BT Berlin Transport GmbH

BT Berlin Transport GmbH (BT) is a transport company within the corporate group of Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) AöR, the public transport authority for Berlin, Germany. It is a 100 percent subsidiary of the BVG group and performs driving services on behalf of BVG in the bus and U-Bahn (metro) sectors. The company was founded on 2 July 1999 as part of a financial consolidation plan for the then financially strained state-owned BVG, and it began bus operations on 1 December 1999 with an initial four drivers. Tram and U-Bahn line operations followed at the end of 1999 and early 2000. Over the years, BT expanded its share of Berlin's public transport services to roughly 34 percent of transport performance at its peak, with around 1,950 employees at that time. Following the extension of the TV-N collective agreement to BT in 2007 and the return of the tram division to BVG in 2014, BT now focuses on bus and U-Bahn driving services. As of the end of 2023, the company employed around 1,750 people, making it the third-largest transport company in Berlin after BVG and S-Bahn Berlin GmbH. BT does not own its own vehicles; these are provided exclusively by the client BVG. The company is known for its lean management structure, with administrative staff making up less than 5 percent of the workforce, and for its 'virtual depot' concept, where each driver is equipped with a smartphone for duty scheduling, eliminating the need for physical depots. BT is a member of the Verband Deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen (VDV) and the Kommunaler Arbeitgeberverband (KAV).

BT Berlin Transport GmbH was founded on 2 July 1999 in Berlin as part of a financial consolidation plan for the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG), which was in a strained financial situation in the mid-1990s. The plan, agreed between the Berlin Senate and BVG, provided for the creation of a subsidiary not bound by the public service collective agreement, allowing new hires in the driving service to be employed at lower wages than in the parent company. BT began bus operations on 1 December 1999 with an initial four drivers. At the end of 1999 and beginning of 2000, it also started line operations for tram and U-Bahn. The company gradually increased its staff and, correspondingly, provided driving services on behalf of BVG AöR on BVG vehicles, initially in the bus division and from mid-2000 also in the U-Bahn and tram divisions. In the following years, BT's share of driving services in Berlin's public transport across bus, U-Bahn and tram was increased to around 34 percent of transport performance. At that time, BT had around 1,950 employees. With the introduction of the TV-N collective agreement in BVG AöR in 2005, the parties agreed that the scope of TV-N would be extended to BT from 1 September 2007, sending a clear signal toward equal pay for equal work. As part of the consolidation of collective regulations, the tram division was fully returned to BVG on 1 January 2014. At the end of 2023, the company employed around 1,750 people, making it the third-largest transport company in Berlin after BVG and S-Bahn Berlin GmbH. BT is a member of the Verband Deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen (VDV) and the Kommunaler Arbeitgeberverband (KAV).

• BT Berlin Transport GmbH founded in Berlin on 2 July 1999.

• Bus operations started on 1 December 1999 with four drivers.

• Tram and U-Bahn line operations started at the end of 1999/beginning of 2000.

• TV-N collective agreement extended to BT from 1 September 2007.

• Tram division fully returned to BVG on 1 January 2014.

• Around 1,750 employees at the end of 2023, making BT the third-largest transport company in Berlin.

Lean, digital personnel service provider for BVG's bus and U-Bahn operations, handling roughly one-third of BVG's transport performance.

• Bus driving services

  Driving services for BVG bus lines in Berlin.

• U-Bahn driving services

  Driving services for BVG U-Bahn lines, including U5 and U8.

1. 1Herzlich willkommen bei der BT! | Berlin transportberlintransport.de
2. 2Über uns | Berlin transportberlintransport.de
3. 3BT Berlin Transportwikidata.org
4. 4BT Berlin Transportde.wikipedia.org