Ich verpasse immer meinen Bus, weil ich nie pünktlich bin, und es ist immer pünktlich.

No matter how hard I try to arrive at the haltestelle (bus stop) on time, I run so fast, literally panting for breath and there.... leaves my bus, 'I have missed it yet again!' I keep telling myself in dismay. Public transport could ever be so much well on time, I had little idea until I came to Germany. Every time I miss my bus my only reaction is 'Darn you silly bus! can't you ever be a little late?' I curse it for being right on time and sometimes arriving even a few minutes early. God!! how do they manage it? I had heard about German efficiency before but it would be to this freaking extent, I honestly find it weird. Rain, thunder or snow, they never go slow! Interestingly, in India neither the transport nor the people are ever on time. In Indian context 'on time' means any time, the waiting period seems eternal. Even in Ireland, buses take their own sweet time to arrive and the waiting time passes by talking to fellow Irish passengers willingly or unwillingly. (Irish are known not just for making you tipsy by their Guinness but also for making you tipsy by their non stop talks).

Keep aside the transportation, sometimes I even wonder, whether the Germans are tuned in a way that they are operated by time, eg. Do they have a set Wake up time, Bathroom time, Office time, Sports time, Sleep time etc. etc. As though they are more of living timetables than human beings. Their public transport is very well timed and coordinated, I am impressed to the extent that now I am beginning to get annoyed by their punctuality. Undoubtedly, Germany has a very developed and even better implemented transport infrastructure which makes even the richest of nations feel inferior, it's the envy of the world! German race is so obsessively aligned with efficiency that now efficiency by default means Germans. The efficacy of the dense transport network spread across the country owes its success to the extensive planning strategy. We mustn't forget, that it was only in 1990 that the Berlin wall was dismantled and the reunification of East and West Germany began. Despite the fact, even East Germany's transport has been remarkably worked at in order to bring it at par with the much advanced West Germany.

The highly modernised public transport network of Germany is divided into different regions. All public transport in a region operates under a single transport association. Transport associations provide a unified ticketing system, that allows commuters to use a common ticket for all trains and buses in the region (with a few exceptions like ICE trains). They also coordinate the timetables of different buses and trains. The transport associations provide state wide tickets, which in turn provide hassle free transfer and mobility with public transport across different transport associations/regions.

Transport associations covering areas on the borders of Germany rely on cooperation with transport associations of other bordering European countries, like Belgium and Netherlands which supply cross-border ticket offers. For instance the Euregio ticket allows commuters to use all public transportation (except high speed trains) in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, spanning across three counties – Germany, Netherlands and Belgium. Also, the transport associations have a system of monthly passes, which apart from being used for daily commuting, provide the flexibility of taking along additional family members or friends on weekends and public holidays without having to pay any extra price. The terms and conditions of such tickets are clearly mentioned on the website of the transport associations infact, many day tickets also have this benefit.

The rich labyrinth of waterways, railways and motorways has not only made internal commutation easier but has also reduced the connecting time with other European countries substantially. The German public transportation is broadly divided into the following categories-

The Roads- The road network is an eloquent feature of Germany's transportation. According to a World Bank report published in 2010, the country holds around 6,43,969 kms of total road network. The term road network includes motorways, highways, main or national roads, secondary or regional roads and all other roads in any country. As compared to other countries, German roads face less traffic jams since many people prefer using public transport or riding bicycles on daily basis. The practice has overall reduced traffic congestion on roads. The well developed road system would be incomplete if I don't mention the most sought after German term the 'Autobahns'. All passionate drivers of the world dream of driving on German Autobahns and get an experience of a lifetime. The Autobahns offer an unrestricted motoring bliss like nowhere else. They constitute the nationally coordinated and most safely engineered motorway system with no speed limits in general except for a few congested or dangerous stretches as well as where traffic noise exceeds the permissible limit, an advisory speed limit of 130 km/hour then appears. Overall, German motorways have no blanket speed limit.

The Railways- With a vast number of inner city trains running regularly on time during the peak hours, the German train system is indeed phenomenal. Over 40,826 kms of rail roads are run and maintained by the National Railroad carrier Deutsche Bahn AG which includes at least 14,253 kms electrified and 14,786 kms double or multiple tracked. Apart from DBAG, nearly 280 are run by private or local railway companies. Big cities and towns also have U and S Bahns along with Strassenbahn (trams). While the U-Bahn runs intracity, the S-Bahn covers not just the city but also area upto 6 kms outside of the city. There is no better choice to enjoy an unlimited access throughout Germany at high speed than by getting on board the Inter City Express, popularly known as ICE train. It happens to be the fastest train belonging to the Deutsche Bahn with speeds of 200 mph. It connects all the major German cities like Frankfurt, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Munich, Cologne, Berlin, etc. and also cities in other European countries like Zurich, Brussels, London, etc.

Trains have been the preferred mode of transportation across different regions in Germany. Apart from the convenience and vast network, one of the reasons for this has also been the ban by German law since 1937, for not allowing the long route bus services to connect cities within Germany. This was to prevent competition with the national rail network. Though there are many international long route buses, connecting German cities with other European cities operating successfully since many few years. However, the national rail network still holds a complete monopoly over transportation, resulting in quite high prices of long distance train tickets in Germany. Yet the total monopoly did not prevent the Deutsche Bahn from providing excellent services, they can put to shame train services in many countries that allow competition.

Buses- Germany has an elaborate bus network inside the cities. In 2010, approx. 9.67 million passengers used public transport services out of which Buses accounted for a major share of public transport with 44%. It is a good choice to getting around in Germany using a bus. Buses constitute a very popular mode of transport. They are cheap, comfortable and environment friendly. Practically all German towns have their own comprehensive network of buses. Though after 7 pm their frequency gets reduced, however there are night buses along the popular routes to get all the late night party animals safely back home. In cities, buses mostly converge at the Bushof (central Bus station) located in close vicinity of the Hauptbahnhof (the central train station). The tickets are sold by the bus companies, which maintain offices in and around the bus station or you may buy it from the bus driver on board directly. There are special tickets like a daily pass, weekly and monthly passes or special tourist passes that are most commonly used as they are comparatively cheaper. In Aachen, after 7 pm two persons can travel using a single bus pass and all day long during weekends.

Last year Germany's upper house cleared the way for companies to offer long distance bus routes from 1^st January 2013. This will hopefully intensify the competition in Germany, making it cheaper to travel long distance.

Air transport- Though bus and rail transport remain the inevitable choice of the passengers at large, yet with the introduction of low budget airlines and decline in the prices of air travel, the domestic flights have captured much public attention off late. The Frankfurt International airport is Germany's largest and major transportation hub in Europe and is counted amongst the top ten airports of the world. Munich International airport is the second best in Germany and much awaited Berlin Brandenburg airport which is under construction is expected to fill up the third slot with its inauguration in 2013. Lufthansa the flagship air carrier in Germany is one of the leading airlines in the world followed closely by Air Berlin, the second largest airline in Germany.

Water Transport- The Federal waterway network in Deutschland covers nearly 7,500 kms of inland waterways, out of which approx. 75% comprise rivers and 25% canals. The major rivers are the Rhine, the Elbe, the Danube, the Wesser along with a channel of canals that link these major rivers and the Oder. The Rhine forms the main network with a length of about 5,100 kms. There are more than 100 modern and public sea ports. Out of 74 metropolitan areas, 56 are linked via waterways. Kiel canal connects the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, the Rhein- Main- Danube canal links Rotterdam on the North Sea with the Black Sea. The German government lays stress on the need for maintaining highly reliable waterways transport to shed off the load of traffic from roads in an eco friendly and cost conducive manner.

Despite having such a hi tech and uniformly distributed public transport, I have seen many Germans grumbling about the irregularity of their buses and trains. If at all the poor bus or train gets delayed by 5 or 10 mins, you can read from their facial expressions how exasperated they are, and their constant mutters about how intolerably unreliable their public transport is, can be easily overheard. As for me I just hold back my smile when I observe such passengers, for me it is a novel sight if ever my bus or train gets delayed by a few minutes. I think such cribbing Germans should be sent to India to experience our railways. In India trains get delayed not by minutes but by hours and by hours I mean 8 or sometimes even 24, still we remain patient!!