Bicycle on DB Regio between Aschaffenburg and Frankfurt — ticket needed before 09:00?

Question

On a DB Regio train between Heigenbrücken (Bavaria, VAB, but also VAB/RMV transition area) and Frankfurt (Hessen, RMV), I had a disagreement with the conductor about whether I need a ticket for my bicycle or not when I travel with a Deutschlandticket. I thought it was free of charge, but she said that, although regular monthly passes include bicycle transport, with the Deutschlandticket I need an extra bicycle ticket if travelling before 09:00 on a weekday. She also said that any time a conductor allowed me to take it for free in the past, they were tolerating something I was not entitled to. She told me to check the terms and conditions for VAB, insisting that since I entered the train in the VAB area, it was irrelevant that my destination was in the RMV area or that I started in the VAB/RMV transition area. A different traveller with a bike was accused of committing a criminal offence (Straftat).

The Tarifbestimmungen VAB mention that for trips within the VAB area, only VAB tickets are sold and no Deutschlandtarif tickets, and lists the applicable railway sections:

Für Fahrten innerhalb des Verbundgebiets (Beginn und Ende der Fahrt liegen im Verbundgebiet) werden ausschließlich Fahrscheine nach dem VAB-Tarif ausgegeben. Es werden keine Fahrscheine nach dem Deutschlandtarif verkauft. Ausnahme siehe 2. In die VAB sind folgende Streckenabschnitte des Schienenverkehrs einbezogen: KBS 640 von Kahl am Main bis Aschaffenburg Hbf
KBS 642 von Schöllkrippen bis Kahl am Main
KBS 651 von Stockstadt bis Aschaffenburg Hbf
KBS 784 von Schneeberg bis Miltenberg
KBS 800 von Heigenbrücken bis Aschaffenburg Hbf
KBS 781 von Wertheim nach Aschaffenburg Hbf

and that on those railways, bicycles need a dedicated ticket between Monday and Friday before 09:00:

Eine kostenlose Mitnahme ist im Bereich der VAB aufgrund besonderer Vereinbarungen auf oben bezeichneten Kursbuchstrecken von Montag bis Freitag ab 09:00 Uhr; Samstag, Sonn- und Feiertags ganztägig möglich. Von Montag bis Freitag bis 09:00 Uhr ist eine Fahrradkarte zu lösen

But it also says that for tickets in the RMV-VAB transition area, RMV conditions apply:

11. RMV-VAB-Übergangstarif
    Für Fahrscheine des RMV-VAB-Übergangstarifes gelten die RMV-Tarifbestimmungen.

The RMV conditions make no mention of a 09:00 restriction. Bicycles can be taken free of charge at any time (unless the train is full, and they cannot be taken at all).

To make it yet more complicated, on the Deutschlandticket page at bahn.de it says that Sofern auf der tatsächlich genutzten Strecke oder im jeweils durchfahrenen Tarifgebiet die Mitnahme von Fahrrädern zum Zeitpunkt der Fahrt kostenfrei möglich ist, ist dies auch mit dem Deutschland-Ticket möglich — essentially stating that if a local ticket allows bringing a bicycle for free, then so does the Deutschlandticket.

A different conductor explained it to be such that one would have to pay to take a bicycle from Heigenbrücken to Kahl before 09:00, but not from Heigenbrücken to Hanau, because the former is within VAB entirely, whereas the latter is in the VAB-RMV transition area, such that the (more bicycle-friendly) RMV conditions apply. Rather strange, but possibly true.

Answer 1

Unfortunately the conductor who disagreed with you appears to be right.

Why does the rule from No. 11 not apply for you

Lets have another look at No. 11:

11. RMV-VAB-Übergangstarif
    Für Fahrscheine des RMV-VAB-Übergangstarifes gelten die RMV-Tarifbestimmungen.

11. RMV-VAB transition fare
    The RMV fare regulations apply to tickets of the RMV-VAB transition fare.

No. 11 clearly states that the RMV fare regulations apply to tickets of the RMV-VAB transition fare. Unfortunately the Deutschlandticket isn't a ticket of the RMV-VAB transition fare, it's a ticket of the Deutschlandtarif. As such, the rule from No. 11 does not apply to it.

So, which regulations apply?

The agreements between transit authorities cooperating in transition areas can be quite complicated, but usually the fare zones included in such areas still belong to only one of the involved authorities, and there is an agreement on which regulations apply for journeys crossing the border between both authorities.
Unfortunately, apart from the cited No. 11 neither the fare regulations of RMV nor VAB do not include such an agreement. Barring such an agreement, it is likely that the regulations of the local authority apply, which in your case I assume are the regulations of VAB:

Eine kostenlose Mitnahme ist im Bereich der VAB aufgrund besonderer Vereinbarungen auf oben bezeichneten Kursbuchstrecken von Montag bis Freitag ab 09:00 Uhr; Samstag, Sonn- und Feiertags ganztägig möglich. Von Montag bis Freitag bis 09:00 Uhr ist eine Fahrradkarte zu lösen.

In my opinion this is not only unnecessarily confusing, but also kinda shitty.