Deutsche Bahn should discontinue the express train connection between Frankfurt am Main and Brussels. It is not suitable as a reference project to promote rail travel to the Belgian capital with its EU institutions. Even the biggest fans of rail-based transport are put off by the poor state of this route. The fact that the carriages regularly set off uncleaned and with most toilets defective at the departure station – a given. Sometimes the first train in the morning does not depart from Brussels as planned, but only made it as far as Liège the previous evening. Then a train arrives but can’t depart because the train crew is stuck on a delayed suburban train. Punctuality is a matter of luck.