Deutsche Bahn (DB) continues to invest in the infrastructure of the Rhine-Main region for more reliable traffic and more capacity. Wherever construction takes place, there will of course also be obstructions, train cancellations and other effects on passengers. Commuters and students are particularly affected. In order to burden them as little as possible, DB will focus on bundling numerous individual projects during the Easter holidays and will increasingly work at night. From the March 31st to April 24th (Start of operation) DB renews the tracks and points in the Frankfurt City Tunnel, the main line of the Rhein-Main S-Bahn. There is also work in the stations in the Offenbach City Tunnel. Due to the demanding construction workload, the S-Bahn trains will not be able to use the tunnels from Frankfurt Hauptwache to Offenbach East or Frankfurt South during the Easter holidays. The preparations for the work begin on March 5th, especially during the night hours. Parallel goes from March 31 to April 17 the construction of its own tracks for the S6 between Frankfurt West and Bad Vilbel. In addition, construction work is required in the Bad Vilbel and Eschersheim areas from February 3rd to March 13th. Modernization and expansion of the rail network in the greater Frankfurt area are associated with route closures and extensive changes to the timetable. During the construction phases, the main station can still be reached from all directions.
During the Easter holidays, buses are used as a substitute for the S-Bahn trains in the Offenbach – Frankfurt section. These run from Offenbach about every five minutes to various end points in Frankfurt. In addition, the S8 runs every half hour from Offenbach Ost to Frankfurt-Süd/Flughafen and the S1 to Offenbach main station and partly Frankfurt. During the construction work for the S6, the S-Bahn between Groß Karben and Frankfurt West/Hauptbahnhof will be replaced by regional and express buses, which run every 30 minutes. The regional trains in/from central Hesse run via Hanau to Frankfurt main station or end in Hanau, Frankfurt Süd or Offenbach. In addition, the DB uses trains that commute every hour on weekdays from Friedberg via Friedrichsdorf to Frankfurt and back.
The ICE and IC will be diverted via Kassel, Fulda and Darmstadt in the first two weeks of the Easter holidays. Some trains cannot stop at Frankfurt Central Station as usual.
Deutsche Bahn asks all passengers for their understanding of the resulting restrictions and inconveniences during the construction work and recommends taking www.rmv.de, www.bahn.de or to find out about travel and connection options in the DB Navigator. All connections are published in the passenger media of DB and RMV. It also shows what alternatives there are for travelers, for example by subway, tram or bus. A detailed overview of timetable changes and replacement services will also be available on the website from mid-February: http://bahn.de/ersatzverkehr-rhein-main. Posters, notices, signage and information sheets will also be available on site from March. DB and RMV also provide information on display boards in the stations and S-Bahn trains.
An overview of the effects of the Easter construction sites on train traffic
Train
The S-Bahn traffic is interrupted during the construction work between Frankfurt Hauptwache and Frankfurt Süd/Offenbach Ost. A replacement service with buses will be offered for the canceled trains.
· Lines S1, S2 and S9 run from Wiesbaden or Niedernhausen to Frankfurt Hauptwache. Line S1 also runs from Frankfurt to Rödermark-Oberroden, line S2 between Offenbach Ost and Dietzenbach.
· Lines S3 and S4 run from Bad Soden/Kronberg to Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof and from Frankfurt Süd to Langen/Darmstadt.
· Line S5 runs between Friedrichsdorf and Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof.
· For the S6 trains, there will be a replacement bus service between Friedberg and Frankfurt from March 31 to April 3. From 3 to 17 April inclusive, DB will also be using buses on the Groß Karben – Frankfurt section. In the last week of the Easter holidays (April 18th to 24th), the S6 between Friedberg and Frankfurt West is back on the road as usual.
· Passengers on line S7 can use the S-Bahn in the usual way.
· The S8 runs from Wiesbaden to Hanau and is diverted between Frankfurt Stadion and Offenbach Ost via Frankfurt Süd.
regional transport
· RE 30 (Kassel – Marburg – Gießen – Frankfurt): In the period from February 3rd to March 12th, the trains will run on alternative routes at the weekends. Between March 31st and April 17th, DB will divert trains from Friedberg via Hanau to Frankfurt Central Station. This leads to longer travel times and no stops.
RB 34 (Glauburg-Stockheim – Bad Vilbel – Frankfurt): Trains start/end in Niederdorfelden on the weekends from February 3rd to March 12th and in Bad Vilbel between March 6th and 10th. On the weekends from March 31st to April 17th, the trains start/end in Niederdorfelden; Monday to Friday they drive from/to Bad Vilbel. The DB sets up a replacement service with buses for the passengers.
· RB 48 (Nidda – Beienheim – Friedberg – Frankfurt): From March 6th to 10th the trains will use detours, which is why the stops in Frankfurt West and Bad Vilbel cannot be offered. Between March 31st and April 17th the trains end in Friedberg. The DB is also setting up an hourly shuttle service that runs for passengers Monday to Friday between Friedberg and Frankfurt via Friedberg Süd, Rosbach, Rodheim, Burgholzhausen and Friedrichsdorf.
· RB 40/41 (Treysa/Dillenburg – Gießen – Friedberg – Frankfurt): From February 3rd to March 12th, trains will be diverted on the weekends and daily from March 6th to 10th and turn around at Hanau Central Station. Travel times are extended and stops are cancelled. From March 31st to April 17th, the trains run daily to Hanau, serving all intermediate stops.
· RB 49 (Giessen – Friedberg – Hanau): From February 3rd to March 12th there will be no weekend trains, from March 31st to April 17th there will generally be no trains between Friedberg and Hanau. Alternatively, passengers can use the RB 40/41.
long-distance
There are timetable deviations for the ICE/IC in the first two weeks of vacation:
· ICE line Hamburg – Hanover – Giessen – Frankfurt – Karlsruhe: The DB redirects the trains via the route Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Fulda – Frankfurt South – Darmstadt. As a result, the ICE cannot stop at Frankfurt Central Station and on the Main-Weser-Bahn (Giessen – Friedberg – Frankfurt). Instead, the ICE stop in Frankfurt South.
· IC line Münster – Dortmund – Siegen – Wetzlar – Frankfurt: The trains start/end during the construction work in Friedberg. The IC does not stop in Frankfurt West and Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof.
· ICE line Dortmund – Cologne – Frankfurt – Nuremberg – Ingolstadt – Munich: The DB diverts the trains between Frankfurt Airport long-distance station and Aschaffenburg on a large scale. They do not stop at Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof.
In the last week of the Easter holidays, the trains run regularly according to the timetable.
Information on the construction work between Frankfurt Hauptwache and Offenbach Ost or Frankfurt Süd during the Easter closure (March 31 – April 24)
The rail infrastructure in the S-Bahn tunnel is used by around 1,100 trains every day. To ensure that traffic on this artery can continue to roll reliably over the next few years, DB is replacing nine kilometers of rails during the Easter holidays and replacing four points each at the Frankfurt Konstablerwache and Frankfurt Mühlberg stations. The specialists are renewing two more switches at the so-called Abzweig Schlachthof, where the Frankfurt City Tunnel branches off to Frankfurt Süd and Offenbach. At the same time, DB is working on platforms, fire protection systems and tunnel walls in the Offenbach City Tunnel. Tunnel emergency lighting and escape and rescue routes are also on the agenda for renewal. In addition, the overhead line systems are inspected and the four military chamber gates below the Main are serviced.
DB begins preparations during the night from March 5th. Among other things, the specialists assemble large switch parts and install a ventilation system. This serves to protect the employees of DB and contractors as well as the passengers in the tunnel stations that are still used during the work. The ventilation derives and filters the emissions generated during construction. This is done via the Frankfurt Ostendstraße S-Bahn station, which must therefore be completely closed from March 27 (1:40 a.m.) to April 28 (4:20 a.m.). By May 8, DB will be expanding the ventilation system again, which will require a few more nightly closures. During the summer holidays, DB will continue work in the area around Frankfurt’s southern railway station. DB will provide additional information on this separately.
Information on the construction work in the project “Own tracks for the S6” during the Easter break (March 31 to April 17)
During the track closures in spring 2023, DB compact will carry out a large number of tasks. A large part concentrates on the area around the station in Eschersheim. After completion of the construction work in April, the next two kilometers of new tracks can be put into operation. In addition, DB in Eschersheim is dismantling existing tracks and carrying out earthwork, track construction and overhead line work. Also on the agenda for April is the partial demolition of the existing platform and the construction of noise protection walls. In the Bad Vilbel area, deep drainage and work on the overhead lines are being carried out north of the station. The DB is building masts for new train signals at various points along the entire route.
The S6 will have its own tracks between Frankfurt West and Bad Vilbel and will run on them more reliably, more punctually and at regular intervals in the future. Regional and long-distance traffic will also benefit from the additional capacity on the route.
