The German rail service Deutsche Bahn (DB) and the country’s transport ministry (BMVI) have sealed a contract that will see investments in the state-owned company at a record 86 billion euros by 2030. “The 2020s will be a golden age for Deutsche Bahn,” said transport minister Andreas Scheuer, calling the investments “the biggest modernisation programme that ever existed in Germany.”

The funds will be primarily used for updating grid infrastructure and train stations as well as gearing DB’s power supply further towards renewables, the company said, according to Clean Energy Wire.

Scheuer said a “strong railway” would lay the groundwork for “active climate protection in the transport sector.” The government contribu tes 62 billion euros to the investment programme and DB another 24 billion, meaning that the company’s annual budget available for replacements and maintenance increases by more than 50 percent compared to the last round of financing, said the ministry. DB said it plans to modernise about 2,000 kilometres of tracks every year and 2,000 railway bridges over the next decade.