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Deutsche Bahn’s 2024 timetable will apply from December 10, 2023. Passengers from NRW benefit from longer trains and new connections.
Cologne – Significant change at Deutsche Bahn: From December 10, 2023, exactly two weeks before Christmas Eve, there will be a complete timetable change. From then on, the 2024 timetable will officially apply. According to Deutsche Bahn, there will then be more long-distance rail connections than there have been in 20 years. With the start of the new timetable, more trains will also run to and from North Rhine-Westphalia. 24RHEIN gives an overview of the upcoming innovations.
Winter railway timetable from December 10, 2023: What changes are there for NRW?
From December 10, 2023, more trains will run between Cologne and Berlin (archive photo). © Imago/Arnulf Hettrich
There is a big change on the route between North Rhine-Westphalia and Berlin. According to the DB, longer trains should be used there on the existing long-distance routes. According to Deutsche Bahn, this increases the number of seats for travelers by 20 to 25 percent. In addition, around 40 percent more ICE stops to and from Berlin will be offered for Bielefeld than before.
There is also a new ICE line Berlin-Wuppertal-Cologne that runs every two hours. This means that there is no longer any need to split and couple the ICE train in Hamm every two hours. “This shortens the travel time between the Rhine and Spree by up to ten minutes and the ICE trains via Dortmund and Düsseldorf can then run every two hours with double capacity,” says Deutsche Bahn.
Compact changes for rail travelers between North Rhine-Westphalia and Berlin
► On the existing long-distance transport lines are through longer trains between 20 and 25 percent more places created for passengers
► New ICE line Berlin–Wuppertal–Cologne: Train sharing in Hamm no longer occurs every two hours
► At 30 minutes drive in Long-distance train off or after NRW between Hannover and Berlin
As a result of the timetable change, there will be significantly more train connections from NRW to Berlin from December 10th. © Deutsche Bahn AG
Faster by train from NRW to Holland
According to Deutsche Bahn, the travel time on the two-hour intercity line Berlin–Hannover–Osnabrück–Rheine–Amsterdam is reduced by around 30 minutes. This is achieved through the use of multi-system locomotives, which eliminate the need for time-consuming locomotive changes at the border, according to the railway. From Rheine in North Rhine-Westphalia, the journey time to Amsterdam will in future be around 2 hours and 25 minutes. In the future, departures from Amsterdam will take place every two hours from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Deutsche Bahn: From Düsseldorf take the ICE straight to the sea
According to Deutsche Bahn, with the new 2024 timetable, an existing ICE from Stuttgart will travel on Saturdays via Siegburg/Bonn (from 8:31 a.m.) and Düsseldorf (9:14 a.m.) without changing trains via Münster to Emden and to the Norddeich Mole ferry pier (arrival at 12:59 p.m.). ).
Deutsche Bahn winter timetable: More trips between Berlin and Munich
Deutsche Bahn is also offering more long-distance journeys between Berlin and Munich from December 10th. Twice as many sprinters as before will be used on the route. This means there will also be up to 25 percent more seats between Berlin and Bavaria. According to the railway, the following changes are planned:
ICE line Berlin–Nuremberg–Munich: Additional Sprinter line creates up to 14 trips in each direction per day. In addition, the new Sprinter line Berlin–Nuremberg–Munich the cities three times a day with no additional stops. This means passengers can reach their destination around 15 minutes faster
Winter train timetable: journeys from Berlin to Amsterdam up to 30 minutes faster
On the Berlin-Hannover-Amsterdam route, travel time will be reduced by around 30 minutes with the start of the winter timetable. “This is achieved through the use of multi-system locomotives, which eliminate the time-consuming change of locomotives at the border, and a new stopping concept on this line,” said the railway.
2024 timetable for the railway: More trains also around Magdeburg and Leipzig
The railway will also increase its offering in other regions in the future. This affects both the east of Germany around Jena and Leipzig, as well as the north with numerous new connections to Hamburg and Rostock via Magdeburg. From December 2023, long-distance traffic there should look like this:
IC route Leipzig–Jena–Nuremberg:
► A Deutsche Bahn Intercity (IC) 2 will run between the cities five times a day and will be 30 minutes faster than a regional express
► Several cities will be reconnected with the Intercity, including Rudolstadt (Thuringia) and Ludwigsstadt (Bavaria) every two hours
► More direct connections to and from Stuttgart and Karlsruhe
► ICE connections, such as from Leipzig to Berlin
New direct connections from Magdeburg
► Magdeburg – Hamburg for the first time as a direct connection
► Magdeburg – Schwerin/Rostock
► Magdeburg – Berlin
► All connections should be up to 90 minutes faster than the previous rail lines
On routes from Magdeburg, trains run up to 90 minutes faster. © Deutsche Bahn AG
Bahn will use new vehicles in 2024 and offer more night traffic
There will also be changes to the vehicles used on the routes from December 10th. In the future, the ICE 4 will also travel across borders to Austria, replacing the intercity trains previously used. “The DB is putting further modern ICE 3neo trains, some with new interior design, on the rails between North Rhine-Westphalia, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Munich, as soon as approval is available, also on the routes to Amsterdam and Brussels,” said the railway. According to Deutsche Bahn, new Railjet trains from the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) will also replace the EC trains in Brenner traffic between Munich and Italy.
ÖBB and DB are expanding their cooperation in night traffic. From December 10th, ÖBB and Deutsche Bahn will be offering Nightjet connections from Berlin to Paris and Brussels. The new ÖBB couchette cars will also be used. According to Deutsche Bahn, the new night train connection will initially run three times a week. From autumn 2024, the Nightjets will even operate daily. In addition, further night trains are planned in Germany.
Train timetable change: Tickets can be booked from October 11th
According to the railway, tickets for the new winter timetable can be purchased from October 11th. The tickets should then be available both online and in local travel centers. It is likely that the prices for long-distance tickets will rise. “Of course, we also have to think about our fares in view of the general price development,” said Michael Peterson, railway board member for long-distance transport, to the German Press Agency (dpa). “We will inform passengers about this in good time in October.” (jr) Fairly and independently informed about what is happening in Cologne, Düsseldorf and North Rhine-Westphalia – subscribe to our free 24RHEIN newsletter here.
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