Chaos on the rail: renovation between Hamburg and Berlin is delayed!

Chaos on the rail: renovation between Hamburg and Berlin is delayed!

The anticipation for a modernized rail connection between Hamburg and Berlin was suddenly clouded. As the Nordkurier , the Deutsche Bahn is planning during the upcoming nine-monate. Important route no European train security system, the European Train Control System (ETCS).

for Daniel Peters, the CDU's parliamentary group and state chief in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, this is a slap in the face. He sees the citizens in Westmecklenburg and the commuters in a dilemma: they expect solutions and no endless construction sites. "We need a complete renovation with ETCs, that is not negotiable," he explains. Peters criticizes the fact that the railways slow down people for months without really making the system really future -proof.

massive effects on commuters

The general renovation of the 280 -kilometer route between Hamburg and Berlin begins on August 1, 2025 and will cost around 2.2 billion euros. This sum not only causes unrest in the political, but also with the commuters, as in the report of ndr . Tens of thousands of commuters have to expect significant travel time extensions: commuters from Schwerin to Hamburg-Finkenwerder have to expect up to three hours, while school trips can expand from 30 minutes to an hour and a half.

The renovation, which represents the longest complete blocking of an important route in Germany, could also have an impact on the quality of rail replacement. Railway spokesman Achim Staus promises that the express buses will be equipped with toilets and WLAN. However, it is questionable whether this reduces displeasure.

technological residues and critical voices

One of the greatest loads is the decision of the Deutsche Bahn to initially suspend the installation of the ETCS. The railway states that the installation is too complex and expensive, and only expects realization in the early 2030s. The Federal Audit Office has already criticized the method as expected, while experts such as Andreas Müller-Goldenstedt from the “Bürgfabrik Bürgerbahn” question the poor condition of the route. He suggests distributing the work over several sections to maintain rail traffic.

The ETCS is part of the European Rail Traffic Management Systems and is intended to harmonize the train control across Europe. It aims to make different systems interoperable and increase the safety of the train journey. The delays in implementation show that Germany lags behind in this technological development. Climate change and the turnover of the traffic place additional requirements for the German rail system that require faster and more efficient solutions.

With this advancing renovation, not only the political decision -makers are responsible, but also the Deutsche Bahn. It remains to be seen whether and when the promised solutions really come and whether they can meet the legitimate expectations of the commuters.