Infrastructure is the part of the state’s side of the bargain that is hardest to argue away: a closed bridge is closed, a late train is late, a missing fibre connection is missing. For 2025 and 2026 the figures are now complete — from the bridge statistics of the Federal Highway Research Institute (Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen), the Deutsche Bahn annual report, the KfW Kommunalpanel, reports by the Federal Court of Auditors (Bundesrechnungshof) and the EU Digital Decade country report. They do not add up to a uniform picture, but they do show a clear pattern: where the money is available, the delivery is not.
Bridges: the programme runs, the criteria do not
On Germany’s federal motorway bridges, 11.2 percent of the bridge deck area — just under 2.38 million square metres — belongs to individual structures (Teilbauwerke) rated 3.0 or worse on the condition scale, meaning “insufficient” to “inadequate”. Counted by number of structures, the share is 4.9 percent.
The bridge modernisation network covers around 4,000 particularly urgent structures with roughly 3.2 million square metres, scheduled for refurbishment between 2022 and 2032. Arithmetically that amounts to an annual tranche of some 400 structures, or 320,000 square metres.
| Year | Structures modernised | Area |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 124 | 93,000 m² |
| 2022 | 213 | 245,000 m² |
| 2023 | 210 | 318,000 m² |
| 2024 | 212 | 395,000 m² |
| 2025 (forecast) | around 170 | around 200,000 m² |
Autobahn GmbH attributes the 2025 slump to the constraints of provisional budget management.
The Federal Court of Auditors, however, has put on record a finding that qualifies the reported numbers: of the structures completed in 2022 and 2023, more than 50 percent did not meet the programme’s own selection criteria; in 2024 it was more than 75 percent — fewer than a quarter matched. The required annual output has risen accordingly to around 590 structures from 2025, roughly three and a half times what is expected for 2025.
What that means in daily operation shows in another figure: for oversized and heavy-goods transport requiring permits and approvals, 148 structures on motorways and 176 on federal trunk roads are currently closed; on top of that come 331 and 163 structures respectively over or alongside those roads.
Rail: the condition improves, the punctuality does not
Operational punctuality in DB long-distance services fell to 60.1 percent in 2025 from 62.5 percent the year before — the company’s own forecast had been 65 to 70 percent. At DB Regio (rail) it dropped to 89.2 percent, at DB Cargo Deutschland to 67.7 percent. In passenger rail an arrival counts as punctual if it deviates by less than six minutes; in freight the threshold is under 16 minutes.
Infrastructure-related delays rose by 13.9 percent to 6,831 lost units per day against a target value of 5,640.
On the refurbishment programme itself, the Federal Court of Auditors registers fundamental doubts. By 2030, 4,000 of 33,400 route kilometres are to be renewed in 41 general refurbishments of high-performance corridors; DB initially costed this at EUR 27 billion. The Court holds that the necessity and the economic case for the concept have not been properly demonstrated.
The pilot project supplies the illustration. The cost of the Riedbahn general refurbishment — 70 kilometres between Frankfurt am Main and Mannheim — rose from an original EUR 500 million (September 2022) via EUR 631 million, EUR 1.1 billion and EUR 1.3 billion to EUR 1.5 billion at the latest count. The benefit advantage of the general refurbishment over the alternative, as certified by the appointed expert, is EUR 17 million — around one percent of the latest cost estimate.
Networks: second to last, but the fastest catch-up
Germany’s fibre-to-the-premises coverage reached 43.98 percent of households in 2025 against an EU average of 74.13 percent — second to last in the EU.
Behind that sits a second problem that is mentioned less often: of 27.1 million connection points passed by fibre, only 6.4 million were actually active at the end of 2025. The take-up rate stands at roughly 24 percent and has stayed at that level for years. Measured against all 38.8 million active fixed broadband lines, the fibre share is 17 percent. In other words, it is being built and not connected.
On mobile networks, around 2 percent of Germany’s land area — roughly 7,500 square kilometres, about half the area of Schleswig-Holstein — are white spots with no 4G or 5G coverage at all. More than 100 of these dead zones are larger than ten square kilometres and together account for a third of the uncovered area.
Municipalities: the backlog grows, the investment shrinks
The perceived investment backlog of German municipalities rose to EUR 231.2 billion — up EUR 15.5 billion, or 7.2 percent. Around 2,900 municipalities were surveyed in the first quarter of 2026; 1,074 responded.
| Area | Backlog | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Schools | EUR 68.9bn | 29.8% |
| Roads | EUR 53.7bn | 23.2% |
| Fire and disaster services | EUR 23.2bn | — |
| Administrative buildings | EUR 22.2bn | — |
| Sports facilities | EUR 21.6bn | — |
79 percent of municipalities with more than 2,000 inhabitants report at least a noticeable backlog, 13 percent a serious one. For roads and transport infrastructure the figures are 84 and 28 percent — the highest of any area.
What follows from that is the decisive part: in 2025 municipalities realised capital spending of EUR 29.3 billion — 33 percent less than the EUR 43.8 billion planned. Adjusted for prices, municipal investment fell 6 percent in real terms against 2024 and 17 percent since 2018. The municipal financing deficit reached EUR 29.4 billion, a second record year in a row.
On the financial position: 44 percent of municipalities rate their situation in the 2025 budget year as poor, a further 25 percent as merely adequate. Among municipalities above 50,000 inhabitants the “poor” share is 73 percent. 80 percent expect a deterioration in 2026, and by 2030 nine in ten do.
The special fund that never arrived
The figure that sums up this section sits in a target-versus-actual overview from the Federal Ministry of Finance. Of the special fund for infrastructure and climate neutrality (Sondervermögen Infrastruktur und Klimaneutralität), only EUR 23.99 billion was disbursed in 2025 instead of the EUR 37.25 billion planned:
- Federal pillar: EUR 13.99 billion (target EUR 18.91 billion)
- Climate and Transformation Fund: EUR 10.00 billion (no separate target is stated, which is why the individual items do not add up to the total)
- Länder and municipalities: EUR 0.00 — against a target of EUR 8.33 billion
The administrative agreement with the Länder was not signed until 11 December 2025. While the investment backlog grew by EUR 15.5 billion, the special tranche earmarked to close it reached municipalities in the same year at zero percent.
What sits on the other side
For entrepreneurs, infrastructure is not an abstract topic but a cost item: journey times, delivery reliability, connectivity, the reachability of staff. Anyone financing a government spending ratio of 50.3 percent and a tax wedge of 49.3 percent to pay for it eventually asks what the money buys.
For location-independent business models the answer is simpler than for place-bound ones: software development, consulting, agency work and e-commerce need a dependable network connection and little else. That is precisely why the location arithmetic works out differently here — with 1 percent on turnover under the Georgian Small Business Status up to GEL 500,000, instead of a burden that has not prevented an investment backlog of EUR 231.2 billion.
For place-bound operations this expressly does not apply. Anyone running production, logistics or branches in Germany does not solve this problem by changing location.
What follows from it
The pattern is the same across all four areas: what is missing is less the money than the delivery. The special fund paid zero euros to municipalities, the bridge programme reports figures that three-quarters of the time do not meet its own criteria, the general refurbishment costs three times the original estimate for a certified benefit advantage of around one percent, and fibre is built but not connected.
How cost and delivery relate overall is set out in Government Ratio 50.3%; the full location audit in Germany is quietly falling apart. Which priorities the same budget sets elsewhere is shown in German development aid.
Austria solves the same task measurably better — and funds it differently. The comparison is in Infrastructure in Austria.
Frequently asked questions
FAQ
How dilapidated are Germany’s bridges?
On the federal motorway bridges, 11.2 percent of the bridge deck area — around 2.38 million square metres — belongs to individual structures rated 3.0 or worse on the condition scale, meaning insufficient to inadequate; counted by number of structures the share is 4.9 percent. For oversized and heavy-goods transport, 148 structures on motorways and 176 on federal trunk roads are closed.
Is bridge refurbishment making progress?
More slowly than planned. The bridge modernisation network covers around 4,000 structures through to 2032, which works out at an annual tranche of about 400. In practice around 210 were modernised in each of 2022 to 2024, and for 2025 Autobahn GmbH expects only around 170. The Federal Court of Auditors also found that more than 50 percent of the completions reported for 2022 and 2023 did not meet the programme’s selection criteria, and in 2024 more than 75 percent. The required annual output has risen as a result to around 590 structures.
How punctual is Deutsche Bahn?
Operational punctuality in long-distance services fell to 60.1 percent in 2025 from 62.5 percent the year before, missing the company’s own forecast of 65 to 70 percent. At DB Regio (rail) it stood at 89.2 percent, at DB Cargo Deutschland at 67.7 percent. Infrastructure-related delays rose by 13.9 percent to 6,831 lost units per day against a target value of 5,640.
Where does Germany stand on fibre roll-out?
Second to last in the EU. Fibre-to-the-premises coverage reached 43.98 percent of households in 2025 against 74.13 percent across the EU. The low take-up rate stands out: of 27.1 million connection points passed, only 6.4 million were active at the end of 2025, roughly 24 percent. The pace of growth is high, however — up 19.6 percent a year against 7.1 percent in the EU.
How large is the municipal investment backlog?
It rose in the KfW Kommunalpanel 2026 to EUR 231.2 billion, up EUR 15.5 billion or 7.2 percent. The largest items are schools at EUR 68.9 billion (29.8 percent) and roads at EUR 53.7 billion (23.2 percent). At the same time realised capital spending fell in 2025 to EUR 29.3 billion — 33 percent below the EUR 43.8 billion planned — and the financing deficit reached EUR 29.4 billion, a second record year in a row.
What happened to the infrastructure special fund?
Of the special fund for infrastructure and climate neutrality, only EUR 23.99 billion was disbursed in 2025 instead of the EUR 37.25 billion planned — EUR 13.99 billion in the federal pillar against a target of EUR 18.91 billion, and EUR 10.00 billion to the Climate and Transformation Fund. The Länder and municipalities received EUR 0.00 against a target of EUR 8.33 billion; the administrative agreement with the Länder was not signed until 11 December 2025.
This article is general information and does not constitute legal or tax advice. The figures come from the Federal Highway Research Institute (Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen, bridge statistics as at 1 March 2026), from Bundestag printed paper 21/2449 of 29 October 2025 (bridge modernisation network, closures, annual output of Autobahn GmbH), from the Federal Court of Auditors (Bundesrechnungshof — report under § 99 BHO, the Federal Budget Code, on bridge modernisation of 29 April 2025; report on the general refurbishment of high-performance corridors and on the Riedbahn of 11 June 2025), from Deutsche Bahn AG (2025 annual report), the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur, Telecommunications Annual Report 2025), the European Commission (2026 Digital Decade Country Report Germany), the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and State Modernisation (mobile network monitoring), from KfW Research and Difu (KfW Kommunalpanel 2026) and from the Federal Ministry of Finance (target-versus-actual overview of special fund disbursement in 2025). As of August 2026, subject to changes in the data.