From August 26, 2023, another PlusBus line will start under the existing brand name PlusBus Oderland-Spree. Line 400 connects Beeskow and Eisenhüttenstadt according to the proven PlusBus criteria such as hourly intervals, direct connections to the train and regular trips on weekends. With Line 400, passengers in the Oder-Spree district now have four PlusBus lines at their disposal, and a total of 40 throughout the state of Brandenburg. All timetables can be found in the VBB-Fahrinfo on vbb.de and the VBB Bus & Bahn app.
By upgrading to PlusBus, the offer on line 400 (Beeskow <> Eisenhüttenstadt) is expanded weekdays in the morning and evening, in addition, more trips are offered on weekends (Saturday 7 pairs of trips, Sunday / holiday 5 pairs of trips). There are connections to the railroad in both directions in Eisenhüttenstadt (RE10/RB43 from/to Cottbus and Frankfurt/Oder) and on the relation Beeskow to Eisenhüttenstadt at the station Grunow (RB36 from/to Königs Wusterhausen). The line 400 is served by buses of BOS (Busverkehr Oder-Spree) and is already the fourth line in the Oder-Spree district after the three PlusBus lines introduced in December 2022 420 Erkner <> Neuenhagen (cross-county), 435 Fürstenwalde <> Storkow and 950 Strausberg <> Erkner (cross-county).
Guido Beermann, Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Planning of the State of Brandenburg: "With the new line 400 gets our successful Plus Bus family growth. Thus, we improve the mobility offer for citizens in the Oder-Spree district and make a further contribution to transport turnaround and climate protection. 40 Plus Bus routes throughout Brandenburg are an important milestone, but we are not resting on our laurels. To ensure that more and more vehicles with the Plus-Bus logo roll along our roads, we will continue to support municipal authorities in setting up PlusBus routes in the future."
Frank Steffen, Landrat Landkreis Oder-Spree: "With the fourth PlusBus of the Oderland-Spree brand, a significant contribution is made to the transport turnaround in a rural region. The PlusBus is not just a means of transport - it is a symbol of a future-oriented mobility, which increases the quality of life of people, optimizes the transport infrastructure and protects the environment."
Bernd Wölfel, Managing Director BOS: "We, the Busverkehr Oder-Spree, are very happy to implement this service improvement together with the task managers and look forward to gaining new passengers. Through the cycle service with the PlusBus we link rail and road even better. This will benefit schoolchildren, commuters and everyone who uses public transportation for shopping and leisure. In a next step, we want to supplement the PlusBus in rural areas with suitable on-demand services that can act as feeders to the interval service."
Ute Bonde, VBB Managing Director: "The number of PlusBus lines is growing and growing - currently at 40. This is a great success and works only through the intensive and good cooperation between transport companies, counties, state and VBB. Many thanks for that! For the timetable change in December, we are already looking forward to further lines that will be established under high quality standards. This is important because the bus and rail services in rural areas in particular need to become much more attractive. Only in such a way the traffic turn can be advanced also there further."
Background on the PlusBus concept
In this year 2023, two PlusBus lines have already been introduced in the Uckermark, more lines will follow at the timetable change in the Uckermark as well as in the district of Oberhavel. To ensure the consistent quality of PlusBus services, the lines operating under the PlusBus brand must meet agreed quality criteria. These include regular interval service, weekend service and a timely rail-bus transfer. Across Germany, there are already more than 140 PlusBus routes in six German states, 40 of which are in Brandenburg. More about PlusBus in Brandenburg at vbb.de/plusbus