Couple takes off the mask to drink coffee – and is thrown out of the ICE

After a short vacation on Rügen, a Berlin couple took the train back to Berlin on New Year’s Eve, reports the ” Tagesspiegel “. The two women started around 10 a.m., with a three-and-a-half-hour train ride they should have been back in Berlin at 1:30 p.m.

However, the journey ended early for them because they were thrown out by the conductor in Pasewalk.

The couple had a compartment to themselves – and decided against the mask

The train was fairly empty, the couple had a compartment to themselves. So, like at home, they decided to omit the masks. When the ticket was checked by the conductor, they were warned and put on the masks. They described this to the “Tagesspiegel”.

A little later, however, they made a snack, the conductor watched them from the corridor. With evil looks and gestures, he pointed out the masks to the women. They put on their masks again, but finished their sandwiches.

The situation escalated while drinking coffee

However, when the women bought a coffee around 12 p.m., the situation escalated. “A little later, this very aggressive DB employee came into our compartment with a colleague without warning and told us to leave the train,” the couple reported. The women explained that drinking coffee with a mask was impossible. But this argument and the attempt to apologize and defuse the situation was unsuccessful – they had to get off in Pasewalk.

Half an hour later the next ICE stopped there – they were allowed to ride.

Deutsche Bahn sees no fault in itself

When asked by the “Tagesspiegel”, the railway said that the employee had acted correctly. “After the employee had pointed out to the passengers twice that they were required to wear masks, they were excluded from the journey.” It is irrelevant whether a shared household is in one compartment. However, the mask may be removed for a short time to eat and drink.

It is not known how often passengers were thrown out during the Corona years. There are no statistics on travel exclusions.

The mask requirement on regional trains has already been abolished in several federal states. A few days after the incident, it became known that the states of Berlin and Brandenburg also want to abolish the obligation to use local transport.