GERMAN Rail (DB) is to issue all customer-facing staff with body-worn cameras (bodycams) by the end of this year. The measure is one of a number agreed at a security summit convened by DB CEO, Evelyn Palla on February 13, in the wake of the killing of DB conductor Serkan Çalar, who was attacked by a passenger on February 2 during a routine ticket inspection on a train near Kaiserslautern in southwest Germany.
The summit was attended by senior representatives of the federal government the German states, employee organisations, rail unions, and the public transport industry, who agreed an action plan to improve personal safety on the railway.
DB will implement the following measures as soon as possible:
- all customer-facing staff to be issued with bodycams by the end of this year, although their use will be voluntary
- an additional 200 DB security personnel to be deployed at stations
- personal safety equipment for employees to be upgraded
- employees to receive enhanced training in behaviour management and de-escalation techniques
- employee call for assistance system to be upgraded
- regional security workshops to be run jointly with the federal police to upgrade local security measures
- staff at regional passenger operator DB Regio to prioritise personal safety over revenue protection during ticket checks from March 1, enabling inspectors to exercise discretion when requiring passengers to produce proof of identity, and
- further development of the partnership with the federal police to combat violent crime on railway premises.
Joint action plan
The joint action plan includes the following targets, with concrete steps for implementation due to be agreed by the end of April 2026:
- increasing CCTV provision on trains and at stations
- deploying more staff on local trains, to be discussed at a conference of federal and state transport ministers at the end of March
- waiving the requirement to check the identity of holders of the national Deutschlandticket
- enhanced and AI-supported analysis of video and audio recordings for early detection of criminal behaviour, and
- strengthening legislation to protect employees so that those attacking them can be prosecuted more effectively.
Previously unpublished figures show that DB employees are experiencing increased levels of violence in the workplace. Verbal and physical assaults repeatedly occur during ticket checks and after major public events, DB says.
In 2025 there were 3262 physical assaults on DB employees, according to DB, although this represents a slight decrease compared with the previous year, the overall number of assaults remains very high, increasing by 37% over the last 10 years. However, life-threatening assault is the exception, accounting for 1-2% of cases.
“Our goal is clear: safety requires a clear stance, in terms of personnel, technology, and the law,” Palla says.
“We are empowering our employees through better equipment, additional support, and targeted prevention programmes. Our guiding principle is prevention rather than confrontation. At the same time, we are pursuing a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of violence against our employees.”
Earlier this month DB announced an immediate action plan for stations that includes improving security.
