Finally: New elevators at Leverkusen Mitte station are ready!

Finally: New elevators at Leverkusen Mitte station are ready!

The Leverkusen Mitte train station, marked as completed for over a year, still has to struggle with an unpleasant lack of accessibility. Travelers with walking disabilities or wheelchair users in particular are affected by this state, since the elevators planned for the train station to the tracks 1, 2 and 3 and 4 have so far not been installed. The situation has caused a lot of resentment since September 2023, but now there is hope for soon.

The Deutsche Bahn, which is responsible for implementation, announced that significant progress has been made in recent weeks. The shaft scaffolding for the three new elevators have now been installed and the work on this was completed in September 2023. The installation of cabinet technology is now to follow in October. The railway expressed the optimistic assumption that these new elevators can be put into operation by the end of the year.

challenges and frustrations

Despite this pleasant news, the lack of the elevators does not remain without consequences. Wheelchair users are often dependent on the help of fellow travelers to reach the platforms, since only a barrier -free access to platform 5 is available. In the past few months, this emergency has led to small demonstrations of those affected who drew attention to the unsustainable circumstances.

Deutsche Bahn also referred to alternative stops in its communications that are equipped with lifts, such as Leverkusen Chempark and Leverkusen Küppersteg. However, there are only trains of the S6 line, which significantly limits travelers' options.

As if the situation of the elevators were not already challenging enough, the ticket service at the train station has also developed negatively. The regional transport operator Go Rhineland has hired the order to provide staff at the train station, which meant that the small travel center in the provisional container buildings has been closed since the end of June 2023. This has made the general accessibility of information and services for travelers considerably more difficult.

Overall, it remains to be seen whether the railway can adhere to its schedule for commissioning the elevators and whether further measures are taken to sustainably improve the situation at the Leverkusen train station. However, the previous developments offer a ray of hope that travelers with restrictions could soon receive the necessary support.

For more information on the developments at Leverkusen train station, see the current reporting on www.ksta.de .