Accessibility on the ICE trains?

Question

Are the ICE trains wheelchair accessible? I'm going to Leipzig in July, and will most likely get on the trains there.

Answer 1

In bigger cities yes and ICE stopps are only in bigger cities. In Hamburg Central Station are also helpers avaible.

Greetings from Hamburg, Germany

Heinz

Answer 2

Yes, I'm often travelling by train and often see people with wheelchairs!

http://www.bahn.de/international/view/en...

http://www.bahn.de/international/view/en...

The ICE also stops in Leipzig so no problem.

Answer 3

I can answer this one for you well being now handicapped myself and need a walking cane.

The NEWER trains are much better the older are not. It can be a small problem getting help with luggage if you do not prearrange help at the airport AND the train station on BOTH ends of your trip!

Their is enough room for you in general, you will just need assistance with luggage and maybe moving to stay up with their pace schedule.

I would not worry too much so long as you contact them ahead of time for help. I worked great for me and no LINES best of all!!

Answer 4

German rail has a special service hotline for people with disablities. If you book your ticket through this hotline you will get all the help you need.

First you will get seat reservation in a compartment that is wheelchair-friendly and second you will be able to get help with getting on and off the train. They can also make sure that you are on a train where there is a wheelchair accessible toilet. Or if this is not possible, they will tell you in advance so that you can be prepared.

The phone number for this service is 01805/512512 from Germany. That is a special service number, so I am not sure whether you can call them from abroad. From Germany you can call them on weekdays between 8:00 and 20:00 hrs and on Saturdays between 8:00 and 14:00 hrs.

You can read more about the handicap-related services here:

http://www.bahn.de/p/view/mobilitaet/han...

It is German only, but maybe you can use an online translation service to make a head or a tail out of it.

For some older ICE trains and at some trainstations you need a lift to enter them with a wheelchair because there are stairs between the platform and the train. You can see a picture of the lift here: http://www.bahn.de/p/view/mobilitaet/han...

And the people with the blue vest/jackets will be the people to turn to if you got any problems at the train station. They are the "Blue Angels", the volunteers from the "Bahnhofsmission", a Christian organisation whose goal is to help travellers in need.