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Train disaster between Hanover and Göttingen: closure until January!
On December 23rd, 2025 there was a route closure in the Elze area due to a freight train derailment. Restrictions and replacement traffic over the holidays!
Train disaster between Hanover and Göttingen: closure until January!
On December 23, 2025, a serious incident occurred on the railway line between Hanover and Göttingen, causing massive disruption. A freight train derailed in the Elze area, Hildesheim district, which led to the complete closure of the route between Nordstemmen and Banteln. According to Hildesheimer Presse, the closure is expected to last until the beginning of January.
This incident occurred on Tuesday morning and resulted in significant damage to the infrastructure. The tracks, switches, signaling systems and also the overhead lines are badly damaged. Fortunately, there were no injuries, but train traffic on the metronom line RE2 is significantly affected, as the trains only run between Hanover and Barnten as well as Göttingen and Banteln. The trains are also faced with delays because they have to turn around at the end points of the closure and return under a new train number Eisenbahn Magazin reports.
Emergency measures and alternatives
In order to guarantee affected travelers a certain degree of mobility, the operating company metronom has set up a stable emergency bus service between Barnten and Banteln. These shuttle buses also serve Nordstemmen and Elze (Han). Passengers should plan more time and find out about the current restrictions on the metronom website.
There is also ongoing information via metronom's official WhatsApp channel, which sends push messages to passengers in the event of major disruptions and timetable changes. Especially over the holidays, the situation could become more complicated than travelers might imagine, given the replacement traffic and disruptions.
Overarching context for rail safety
The incident once again shows how important it is to ensure the safety of the railway infrastructure. According to Federal Ministry for Mobility and Innovation, rail traffic in Austria, but also in Germany, is regulated by constant safety investigations and reporting. While there has been a slight decline in “significant accidents” in recent years, such incidents show that challenges remain.
The restrictions on the route between Hanover and Göttingen are a wake-up call to focus on maintaining the rail infrastructure and increasing safety for all passengers.
The passengers can only hope that the repair work will progress quickly so that regular train services can be restored soon. All travelers now need a lot of patience and planning to get from A to B safely.