Berlin-Hamburg train route closed for several months

The railway is under construction and is slowing down. 30,000 passengers a day between Berlin and Hamburg will face a seemingly endless test of nerves starting Friday.

One of Germany’s most important rail connections will be closed twice starting Friday for several months each time. The infrastructure of the route between Berlin and Hamburg is outdated and is to be extensively renovated. To do this, the connection will be interrupted twice for several months.

The first closure begins this Friday. What passengers need to know now …

How long will the Berlin-Hamburg route be closed?

The construction work is scheduled to last from this Friday until the timetable change on December 14. This will result in significant restrictions in long-distance and regional traffic for around four months. “Among other things, more than 74 kilometers of tracks and 100 switches between Wittenberge and Ludwigslust as well as between Hamburg and Büchen and around Hagenow Land will be renewed,” the railway announced.

A woman boards a train to Altona at Berlin Central Station – but it takes longer for the rest of the year Photo: Paul Zinken/dpa

What is running during the closure?

The long-distance trains will be diverted west via Stendal, Salzwedel, Uelzen and Lüneburg. This will increase the journey time by 45 minutes. Because this route is partly only accessible on one track, only one long-distance train per hour will run between the two largest German cities instead of the previous two. A replacement bus service will be set up for commuters between Hamburg and Wittenberge, which will also run via Ludwigslust. The connections have already been incorporated into the online timetables and can be accessed via the usual channels.

Are there any other restrictions?

Yes. Construction work will also begin between Hamburg and Schwerin starting Friday – until September 29th. During this time, no ICE trains will run there. There is a direct connection with replacement buses. In addition, there is an Intercity train running via Lübeck every day.

Another important high-speed route, however, is now open again: there are no longer any restrictions between Cologne and Frankfurt.

Is this already the general renovation?

No. From August 2025 to April 2026 there will be another closure between the Hanseatic City and the capital. Tracks, switches, overhead lines, control and safety technology – everything is to be renewed during these almost nine months.

Why doesn’t the railway do the work at the same time and only close the line once?

Because the route is so outdated that some work can no longer wait. “The construction work in 2024 is necessary so that trains can continue to run at full speed and there are fewer disruptions to the infrastructure,” says a presentation by Deutsche Bahn.

Deutsche Bahn is less punctual than it has been for years

Deutsche Bahn is more unpunctual than it has been for many years. In the first half of 2024, almost one in three long-distance trains was late. The company attributes this primarily to the dilapidated infrastructure, in which too little investment has been made for decades. The federal government now wants to make up for this by investing billions. With each main corridor renovated, reliability across the entire rail network should gradually improve.