Week-long closures begin on Berlin light rail

Since this Thursday, Berlin's inner-city light rail section (Stadtbahn) has been closed to long-distance and regional traffic between the main and east stations for several weeks.

However, the S-Bahn trains will continue to run as usual and are not affected, a rail spokesman stressed on Thursday. Regional trains as well as IC and ICE trains, on the other hand, will not be running on the route initially until May 25. Passengers must adjust to different travel times and other departure and destination stations. The Berlin light rail system is one of the busiest routes in Germany.

Repair of the section between Hauptbahnhof and Ostbahnhof

The closure specifically concerns the section between Hauptbahnhof and Ostbahnhof. According to Deutsche Bahn, the latter will be repaired between May 11 and 25 and from June 9 to July 1. According to the railroad, numerous trains will not be able to stop at the main station during this time. There will also be cancellations.

Renewal of long-distance railroad rails

"In order to ensure the stability of the systems on the Berlin light rail, the rails of the mainline are being renewed," the railroad had already announced in February. In addition, there was damage to around 1,000 fastening points of the fixed guideway, it said. "These are now being stabilized as a first step." Since the general renovation in the 1990s, ballastless tracks, the so-called solid track, have been installed on the light rail.