Rail: Three months of restrictions between Berlin and Halle

There are considerable restrictions for commuters on the so-called Anhalter Bahn between Berlin and Halle (Saale) due to construction work. The line between Berlin Südkreuz and Bitterfeld will be completely closed until December 13. The 130-kilometer section is part of the Berlin-Leipzig-Erfurt-Munich ICE route. Long-distance trains will be rerouted. "The journey time between Leipzig or Halle (Saale) and Berlin will be extended by 45 to 60 minutes," the railroad announced. The stops at Lutherstadt Wittenberg and Berlin Südkreuz are no longer available on long-distance services.

In local transport, several lines in Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt will be replaced by buses. This affects the RE3, RE4, RE8, RB24, RB32, RB33 lines as well as the S-Bahn lines S2 and S8 in the Bitterfeld-Lutherstadt Wittenberg section. "In addition to the regular buses, express buses with additional stops are also running on some sections," said the railroad company.

According to Deutsche Bahn, the work includes the installation of 33 new points and a further 59 points will be repaired. Almost 100 kilometers of track will be completely renewed and a further 38 kilometers refurbished. Once the construction work has been completed, the line will be closed for three years.