1. What is happening on Monday
On Monday, 2 February 2026, a nationwide warning strike in the municipal public transport sector (ÖPNV) has been called. The strike affects nearly 100,000 employees across about 150 city transport companies and bus operators. The action is intended to increase pressure in ongoing collective bargaining talks and will lead to major service disruptions in many urban areas.
2. Who called the strike and who is affected
The trade union ver.di announced the warning strike to support workers in local public transport. The strike covers staff who operate and maintain U-Bahn, trams, and buses in many cities. There is an exception in Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen) where industrial peace rules apply, so actions there are excluded.
Key demands in the negotiations
- Reduce the weekly working time from 38.5 to 35 hours with full wage compensation.
- Guarantee minimum rest periods of 11 hours between shifts.
- Increase pay supplements and allowances, including a proposed Sunday surcharge of 30%.
- In some federal states (for example Bavaria, Brandenburg, Saarland and Thuringia) additional pay rises of up to 5% are being sought.
3. Services likely to be affected
The strike is expected to cause widespread cancellations and reduced frequencies for urban U-Bahn lines, trams and city buses. Transport companies may run emergency timetables on affected routes. S-Bahn, regional trains and long-distance rail services are reported to run normally and are not part of this action.
- Likely affected: U-Bahn, tram services, city buses.
- Likely unaffected: S-Bahn, regional rail and long-distance trains.
- Possible measures: emergency timetables, selective service reductions or cancellations in many cities.
Cities where disruption is expected to be significant
Major cities such as Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne, Düsseldorf and Hamburg, among others, are named as likely to see large-scale outages. Commuters in these urban areas should prepare for limited or no local public transport on the strike day.
4. What passengers should do
- Check emergency timetables and local announcements before travelling where possible.
- Consider alternative transport: regional rail, car, carpooling, cycling or walking for short trips.
- Allow extra travel time and plan routes that avoid affected U-Bahn, tram or bus lines.
- If you can, work from home that day to avoid commuting difficulties.
- Buy tickets in advance when needed and verify refund or exchange rules for disrupted journeys.
Passengers are advised to follow updates from local transport providers and the union. Economic analysts estimate potential daily economic losses of up to 100 million euros if large parts of the ÖPNV are halted. The previous negotiating round on 21 January 2026 failed to reach an agreement; the next meeting is planned for 9 February 2026.
5. Employer response and the bigger picture
Employers have criticized the demands as unrealistic and warned that meeting them could raise costs by more than 30 percent, a concern given strained municipal budgets. The union points to heavy burdens on staff from shift work, personnel shortages and high turnover. As the union’s deputy chair put it, employees in local public transport face very high strain due to unfavorable hours, shift work and constant time pressure.
6. Timeline and where to get updates
Key dates: the collective bargaining process has been ongoing since November 2025, the first bargaining round ended without a deal on 21 January 2026, and negotiators are scheduled to meet again on 9 February 2026. For the latest information, watch for official union press statements and announcements from your local transport operator or municipal authorities. Check local news and operator messages on the morning of the strike for emergency timetables and last-minute updates.
