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Delayed expansion of the Berlin-Dresden line - criticism of the railroad

Delayed expansion of the Berlin-Dresden line - criticism of the railroad
The second construction phase of the Berlin-Dresden railroad line expansion is delayed by several years. (Archive image) / Photo: Carsten Koall/dpa
From: DieSachsen News
The expansion of parts of the Berlin-Dresden line has been postponed by four years, according to Deutsche Bahn. This is meeting with resistance in Brandenburg.

The delay in the expansion of the Berlin-Dresden railroad line by around four years has been met with criticism. Deutsche Bahn announced that all sections of the construction work on the second construction phase from Blankenfelde in Brandenburg to Großenhain in Saxony were previously scheduled to go into operation in 2029. However, missing sections of the line extension are now not expected to go online until the end of 2033. Deutsche Bahn cites planning requirements as the reason for this.

Brandenburg's Transport Minister Robert Crumbach accused Deutsche Bahn of once again making commuters suffer. "Deutsche Bahn must improve its plans as quickly as possible so that both the protection of sensitive moors and a reliable expansion of the Berlin-Dresden line are guaranteed for passengers," the SPD politician told the "Potsdamer Neueste Nachrichten" newspaper.

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Bahn cites environmental issues as the reason

The railroad wants to expand 125 kilometers on the route from Berlin to Dresden for speeds of up to 200 km/h. However, commuters will now have to wait longer. However, commuters will now have to wait longer for the shortened journey time between Berlin and Dresden. Deutsche Bahn cited requirements in the planning approval process as the reason for the delay. This involves environmental issues such as interventions in the moorland near Zossen on the section from Blankenfelde to Wünsdorf-Waldstadt in the Teltow-Fläming district.

"There can be no question of suddenly stricter environmental requirements here," said Crumbach. The moor near Zossen has been known for years. "If it now emerges in the planning approval process that the previous assumptions made by Deutsche Bahn are not sufficient, then this is a planning problem for DB and not a problem of environmental law."

Planning documents are being revised

The planning documents for the three sections of the northern section of the Berlin-Dresden railroad line are currently being revised, according to Deutsche Bahn. All of the work should be completed together at a later date in one continuous closure of the line. This would spare passengers additional closures.

The conversion of Zossen station, on the other hand, is due to be completed by the end of 2027 as planned. According to Deutsche Bahn, it is also considering bringing forward some construction work on the line, such as the renovation of Elsterwerda station in the district of Elbe-Elster in Brandenburg.

The railroad had already postponed the planned completion of the renovation of the Hamburg-Berlin line, citing the winter weather as the reason. The line is scheduled to be fully operational again on June 14 instead of the end of April, and from Hamburg to Hagenow Land in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on May 15.

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