Verkehrsverbund Bremen/Niedersachsen
The Verkehrsverbund Bremen/Niedersachsen GmbH (VBN) is a transport association founded in 1996, comprising companies of the public passenger transport (ÖPNV) in the greater Bremen area and northwestern Lower Saxony.
The association area includes the cities of Bremen, Bremerhaven, Delmenhorst and Oldenburg, the neighboring districts of Ammerland, Diepholz, Oldenburg, Osterholz, Verden and Wesermarsch, as well as fourteen municipalities from the districts of Cuxhaven, Nienburg and Rotenburg (Wümme). This area largely corresponds to the Metropolitan region Northwest, though it is not completely congruent. For example, parts of Rotenburg (Wümme) belong to the Hamburg Metropolitan Region but are also within the VBN area.[1]
In 2022, 18.1 million tickets worth €152.8 million were sold to approximately 150.6 million passengers.[2]
History
From 1988, its legal predecessor was the Verkehrsgemeinschaft Bremen/Niedersachsen, which in 1989 issued the first tickets recognized by all participating transport companies.
To separate the roles of purchaser and provider of local and regional transport services, the special-purpose association Zwecksverband Verkehrsverbund Bremen/Niedersachsen (ZVBN) was established in September 1996. The purpose of the special-purpose association, as a public‑law body, is to plan and commission road‑based public passenger transport in the association area.[3]
One month later, the VBN itself was formed as a union of transport service providers in the association area. At that time, a unified fare system was introduced, allowing the use of all public road‑ and rail‑based transport with a single ticket.
Fare system
The ticket range includes single tickets for on‑board purchase and period tickets available in advance. Single tickets are sold individually or in sets of four. For those under 21, there is the Youth Leisure Ticket, costing €23 per month or €180 per year,[4] which permits use of all VBN transport (excluding ferries) across the entire area and is valid on weekdays from 14:00 onwards.
The fare is determined by the number of tariff zones crossed, including the origin zone. The area is divided into zones, as shown on the tariff map. There are eight fare stages, labeled A to H, with A for travel within a single zone and H covering travel throughout the entire association area. Special fare stages apply to the urban areas of Bremen, Bremerhaven, Delmenhorst, Nordenham, Oldenburg and Verden, as well as municipalities adjacent to Bremen.
Outside the VBN in the Rotenburg district, the ROW tariff applies.
Bus — line numbers
The systematically assigned line numbers facilitate planning and customer information. The VBN divides its area into timetable regions numbered 0–9; bus line numbers begin with the region digit, forming three‑digit codes (omitting the leading zero in Bremen).
| Digit | Region |
|---|---|
| 0 | City of Bremen |
| 1 | Diepholz district, Syke town, Hoya collective municipality |
| 2 | Delmenhorst, Oldenburg district |
| 3 | City of Oldenburg, Ammerland district |
| 4 | Wesermarsch district |
| 5 | Bremerhaven, associated Cuxhaven district |
| 6 | Osterholz district, select lines in Vechta district |
| 7 | Verden district |
| 8 | associated Rotenburg (Wümme) district |
| 9 | select lines in Cloppenburg district |
Regional rail
Rail services use the following designations: Regio‑S-Bahn lines with RS, Regional‑Express with RE, and Regionalbahn with RB. On the Intercity line 56 between Bremen Hbf and Emden/Norddeich, local tickets are valid and the service is also labeled RE 56.
| Line | Route | Operator |
|---|---|---|
| IC 56/RE 56 | (Norddeich Mole –) Emden – Leer – Augustfehn – Oldenburg – Hude – Delmenhorst – Bremen – *no local tickets:* Verden – Hannover – Magdeburg | DB Fernverkehr |
| RS 1 | Verden – Bremen Hbf – Bremen‑Vegesack – Bremen‑Farge | NWB |
| RS 2 | Bremerhaven‑Lehe – Bremen – Twistringen | NWB |
| RS 3 | Bremen Hbf – Oldenburg (– Bad Zwischenahn) | NWB |
| RS 4 | Bremen Hbf – Delmenhorst – Hude – Nordenham | NWB |
| RS 6 (formerly RB 76) | Rotenburg (Wümme) – Verden | NWB |
| RE 1 | (Norddeich Mole –) Emden – Leer – Augustfehn – Oldenburg – Hude – Delmenhorst – Bremen – Verden – Eystrup – Hannover | DB Regio |
| RE 4 | Bremen Hbf – Rotenburg (Wümme) – Tostedt – Hamburg Hbf | Metronom |
| RE 8 | Bremerhaven‑Lehe – Bremerhaven – Bremen – Verden – Eystrup – Hannover | DB Regio |
| RE 9 | Bremerhaven‑Lehe – Bremen – Kirchweyhe – Twistringen – Lemförde – Osnabrück | DB Regio |
| RE 18 | Wilhelmshaven – Rastede – Oldenburg – Ahlhorn – Osnabrück | NWB |
| RB 33 | Cuxhaven – Dorum – Bremerhaven Hbf – Frelsdorf – Bremervörde – Buxtehude | EVB |
| RB 37 | Bremen Hbf – Achim – Langwedel – Visselhövede – Soltau (– Uelzen) | Regionalverkehre Start Deutschland |
| RB 41 | Bremen Hbf – Rotenburg (Wümme) – Tostedt – Hamburg Hbf | Metronom |
| RB 58 | Bremen Hbf – Wildeshausen – Vechta – Osnabrück | NWB |
Timetable publications
Annual timetables are published as follows:
- City of Bremen line timetables
- Regional bus timetable (excluding city buses) for Oldenburg district, Osterholz district, Diepholz district, Delmenhorst, Wesermarsch district, and parts of Rotenburg (Wümme) and Cuxhaven districts
- Bremerhaven City & Region timetable (until 2022)[5]
- Oldenburg City & Region timetable
- Delmenhorst City & Region timetable
Additionally, each district has its own network map.
Transport companies
Over 30 municipal and private transport companies operate within the VBN network.[6]
- AllerBus, Verden
- Borchers Reisen Omnibusbetrieb GmbH & Co. KG, Twistringen
- Bruns Omnibusverkehr GmbH, Varel
- Bremerhavener Versorgungs- und Verkehrs-GmbH (BVV)
- Bremer Straßenbahn AG (BSAG)
- BUSPUNKT GmbH
- DB Regio AG
- Delbus GmbH & Co. KG
- Delmenhorst-Harpstedter Eisenbahn GmbH (DHE)
- DH-Bus Borchers Rittmeyer GmbH
- Werner Dierks Omnibusbetrieb, Rotenburg (Wümme)
- Eisenbahnen und Verkehrsbetriebe Elbe-Weser GmbH (EVB)
- Gebken & Gerdes Verkehrs- und Reiseunternehmen GmbH
- Gerdes Reisen, Westerstede
- W. Giese Nachf. Omnibusbetrieb GmbH, Beverstedt
- Hutfilters Reisedienst Hinrich Hutfilter GmbH & Co. KG
- KVG Stade GmbH & Co. KG
- Masemann Omnibusverkehr GmbH & Co. KG, Ottersberg
- metronom Eisenbahngesellschaft mbH
- NordWestBahn GmbH (NWB)
- Nienaber Omnibusbetrieb
- sbv janßen GmbH & Co. KG
- Regionalverkehre Start Deutschland GmbH
- Autobus Stoss GmbH, Bremervörde
- Verkehrsbetriebe Wesermarsch GmbH (VBW)
- Verkehrsbetriebe Diepholz Nord
- Verkehrsbetriebe Diepholz Süd
- Verkehrsbetriebe Oldenburger Land
- Verkehrsbetriebe Grafschaft Hoya GmbH (VGH)
- Verkehr und Wasser GmbH (VWG)
- Von Ahrentschildt Omnibusbetrieb GmbH (evb)
- Von Rahden Reisedienst GmbH & Co. KG
- Weser-Ems Busverkehr GmbH
See also
- Public transport in Bremen
References
- ^ "About Us". VBN (in German). Retrieved 2020-02-16.
- ^ "Statistics 2022" (PDF). Verkehrsverbund Bremen/Niedersachsen GmbH. Retrieved 2023-09-06.
- ^ "Tasks // ZVBN". Retrieved 2020-02-16.
- ^ "Youth Leisure Ticket". Retrieved 2021-04-30.
- ^ Paul Homann. "History of Bremerhaven Public Transport" (PDF). p. 556. Retrieved 2024-04-19.
- ^ "The Transport Companies" (in German). Retrieved 2023-09-06.