Because public transport will not be running on Friday evening, a solution had to be found for FC St. Pauli fans traveling to the stadium by train. This has now been found.

Due to the strike at Bogestra, there will be no public transportation in Gelsenkirchen on Friday. This also affects the second division match between FC Schalke 04 and FC St. Pauli. On Tuesday, S04 published a comprehensive package of measures to prevent complete chaos on arrival and departure.

In addition to the approximately 55,000 Schalke fans, the approximately 6,000 supporters of the league leaders are also affected. The Royal Blues have also come up with something for them in cooperation with the authorities.

There will be no cancellation of the match at short notice, as feared by parts of the St. Pauli fan scene. In any case, this would have been difficult to enforce at such short notice due to the statutes of the DFL.

Normally, Bogestra takes over the transportation of the visiting fans to the stadium in a convoy of shuttle buses. However, this is not possible due to the strike.

The walking distance between the main station and the Schalke Arena is a good seven kilometers. For most supporters, this is simply unreasonable and unfeasible. What’s more, the departure from this Friday evening game will take place in the dark at the latest. This would also be questionable from a safety point of view.

Private coaches step in

But now the miners have also presented a solution for the visiting fans traveling from Hamburg, some 300 kilometers away: The transportation of the visiting fans arriving at the main train station in Gelsenkirchen, which is otherwise carried out by Bogestra with shuttle buses, will be implemented with private buses, the club announced on Tuesday.

This should ensure that the FC St. Pauli supporters arrive at the Schalke Arena safely and on time for kick-off.