NRW railway renovations: More space and service for commuters from 2026!

NRW railway renovations: More space and service for commuters from 2026!

train drivers in North Rhine-Westphalia must adapt to major changes that will affect both the RE3 and the RE41 line. This was recently announced by the Rhein-Ruhr Transport Association (VRR), which promises the decisions to award the new operator contracts VIAS Rail GmbH. From December 2026, the "Express Network Emscher" will operate, which extends from Düsseldorf via Duisburg, Oberhausen and Gelsenkirchen to Hamm and from Bochum to Haltern am See. This marks the end of the previous contracts with the DB Regio NRW, which has operated the lines up to this point.

improvements for passengers

passengers can look forward to a significantly improved travel experience, as these changes are provided with more seats in the trains. The new “Stadler Flirt” vehicles offer around 270 seats, while the RE3 will consist of two cars from 2026, which increases the capacity to about 540 seats. Service quality should also improve the introduction of train attendants every trip by being available as a contact for travelers. This comes particularly in a context in which despite the last deletions of 15 train connections in NRW due to a lack of personnel, an improvement in the service is targeted, such as ruHR24.de reported.

The new transport contract initially runs until the end of 2030, which brings planning security for passengers. The timetable offer remains the same on both lines, which means that the travel times remain unchanged according to the VRR. Nevertheless, the passengers have to prepare for waiting for the new vehicles to run on the routes from December 2030 from December 2030, since the award procedures will only start in spring 2025. These measures to improve capacities and service together and the VRR shape together in order to meet the needs of train drivers in NRW, as well as lok-report.de