suffice and the Railway Station of the Year jury will turn up – incognito, of course.