Before starting my record attempt between Kemijärvi, Finland and Lagos, Portugal, people told me over and over it would break down in Germany. So much so that I even tried to re-but (pre-but?) some of the likely critique.
Now, having made the trip, and none of the total
I think there really are two loud groups at work here. The first being people that know how the DB used to be (always on time whatever the weather, though this is also heavily influenced by rose-tinted glasses, survivor bias and nostalgia) and secondly people that like to hate on Germany (Germans that mostly hate modern Germany as they themselves are from 1933 and those that see the DB as an opportunity to smear some dirt on the label of German efficiency). Now I presume that, like with everything nowadays that is happening online, there’s a lot of propaganda and lobbying involved.
But to be fair, it is frustrating to be late when you have no influence on it. In the car at least you get the idea that you have some influence on your delay, false as that feeling may be.
The problem with the high workload of the train infrastructure is also one of the reasons for the amount of roadworks in Germany. Germany simply has the highest traffic in Europe overall. Partly because it is the largest economy, but also because it is located right the center of the EU. A lot of cross border traffic will cross Germany.
It is unfair to just dismiss criticism of Deutsche Bahn as being either naive or some kind of excuse to hate on Germany. I really like most things about Germany, so much that I migrated here 10 years ago. But Deutsche Bahn is absolutely awful. So, so many times I’ve ended up stranded after missing my connection. At least twice I was left behind because the train had only a single carriage and was so packed full that literally not a single person more could fit inside. Many times trains were simply cancelled, with no prior notice and with no replacement (not even bus). I hate car travel, but even so the only way I travel with DB now is if I have absolutely no deadline that day.
And on top of that all, DB has the audacity to charge the prices of a top tier rail provider, especially if you don’t know 6 months in advance that you will need to travel. Oh and if a train is cancelled / overpacked / inexcusably late, you think you will get a refund on your expensive ticket? Of course not! Just suck it up and wait for a different train, no matter how long the wait and no matter how much it messes up your plans.
and you still use DB rather than driving.