Back on Track? Not so fast.

GDL ended its six-day strike against Deutsche Bahn early Monday, but drivers for Berlin's bus, subway and trams plan to strike on Friday.

Train drivers returned to work at Deutsche Bahn at 2 a.m. Monday morning, after agreeing to end their record six-day labor action sixteen hours earlier than planned.

For us, this meant my daughter could take her normal two trains and a bus to school in the morning, instead of one (longer, slower) subway and a bus.1 We are a car-free family. My husband normally bikes to his office and client locations. My son takes the local bus to his school, and I walk, bike or take the train wherever I need to go. My daughter takes the Berlin S-Bahn - which is operated by Deutsche Bahn - to get to her school on the other side of the city. My husband had to cancel a planned business trip to Stuttgart during the strike, but he was able to join the meeting by video conference, instead.

Our experience appears to echo that of rail passengers across the country, who either used other transit options (like our local ‘Öffi’ BVG), worked remotely, or got in their cars and drove.

The effect of the strike on loca…