Month-long lockdown
Construction contracts awarded for railway renovation between Hamburg and Berlin
Doubts arose as to whether the railway would be able to adhere to its schedule for the general renovation. But she has now made good progress on one of her biggest projects.
For the planned modernization of the Hamburg-Berlin railway line next year, Deutsche Bahn (DB) has awarded the construction contracts for a large part of the corridor – it is sticking to the schedule despite doubts that have been raised. The railway announced that the contract was awarded for the sections between Berlin-Spandau and Nauen as well as between Nauen and Büchen. “The DB will continue the general renovation of the heavily used rail network next year as planned.”
A total of four companies were awarded the contract, including the Bau railway group, which is part of the DB. The remaining section between Büchen and Hamburg is expected to be awarded in April 2025. The planning for this was underway. “This has no impact on the schedule for the general renovation,” it said.
General renovation: route closed for almost nine months
Construction work is scheduled to begin in August next year and last until April 2026. The route between Hamburg and Berlin will be completely closed during this time. Freight and passenger traffic will be largely rerouted. In total, the railway wants to renew 181 kilometers of tracks, more than 200 switches and around 70 kilometers of overhead lines.
The railway is upgrading the sections between Berlin and Nauen and between Hamburg and Büchen with the digital train control system ETCS. The remaining section between Büchen and Nauen will not be equipped with this technology until 2030.
The busy corridor, on which around 30,000 passengers travel every day, is part of a large-scale renovation program by Deutsche Bahn. In the coming years, more than 40 busy routes will be modernized in order to make the railway more reliable again.
Doubts about the schedule
Due to the traffic lights being turned off, doubts had recently arisen as to whether the schedule for the renovations could still be adhered to. So far, the federal government has not received funding commitments for many routes because the supplementary budget has not yet been passed. The minority government made up of the SPD and the Greens is dependent on the votes of the opposition.
The Union’s chairman in the transport committee, Christoph Ploß, has now announced that he will continue to financially support the all-round renovation between Hamburg and Berlin. “The renovation can also take place in 2025,” he told the “Hamburger Abendblatt”. “It is good that the incumbent government and the Union are pulling together on the general renovation of Berlin-Hamburg,” said Dirk Flege, managing director of the pro-rail Alliance Alliance.
dpa
Source: Stern
