The current organization Verband Deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen (VdV) was founded in 1991 with its headquarters in Cologne.

The predecessor is the Verband öffentlicher Verkehrsbetriebe (VöV) (Association of [German] Public Transport Companies) that was founded in 1949 in Stuttgart with main office in Essen until 1959 when it moved to Cologne.

With the Nazi Gleichschaltung its functions were integrated into the Reich Ministry of Transport (Reichsverkehrsministerium) requiring a new start after World War II.

Its first project in post-war times was to settle on a tramway model that could quickly replace the demolished vehicle fleet throughout.

A modern field of standardization is the e-ticketing with a VDV-Kernapplikation (VdV core application) that partner companies can use to provide new ticketing solutions.