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Chaos on the rails: Berlin-Hamburg railway line closed for nine months!
Neustadt provides information about the long closure of the Berlin-Hamburg railway line from August 2025 and its impact on commuters.
Chaos on the rails: Berlin-Hamburg railway line closed for nine months!
A striking news flash from the traffic sector: The A24 between Hamburg and Berlin will be closed for a total of nine months in the coming months. The closure will come into force on August 1, 2025 and serves the urgently needed renewal of asphalt, the replacement of guardrails and the renovation of rest stops. This is reported by the Berlin newspaper. But that is not the only construction site: the railway line between these two metropolises will also be affected at the same time.
The restrictions on the tracks begin parallel to the road closure and lead to a total standstill of regular train traffic over a distance of almost 280 kilometers. Not a single train will be able to run between Berlin-Spandau and Hamburg-Rothenburgsort until April 30, 2026. This represents the longest peacetime operational interruption in Germany.
Watchful through the train station
The impact is huge, especially for commuters and local transport travelers. According to the VBB Travel times can be extended by up to 3 hours and 40 minutes if, for example, you want to travel from Wittenberge to Berlin. Long-distance transport services will be reduced by around 50%, and the ICE trains used during the construction-related diversion will take almost an hour longer.
Deutsche Bahn, which is focusing on infrastructure as part of its comprehensive renovation program, is planning to install six additional transfer points to improve flexibility. CEO Richard Lutz emphasizes the urgency of the renovation: “We want to restore rail performance and improve the customer experience by 2027,” Lutz continued German railway reported.
A bunch of challenges
Criticism of the inadequate replacement concepts is growing. Heiner Monheim from Bürgerbahn calls for the planned total closure to be canceled and alternative renovation concepts to be developed instead. Wilfried Kramer from the German Transport Club emphasizes that it is time to present realistic and usable solutions. The federal government is also relying on high-quality rail replacement transport (SEV). More than 170 buses will be in use every day, covering up to 86,000 kilometers, to meet the needs of travelers.
Those responsible emphasize that every passenger can count on a seat in the replacement service, but the high demand in the Falkensee area near Berlin could affect this in practice. In order not to cause chaos due to the additional traffic from cars and other buses, the traffic flows are closely monitored.
One thing is certain: the next few months will be full of challenges for everyone who commutes or travels between the two metropolises. The plan is ambitious, but implementation will not be entirely without complications. We'll stay tuned for you and keep you up to date on all developments!