Berlin-Hamburg railway line: end of the closure – but the next construction chaos is calling!

Berlin-Hamburg railway line: end of the closure – but the next construction chaos is calling!

The railway line between Berlin and Hamburg will be open to traffic again from the weekend after a six-month closure. This connection is one of the busiest in Germany with up to 30,000 passengers daily. During this time, Deutsche Bahn (DB) carried out extensive work on the route, replacing more than 74 kilometers of tracks and 100 switches. The main construction sites were between Ludwigslust and Wittenberge as well as in the Hagenow Land area and between Hamburg and Büchen, like ndr.de reported. From December 15, 2024, the old timetables will apply again.

A look into the future

But the joy of the approval is only short-lived: a comprehensive general renovation is scheduled for August 2025, which will close the route again for nine months. This work is necessary to bring the infrastructure up to date, including replacing the ballast, sleepers and rails as well as overhead lines. Modern train control systems should also be installed to optimize traffic. How hamburg-berlin.deutschebahn.com explains, during the renovation, long-distance traffic will be rerouted and regional trains will be replaced by buses.

However, the railway and transport union has raised concerns because not all of the planned work was included in the general renovation. It is essential to promptly install the so-called European Train Control System (ETCS) on the entire route in order to optimize the use of the railway line and reduce delays. DB spokesman Achim Stauß confirms that due to high costs, some measures will have to be postponed to a later period and adds that the next series of work will not be due until 2030/31.