Indeed. That's because they were (visibly) accountable for the functionality of these networks. That changed with the fake privatisation.
Discussion
That's true, but don't forget that inflation has a large role to play here, too.
The so-called government made something worse:
What does the inflation have to do with the government not maintaining the rail network. To an extend that costs lives?
Inflation makes everything more expensive, also everything Die Bahn has to pay and the expenses of the government. So, inflation forces everyone to cut expenses. In other words, everyone has to make their product cheaper, so that they don't have to rise their prices at the same rate the money inflates.
I get you now. The thing is, travelling with train in Germany is literally more expensive than flying these days unless you book weeks in advance (just like for flights). The cost vs service when travelling with DB makes no sense any more. Where I live the rails are overgrown including along the platforms of the stations. Fences around the station property are broken down. When arriving the city's name on the entry points is unreadable. The counter is closed most of the time, only ticketing machine. Oh, and last year a train derailed on the way to Garmisch costing actual lives.
I completely support your frustration. Besides inflation and corrupt practices, there are two more factors at play here:
1. The Deutschlandticket makes the cheaper trains very overused, which lowers the quality of the service a lot.
2. Germany is a "car country". There are literally laws, which state that using cars *has* to be better than using public transport.
I'm not really frustrated just pointing out how fucked up all of this is.
Agree on 1 and 2!