The 49 euro ticket

Last summer, Germany had this "9 euro ticket" special offer where, for 9 euros a month, you could ride local busses and regional trains anywhere in the country. It wa a great deal, and it was phenominally successful.

This summer they're doing something similar. Although it's not quite as cheap as last year (it's 49 euros instead of 9) it's still better than the 90 euros I normally pay for a monthly bus pass.

The problem I have with it, though, is that it's not as accessible. With the 9 euro ticket last year, you could buy it just about anywhere. To get the 49 euro ticket this year, though, I've learned that you have to fill out this one form, then navigate through this one website, to then pay for it online.[Source] I'm not sure I want to spend as much time and effort as that would require.

So I think what I'll do is just use the Sammelkarte tickets for the rest of May. If I ride the bus to work, and take the shuttle to come home in the afternoon, it'll be cheaper that way anyway.