Germany - General Information

Country Name

Germany (Deutschland)

National Railway System

Deutsche Bahn AG (DB).

National Railway Operator

Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG) is a company wholly owned by the German government. It functions through a large number of subsidiary companies. The principal ones responsible for railway operations in Germany are:

• DB Fernverkehr AG: Long-distance (IC/ICE) passenger services, also operation of EC and most other international services within Germany.
• DB Regio AG: Local and regional passenger services. DB Regio is split into regional divisions and also owns various subsidiary rail and bus passenger companies, almost all of which bear DB branding.
• DB Vertrieb GmbH: Retail sales and systems
• DB Cargo Deutschland AG: Freight services
• DB InfraGO AG: Infrastructure (since 27 December 2023 when it was formed by a merger or the former DB Netz and DB Station&Service entities)
• DB Fahrzeuginstandhaltung GmbH: Maintenance

DBAG has many interests in other countries, although it sold its Arriva subsidiary which operated passenger rail and bus services outside Germany to a private equity firm for an undisclosed sum in June 2024.

Subsidiaries of DB Cargo AG in Germany include RBH Logistics GmbH and an 80% holding in Mitteldeutsche Eisenbahn (MEG). Outside Germany it has 100%-owned subsidiaries in several European countries under the DB Cargo name, and part-ownership of several railfreight firms such as Transfesa.

Other Operators

Long-distance services

There has been only limited success with open-access long-distance passenger services in competition with DB. The following operators run trains within Germany or to neighbouring countries:

• Flixtrain, a subsidiary of German long-distance coach operator Flixbus, runs various long-distance trains within Germany. PDF timetables and a route map are available here. Note that both flixtrain.com and flixtrain.de redirect to the Flixbus site so this link must be used. There are generally one or two trains each way on certain days only on each route. Timetables change frequently. Other than the core Stuttgart to Berlin and Hamburg to Köln services, routes and stations served are also subject to frequent changes, additions and withdrawals.

• Abellio Rail Mitteldeutschland runs the Harz-Berlin Express on summer weekends only between Berlin and Goslar/Thale Hbf, having taken over from Transdev in 2018.

• Snälltåget (a subsidiary of Transdev) operates overnight trains between Berlin, Malmö and Stockholm for most of the year.

• RDC Deutschland subsidiary BahnTouristikExpress operates a Hamburg-Lörrach overnight car-carrying service in the summer months, marketed as BTE AutoReiseZug, and the seasonal weekend-only Alpen-Sylt Nachtexpress overnight service between Salzburg and Westerland (Sylt). RDC subsidiary RDC Autozug Sylt GmbH operates a car-carrying service between Niebüll and Westerland (Sylt) in competition with DB.

• Urlaubs-Express operates Motorail services in the winter from various cities in northern Germany to München and ski resorts in Austria, and in the summer to München, Lörrach, Innsbruck and Verona. Passengers without cars are also carried.

• Eurostar (re-branded from Thalys in 2024) operates high-speed services between Paris, Brussel/Bruxelles and Köln, with occasional services extended to the Ruhr. This is a division of Eurostar Group which also operates passenger services through the Channel Tunnel and is mainly owned by the French and Belgian national railways SNCF and SNCB/NMBS.

• WESTbahn (WESTbahn Management GmbH): The first open access operator in Austria, WESTbahn runs trains from Wien Westbahnhof into Germany on the Salzburg Hbf – München Hbf route. From 15 December 2024, one train pair has been extended from München Hbf to Stuttgart.

Local services

Local and regional services are tendered by regions (Länder) in lots comprising a particular area or network, usually for a period of between two and twelve years. As a result, over the years an increasing number of services have become operated by companies other than DB Regio, to the extent that DB Regio-operated trains are a rarity in quite a few areas.

These non-DB companies are often owned by the Land concerned (for example HLB in Hessen and SWEG in Baden-Württemberg), or by the state railways of other countries including the Netherlands (Abellio), Austria (Arverio) or Italy (various brands within the Netinera group), or they can be completely private companies, often foreign (for example National Express (UK) or Transdev (France)).

Language

German.

Upper and Lower Sorbian are Slavic languages spoken in the areas around Bautzen and Cottbus respectively. They appear alongside German on station nameboards in these areas.

North Frisian is a minority language spoken in the north-west of Schleswig-Holstein. Station nameboards in this area are also bilingual.

Currency

Euro

UIC codes

• Deutsche Bahn AG: numeric 80, alpha DB.

Other companies operating on DB InfraGO AG (formerly DB Netz) tracks in Germany also use numeric code 80 but each has its own individual alpha code.

The former Deutsche Reichsbahn code was 50, but this will now be seen only on withdrawn or museum vehicles.

Timetable

Journey Planner

• PC/laptop: DB Journey Planner
• Smartphone: DB Navigator

Actual Train Times

• Zugverfolgung.com Note that this site seems to offer tracking for Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland as well.
• The DB-operated bahnhof.de site offers live departure and arrival information for all stations in Germany.
• BahnExpert and DBF are two unofficial sites offering live departure and arrival information.

Downloadable Timetable

http://kursbuch.bahn.de/hafas/kbview.exe

If the table number is known, it can simply be inserted in the Kursbuchstreckennummer search box at top left.

Otherwise, use one of the buttons in the left-hand column:

• "Kursbuchtabellensuche". This button gives options to search by:
  • Bahnhof/Halt (Station/Halt)
  • Liniennummer (Line Number. Note this is not the table number, but the S-Bahn or RB/RE line number. These are duplicated across Germany, so a search for (e.g.) S2 or RB40 will produce results from many different areas, from which one can pick the desired route)
  • Kursbuchstreckennummer (Table number)
  • Zugnummer (Train number e.g. IC1234)

• "Interaktive Streckenkarte". This button produces a passenger network map. Scroll to the desired area, click on the table number next to a line and that line's timetable will be displayed.

• "Tabellenübersichten". This button produces further options, including:
  • Regionaltabellen (In spite of its name, an almost-complete table list - but see note on omitted tables below)
  • Museums- und Nostalgiebahnen (Preserved railways - only a very few shown)

The Schifffahrtstabellen (shipping services) and Bergbahnen (mountain railways) buttons do not link to any tables.

Unfortunately, quite a few timetables no longer appear in the electronic Kursbuch. These are listed in the 'Lines with Obscure or Sparse Passenger Services' section under 'Regular Services Not in the Kursbuch '.

While IC/EC and ICE services appear in many tables alongside regional services, there are many routes where long-distance services operate but only regional services are shown in the tables. For full timetables of long-distance services, the European Rail Timetable is recommended.

The bahnhof.de site shows pdf copies of the printed station departure sheets for almost all stations in Germany, both for the regular timetable and for any alterations. Exceptions are stations on a few branch lines where the infrastructure is not owned or managed by DB InfraGO. Note that if the initial search returns an error message, selecting "Bahnhof wählen" and then searching often works.

Printed Timetable

DB has not provided a hard-copy national timetable since 2007-08. A local book for the 2025 timetable in Nordrhein-Westfalen is available to order from the VRS website. Baden-Württemberg and Schleswig-Holstein also still publish timetable books for services in their areas.

Engineering Information

Engineering work information in German only.

A DB engineering works app (DB Bauarbeiten) is available in both Android and iPhone versions but only in German.

The APKPure DB Bauarbeiten app gives a number of options.

Bus Information

The Journey Planner (above) selects bus services if they provide the best journey.

Maps

Printed Maps

• Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland by Schweers + Wall.
• European Railway Atlas (All-Europe Edition) by M.G. Ball.
• European Railway Atlas (Regional Series - Book 2: Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy) M.G. Ball.
• The DB Karte für den Personenverkehr Deutschland, which showed all German railways on a sheet map at a scale of 1:1,200,000, has now been withdrawn.

Web-based Maps

• Sporenplan has a series of on-line maps and schematic track diagrams. Click on "Sporenplannen" on the left-hand side, then on Germany on the map, then "Actuele tekeningen - simpel" for a map showing coverage of the current network. This is limited to most of the former West Germany with no coverage in the eastern Länder.
• Map of Germany dated December 2022 - on the Railroad Maps site. Also enlargements for Berlin, Hamburg, Dortmund / Essen / Duisburg / Düsseldorf / Köln, Aachen and Frankfurt / Mannheim / Karlsruhe / Stuttgart.
• Maps and Plans - Germany.
• The DB InfraGO Infrastructure Register has an interactive map available.
• DB Netze had a catalogue of railway maps available to order. It is not clear if this still exists on the new DB InfraGO website.
• The DB website has downloadable schematic maps of local services for all Länder. It also has very general maps showing the ICE and IC/EC networks.

Ticketing

Deutschland-Ticket

This ticket (D-Ticket for short) is a season ticket for almost all urban, local and regional transport across Germany, priced at only €58 per calendar month. It is sold on a subscription basis and in digital format only. The price is due to increase to €63 per month in January 2026.

Tickets are not valid as a rule on long-distance services (IC/EC or ICE), but there are certain exceptions as shown in the validity conditions, for example west of Bremen inclusive. Note however that the long-standing acceptance of local tickets (including the D-Ticket) on IC services in the Berlin/Brandenburg area will cease in December 2025. D-Tickets are valid on most of the narrow-gauge steam railways in eastern Germany that operate regular scheduled services, usually on payment of a supplement.

A summary of the validity conditions is on the DB site in English here. Full validity details are on a pdf which is linked to from the DB German-language site here under In welchen Zügen gilt das Deutschland-Ticket? then under Geltungsbereich Deutschland-Ticket.

Normally a German or Eurozone-based bank account is required to set up a direct debit for the subscription; however a few possibilities for international purchasers are known, such as the Hamburg transport authority's "HVV Switch" app where UK customers can use PayPal, or "MoPla Solutions" which allows payment by UK credit card.

For occasional visits to Germany, the following offers may be more suitable.

Rover tickets

There are two main versions, the Quer-durchs-Land Ticket which covers the whole of Germany, and Länder-Tickets which cover each individual region (Land) of the country.

All these tickets are valid from 09:00 on Mondays to Fridays, and from midnight at weekends and on public holidays, until 03:00 on the morning following the day of validity and are only valid on local train services (RE, RB and S-Bahn) whether operated by DB or any of the many non-DB operators. Tickets are not generally valid on IC/EC or ICE services, but there are a few exceptions, notably west of Bremen. Note however that acceptance of local tickets on IC services in the Berlin/Brandenburg area will end in December 2025. Museum-type lines are generally excluded apart from the few that accept local public transport tickets.

The main difference between the two types of ticket, apart from the areas of validity, is that the Quer-durchs-Land Ticket is not valid on local urban transport (buses, trams and U-Bahn services) whereas Länder-Tickets almost always are (the exception being the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Ticket which is not valid on urban transport except in Hamburg).

The Quer-durchs-Land Ticket and most Länder-Tickets are valid for between one and five people, with a base fare being charged for the first person and a small additional amount added for each additional traveller. The number of passengers must be specified at the time of purchase and all their names written on the ticket. Exceptions are the Hessen-Ticket which has a flat fare for up to five people, and the Schöner-Tag-Ticket NRW which only comes in versions for single or between two and five travellers.

Some Länder-Tickets are valid in more than one Land; in particular Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt and Thüringen count as the one area, and a ticket for any one of these Länder is valid in all three. Rheinland-Pfalz and Saarland also count as the one area, and the Schleswig-Holstein-Ticket is valid in Hamburg and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, although the cheaper Mecklenburg-Vorpommern-Ticket is valid in Hamburg but not in Schleswig-Holstein. Often tickets are valid a short distance into other Länder or even other countries.

There are numerous options only available in certain Länder including all-day, evening-only, youth and First Class versions.

Extensions to Länder-Tickets to other countries are available such as the Niedersachsen-Ticket to Groningen (NL), the Saarland-Ticket to Lorraine (FR) and Luxembourg (the Saar-Lor-Lux Ticket) and the Sachsen- or Bayern- Tickets to Bohemia (Böhmen) (CZ). Note that when these add-ons are purchased, the validity in Germany is only within the Land stated (e.g. Sachsen).

Validity details for each of these tickets can be checked on the DB website's regional offers page (in German - the English-language pages no longer give this information).

Tariff association (Verkehrsverbund) tickets are also available in most regions of Germany. These can cover just the area round a town, or an entire region such as Berlin and Brandenburg. They normally offer day tickets for various zonal combinations which may be better value than a Länder-Ticket, or have no weekday start time restriction. Zones can be simple London-style concentric rings, as in München, or a complicated system of adjacent hexagons, as in the Frankfurt am Main area. Careful study of the various tariff options is recommended.

Point-to-point tickets

As with most European railways, dearer flexible and cheaper train-specific tickets are available.

Flexible tickets are known as Flexpreis on long-distance (ICE or IC/EC) trains and as Normalpreis on local trains when priced by DB. They can be used on any train of the specified type on any permitted route between origin and destination. Break of journey is allowed. Tickets for ICE trains are dearer than those for IC/EC or purely local services. A Flexpreis ticket for a dearer train type can be used on cheaper train types if desired.

Notes:

1. Flexpreis tickets are no longer available from on-board staff. If you board an ICE or IC/EC train without a ticket, you must buy a ticket on the DB website or app within 10 minutes of departing from your boarding station or be liable for a considerable surcharge.
2. Normalpreis tickets cannot be upgraded to be used on long-distance services except where there is disruption, when they may exceptionally be allowed to be used without extra payment.

Local tickets entirely within city or Land tariff areas have different pricing structures and conditions. Often these tickets are zonal and time-limited, and valid on other local transport, but they may well be non-refundable and have no break of journey facility.

Advance tickets, known as Sparpreis and Super Sparpreis, are available on any journey with at least one leg on a long-distance service. They are only valid on the booked long-distance train. Cheaper tickets are available to under-27s and over-65s.

Full details of all DB tickets are on the DB website ticketing page.

BahnCards

BahnCards are annual discount railcards, sold on a subscription basis, which give either a 25% or 50% discount and in either First or Second Class versions. Cheaper Youth and Senior Cards are available, as are trial and occasional promotional versions. There is also a BahnCard100 which gives one year's unlimited travel on almost all public transport throughout Germany.

Full details are available on the DB website.

Flixtrain tickets

Flixtrain tickets must be booked from the Flixbus website or a Flixbus office, which can be found at major bus stations. DB tickets and Interrail/Eurail passes are not valid on Flixtrain services.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure Authority

DB InfraGO AG, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG, is responsible for track and infrastructure. It replaced DB Netz AG on 27 December 2023, when it was created by a merger of the DB Netz AG and DB Station&Service organisations.

The Eisenbahn-Bundesamt (EBA) is a government agency tasked with regulatory oversight of safety and some other matters, independent of DB.

Network Statement

DB InfraGO AG > Network Statement 2025

Gauge

Standard.

There are various narrow-gauge non-DB lines, including former DB/DR operated ones in the Harz (1000 mm gauge) and at Bad Doberan ("Molli") (900 mm) and, all 750 mm, on the island of Rügen ("Rasender Roland"), at Oschatz (Döllnitzbahn/"Wilder Robert"), Radebeul (Lößnitzgrundbahn), Freital (Weißeritztalbahn), Cranzahl (Fichtelbergbahn), and Zittau (Zittauer Schmalspurbahn).

DB operates a metre gauge line on the island of Wangerooge. A number of tramway systems are metre gauge.

The train ferry terminal at Sassnitz Fährhafen (Mukran) has 1524 mm gauge tracks to receive and despatch wagons from and to Klaipeda, in addition to the standard gauge tracks.

The funicular section Obstfelderschmiede - Lichtenhain is 1800 mm gauge.

Electrification

15 kV 16.7 Hz ac.

The Berlin S-Bahn is 800V dc third rail, and the Hamburg S-Bahn is 1200V dc third rail. Obstfelderschmiede to Cursdorf is 500V dc overhead and Blankenburg (Harz) to Elbingerode and Kalkwerk Homberg, which has been freight-only since 2005, is 25kV 50Hz ac. (The line between Kalkwerk Homberg and Königshütte closed to all traffic in 2000 and is now lifted).

The following cross-border lines have sections within Germany that use the other country's electrification system. Distances shown are the sections within Germany between the frontier and the electrification changeover point:

Hengelo (NL) - Bad Bentheim: 8.1 km at 1500 V dc
Arnhem/Betuweroute (NL) - Emmerich: 5.6 km at 25 kV ac (see Note below)
Welkenraedt/LGV (BE) - Aachen Hbf: 7.4 km at 3 kV dc
Węgliniec (PL) - Horka: 1.5 km at 3 kV dc
Rzepin (PL) - Frankfurt (Oder): 1.7 km at 3 kV dc.
It is planned to electrify the few hundred metres from the Polish border viaduct at Zgorzelec into Görlitz Hbf at 3 kV dc.

Note: The line between Emmerich and the Netherlands border was 1500 V dc but has been converted to 25 kV ac for easier operation of Betuweroute freight traffic. This means that trains between Emmerich and Arnhem must be able to operate under three different electrification systems.

Rule of the road

Right.

A few sections of line have left-hand running, as follows:

• a short piece of the Aachen – Liège main line between the east end of the Busch Tunnel (Üst Aachen Süd) and the Belgian border;
• between Nürnberg-Reichelsdorf and Nürnberg Hbf, on the non-S-Bahn lines only, to facilitate reversal by trains running between the Treuchtlingen and Würzburg lines;
• on the Hamburg S-Bahn between Altona and Holstenstraße, to assist reversal.

Distances

The Schweers + Wall Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland (11th Edn. ISBN 978-3-89494-149-9) is the best source of distance information.

Other Railways

See separate document.

Tourist lines

Very few tourist lines run frequently - once or twice a month during the summer is quite common, although some operate only two or three times a year. In many cases these are weekend operations over private freight lines. Whilst many tourist trains are steam-worked, numerous preserved railbuses and diesel locomotives are also used. A German language site Eisenbahn Vereinskarte Deutschland comprises an interactive map of Germany showing most preserved railways. An English language site gives an overview map split by Länder, with a list of many lines in alphabetical order in each Land section. Both give direct links to the various railways' homepages/timetables. The DB Kursbuch site gives timetables for a very small number of preserved lines in its Museums- und Nostalgiebahnen section.

Timetables and other information about tourist lines are published annually in Kursbuch der deutschen Museums-Eisenbahnen (published by Eisenbahn Kurier, EK-Verlag GmbH, Lörracher Str. 16, 79115 Freiburg, tel +49 761 703100). Owing to the very large number of tourist lines in Germany, no one source appears to give a comprehensive list of every operation, so it is suggested that each of the above sources is consulted.

A special category are Parkeisenbahnen, which are complex miniature railways where operations closely follow the prototype. A comprehensive list of these is given in Wikipedia.

Rail cycling (Draisinenfahrten) is possible on a number of lines; see the IG Draisinenfahrten website for details of a few of them.

Metro

Berlin, Hamburg, München, Nürnberg. A number of other cities have partially underground or interurban tram networks, known as U-Bahn or Stadtbahn, including Bielefeld, Bochum, Bonn, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Essen, Frankfurt am Main, Gelsenkirchen, Hannover, Köln, Ludwigshafen, Mannheim, Mülheim (Ruhr) and Stuttgart.

Track plans for all metro and tram systems in Germany are available on the Gleisplanweb site.

Trams/LRT-Systems

Augsburg, Bad Schandau, Berlin, Bielefeld, Bochum, Bonn, Brandenburg, Braunschweig, Bremen, Chemnitz, Cottbus, Darmstadt, Dessau, Dortmund, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Erfurt, Essen, Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt an der Oder, Freiburg (Breisgau), Gelsenkirchen, Gera, Görlitz, Gotha, Halberstadt, Halle (Saale), Hannover, Heidelberg, Heilbronn, Jena, Karlsruhe, Kassel, Köln, Krefeld, Leipzig, Ludwigshafen, Magdeburg, Mainz, Mannheim, Mülheim (Ruhr), München, Naumburg (Saale), Nordhausen, Nürnberg, Oberhausen, Plauen, Potsdam, Rostock, Rüdersdorf, Saarbrücken, Schwerin, Strausberg, Stuttgart, Ulm, Woltersdorf, Würzburg, Zwickau. Many neighbouring systems are interlinked. It is possible to travel entirely by tram, changing cars and gauge several times, all the way from Benrath (south of Düsseldorf) to Witten (east of Bochum). This is reputed to be the longest possible journey by tram anywhere in the world.

Some of the above networks are "Tram-Train" systems with certain vehicles that can run on both the urban tram network and the suburban rail network, including Chemnitz, Karlsruhe/Heilbronn, Kassel and Saarbrücken. In Zwickau, heavy-rail diesel railcars share a short section of mixed-gauge (1435/1000 mm) track with the city tramway system and run under tramway regulations, but there is no further connection with the tram network because of the different gauges

Track plans for all tram systems in Germany are available on the Gleisplanweb site or on the UrbanRail site.

See also Germany - Tram services over obscure routes

Recent and Future Changes

General

The funding of local public transport, including railways, is controlled by the Länder (regions) and in some areas responsibility has been devolved to the Kreise (districts). Western Länder are generally supportive of rail and many lines have been re-opened in the last couple of decades. However in the eastern Länder many lines have been closed as a result of depopulation and increasing car ownership since reunification, and lack of funds to support such a dense network of local services.

The rate of closures has slowed considerably in recent years, and the federal government is making funds available to the Länder for re-opening schemes. While there have been numerous lengthy lists published of closed lines which are possible candidates for re-opening, only those proposals which are likely to be progressed with are mentioned below.

Recent Changes

Openings

2025

The following line opened on 22 September 2025

200.2

Blankenfelde (Kr Teltow-Fläming) former S-Bahn platform – main station

Extension of S2 to terminate in the main station

The following lines opened on 1/2 August 2025

206	Neuruppin Rheinsberger Tor – Herzberg (Mark)	Reopened temporarily until 30 April 2026 for diverted RE6 services because of engineering work between Neuruppin and Kremmen
202	Dallgow-Döberitz – Wustermark Awf [– Hennigsdorf]	Reopened temporarily until 30 April 2026 for diverted RE2 services because of engineering work between Berlin-Spandau and Brieselang

The following line opened on 1 July 2025

459

Marienheide – Lüdenscheid-Brügge

Reopened after the severe floods of 14 July 2021

The following line opened on 16 June 2025

474

Gerolstein – Kall

Reopened after the severe floods of 14 July 2021. However no through Köln – Trier services until at least October 2025 because of electrification and resignalling work with replacement buses operating between Gerolstein and Bitburg-Erdorf or Trier Hbf until then.

The following line opened on 14 April 2025

790.21

Schorndorf – Rudersberg

Reopened after severe flood damage closed the line on 3 June 2024. A further 0.8 km section to Rudersberg Nord was reopened by the end of May 2025. The final 0.8 km section of regular passenger line to Rudersberg-Oberndorf remains closed until further notice.

The following lines opened on 3 March 2025

693.1	Trier Hafenstraße – Trier West – Abzw Karthaus Nordwest [– Igel]	New Wittlich – Luxembourg service (SuX) over the reopened Trierer Weststrecke. Trier Hafenstraße is a new station around 1 km south of Ehrang station, which has closed to passengers.
693.2	[Trier-Zewen –] Abzw Karthaus Nordwest – Karthaus Moselbrücke – Konz	New Trier Hafenstraße – Saarburg service over the Trierer Weststrecke and these two curves

The following line opened on 10 February 2025

703

(Mulhouse Ville (France)) – Neuenburg (Baden) Grenze – Müllheim in Markgräflerland

Reopened after having been suspended since August 2023 owing to availability problems with stock and bilingual crew

The following line opened on 3 February 2025

372

Hameln – Elze (Han)

Reopened after having been closed since October 2023 for bridge repairs and resignalling works

In the "tourist/museum line" sector:

The section of the Rahden – Uchte museum line between Rahden and a temporary platform 200 m short of Lavelsloh station reopened on 29 May 2025. The whole line had been closed since June 2021 because of the condition of the track. It is intended to reopen further sections towards Uchte in due course, with eventually the full line being reopened.

A c. 13 km section of the Muldentalbahn between a temporary platform at Glauchau (Sachs) Reinholdshain and Wolkenburg was reopened for tourist services with the first day of service being 29 May 2025. It is not yet known how regular the days of operation will be.

A new c. 1 km-long branch of the metre-gauge horse tramway on the island of Spiekeroog opened on 6 May 2025, from a junction (Abzw Westend) shortly before the existing Westend terminus to a terminus known as Lütjeoogdünen. When new sea defences are built on the island, the existing Westend branch will be closed and all services will run to and from Lütjeoogdünen.

2024

The following line opened on 14 December 2024

912

Gunzenhausen – Wassertrüdingen

Extension of existing RB62 Pleinfeld – Gunzenhausen service

The following line opened on 29 July 2024

209.26

Küstrin-Kietz – Kostrzyn (PL)

Reopened after being closed since December 2020 for replacement of the Oderbrücke

The following service officially opened on 27 June 2024, with public service from 29 June 2024.

482

Aachen - Maastricht (NL) - Liège (BE)

Finally opened, through to Liège, after 6 years of delay due to technical challenges e.g. ETCS and even storm damage.

The following line opened on 17 April 2024

434

Rummenohl – Lüdenscheid-Brügge – Lüdenscheid

Reopened after July 2021 flood damage

The following line opened on 8 April 2024

459

Gummersbach – Marienheide

Reopened after July 2021 flood damage

The following line opened on 7 January 2024

428

Recklinghausen Süd – Herne-Rottbruch [– Bochum-Riemke]

New RE41 service direct from Recklinghausen Hbf to Bochum Hbf

2023

The following lines opened on 4 September 2023

RB TES	Erkner – Fangschleuse Tesla Süd	Shuttle service on Mondays to Fridays to serve Tesla electric car factory
RB TES	Biesdorfer Kreuz West – Biesdorfer Kreuz Süd West – Biesdorfer Kreuz Süd	Used by one early morning service from Berlin-Lichtenberg to Fangschleuse Tesla Süd and one late evening return on weekdays only
RB TES	Biesdorfer Kreuz Süd – Eichgestell Nord (Außenring)	Used by one early morning service from Berlin-Lichtenberg to Fangschleuse Tesla Süd and one late evening return on weekdays only
RB TES	Eichgestell Nord – Berlin Stadtforst	Used by one early morning service from Berlin-Lichtenberg to Fangschleuse Tesla Süd and one late evening return on weekdays only

The following line opened on 11 June 2023

236

Varnsdorf Pivovar Kocour (CZ) – Seifhennersdorf

Rail service reinstated after 8-year 'temporary closure'

2022

The following lines opened on 11 December 2022

209	Genshagener Heide Ost – Abzw Birkengrund Süd	Used by extended FEX/RB32 services to Ludwigsfelde
209.32 Nord	Grünauer Kreuz West – Grünauer Kreuz Süd	Used by RB24 and new RB32 to BER T5 (note RB32 operates in two separate sections)
209.33	Lienewitz Lia – Beelitz Bea	Reinstated bridge over the Berlin – Bad Belzig line
690	Koblenz-Mosel Gbf – Koblenz Lützel (Koblenz avoiding curve)	Used by one RB12 Trier – Köln train pair daily as a replacement for direct services via Gerolstein, so possibly not beyond December 2025
750.1	Ulm Hbf – Wendlingen Rübholz – Wendlingen Abzw W64 (NBS)	New high-speed line, initially with connecting curve to Wendlingen (Neckar)

The following line opened on 1 November 2022

351

Einbeck Mitte – Einbeck BBS/PS-Speicher

Sparse weekday-only service over this section, experimental for three years

The following line opened on 24 June 2022

393

Sande – Abzw Weißer Floh [– Schortens-Heidmühle]

Brand new alignment well to the east of previous one

The following line opened on 12 June 2022

333 (PKP)

Guben – Guben Grenze [– Gubin (PL)]

Initially weekend-only service; daily from December 2022

The following line opened on 21 May 2022

190

Sassnitz-Mukran Abzw Borchtitz – Sassnitz-Mukran Fährhafen

Limited summer service to connect with Ystad and Bornholm ferries

The following line opened on 29 January 2022

524

Chemnitz Technopark – Chemnitz-Reichenhain (Abzw Chemnitz Süd Straßenbahn)

New tram-train connection onto reconstructed Chemnitz – Aue line

In the "tourist/museum line" sector:

The Museums-Eisenbahn Minden resumed operation over the long-closed section between Preußisch Oldendorf and Bad Holzhausen on their line to Bohmte on 26 May 2022.

2021

The following lines opened on 20 December 2021

440	Hagen-Kabel – Hagen-Vorhalle	Curve between Siegen and Witten lines used by new IC34 services to/from Dortmund
440	Hagen-Kabel – Westhofen (Westf)	Curve between Siegen and Unna lines used by new IC34 services to/from Hamm

The following lines opened on 12 December 2021

209.35	Bad Saarow Klinikum – Bad Saarow-Pieskow
Augsburg Tramway	Haunstetten West – Königsbrunn Zentrum	Line 3, southern extension
Stuttgart LRT	Fasanenhof Schelmenwasen – Flughafen/Messe Ost	Line U6, south-eastern extension

The following line opened on 11 December 2021

Karlsruhe LRT

Kombilösung cross-city tram tunnels

Lines 1, 2 and S2 diverted into the tunnel on 11 December followed by AVG lines S1/11, S4, S5/51, S7 and S8 on 12 December

The following line opened on 29 November 2021

627, 646

Frankfurt am Main Hbf – Abzw Mainzer Landstraße

New exit line to the north of Frankfurt Außenbahnhof

The following line opened on 8 August 2021

732

Sauldorf – Stockach

Summer Sundays only. Reopening delayed by flood damage

The following line opened on 18 July 2021

732

Mengen – Sauldorf

Summer Sundays only

Permanent Closures

Note that in most cases the lines remain available for empty stock, freight, diversionary or charter services.

2025

The following lines closed on 23 September 2025

former 203, 240	Großbeeren Süd – Genshagener Heide Mitte	Berlin – Elsterwerda/Dresden RE and IC/EC services diverted via Schönefeld owing to engineering work; when these diversions cease on 14 December 2025 they will run via the reinstated Dresdner Bahn
former 203, 240	Glasower Damm West – Glasower Damm Süd	as above

2024

The following line closed on 19 October 2024

440

Hagen-Kabel – Abzw Hohensyburg [– Westhofen (Westf.)]

The two IC services each way over this curve diverted to run via Dortmund

In the "tourist/museum line" sector:

Scheduled services on the Wisentatalbahn museum line between Schönberg (Vogtl) and Schleiz West ceased after farewell trips on 9 and 10 March 2024, and after a very last farewell excursion on 13 March from Zittau, the line was closed to all traffic. This is because the line's leaseholders Deutsche Regionaleisenbahn GmbH (DRE) wished to terminate the lease and no other undertaking offered to take it on.

2023

The following line closed on 7 August 2023

Ruhrbahn Tram route 104 (part)

Mülheim (Ruhr) Wertgasse – Oppspring

Also depot journeys from Berliner Platz to Wertgasse

The following line closed on 15 April 2023

415.2

Dortmund Signal Iduna-Park (Westfalenhalle) – Dortmund-Lütgendortmund Flm – Bochum-Langendreer

RE11 services reverted to running via Dortmund Hbf and Hamm

In the "tourist/museum line" sector:

In June 2025 it was announced that the 'temporary' closure of the 2.8 km-long section of the Kleinbahn Verden – Walsrode between Neddenaverbergen and Stemmen would be made permanent as a result of track repairs being required at a cost of 3 million Euros, which neither the preservation association nor the local authority can afford to pay. The last trains over this section ran in 2023. Some local politicians are even talking about converting the entire line to a cycle path.

2022

The following lines closed on 11 December 2022

209.23	Abzw Lienewitz Lia – Seddin Bla	Replaced by new RB33 Potsdam – Jüterbog service
209.63	Joachimsthal – Templin Stadt	Experimental service reinstatement ended

The following line closed on 31 August 2022

140

Neustadt (Holst.) Gbf – Puttgarden (including the curves to Fehmarn-Burg)

Closed for complete reconstruction, mainly on a new alignment, in connection with the Fehmarn Belt Tunnel project

The following line closed on 27 March 2022

393

Sande - Abzw Weißer Floh [- Schortens-Heidmühle]

Replaced by new double-track alignment to the east

2021

In the "tourist/museum line" sector:

The Oleftalbahn between Kall and Hellenthal sustained severe damage over 90% of its length in the devastating floods of 14/15 July 2021. On 7 June 2024 the line's owners Rhein-Sieg-Eisenbahn GmbH announced their intention to close it officially to all traffic. It therefore appears that the line saw its last train in 2021, unless a proposal to reinstate regular passenger services comes to fruition, which seems unlikely.

Future Changes

Forthcoming Openings

2025

The main line tracks (closed 1952) alongside the S-Bahn on the Dresdner Bahn from Berlin Südkreuz to Blankenfelde (Kr. Teltow-Fläming) have been reinstated. Services on the new line will commence on 14 December 2025. The new line will speed up trains between Berlin and Elsterwerda and Dresden and also allow a fast service to Berlin-Brandenburg airport via a brand-new curve (the Mahlower Kurve) between Glasower Damm Nord and Glasower Damm Ost. The reopening of the Dresdner Bahn will mean the end of regular passenger services over the curves from Genshagener Heide Mitte to Großbeeren Süd and from Glasower Damm West to Glasower Damm Süd.

The reopening to regular services of the Kiel to Schönberger Strand branch, which is currently only a tourist line beyond Kiel-Oppendorf, has been heavily and repeatedly delayed. The line is now due to open in three stages: as far as Schönkirchen in December 2025, to Probsteierhagen in Dec. 2026 and finally to Schönberger Strand in December 2027.

The reopening of Calw - Weil der Stadt has been put back by at least one year every year since 2018. It has apparently now been confirmed as 'definitely opening' in December 2025, some seven years after originally planned. Reasons for the delays include legal action, which has been dismissed, and the decision to build a new section of line in tunnel to shorten the route between Ostelsheim and Weil der Stadt. The line will be known as the Hermann-Hesse-Bahn and run through to Renningen, sharing tracks with the S6 from Weil der Stadt.

2026

The Bentheimer Eisenbahn from Bad Bentheim to Coevorden (NL), which was reopened in 2019 as far as Neuenhaus, is planned to be reopened through to Coevorden (NL) on 13 December 2026.

Reopening to passengers of the WLE Münster (Westf) Hbf to Neubeckum line as far as Sendenhorst is now planned for December 2026.

A temporary weekend- and holiday-only passenger service ran in summer 2020 from Duisburg and Moers to Kamp-Lintfort Süd in connection with a garden festival, thus reintroducing trains to the former colliery branch from Rheinkamp. Full passenger services are planned for 2026, via a new south to west curve at Rheinkamp. The branch will be extended to a new Kamp-Lintfort station, beyond the former mine area.

The new high-speed line (NBS) between Ulm and Stuttgart opened on 11 December 2022 between Ulm and Wendlingen. The remaining section between Wendlingen and Stuttgart Hbf is not now due to open until December 2026.

The first stage of the Berlin S-Bahn line linking the Innenring with Berlin Hbf (Invalidenstraße) by an east to south curve from Wedding has been severely delayed and is not now due to open until "spring 2026". The line failed its acceptance test due to insufficient power supply and it was announced in June 2025 that this would have to be replaced. It will initially run between Hauptbahnhof and Gesundbrunnen only, under the designation S15. The intermediate station at Perleberger Brücke is not due to open until 2029. A west to south curve from Westhafen to Invalidenstraße is expected to open later, and plans are to extend the line to Potsdamer Platz in Stage 2 and Yorckstraße in Stage 3, thus creating a second north-south S-Bahn line (to be known as S21) through central Berlin. Opening of the entire line is not expected until 2037.

2027

An extension of the Stolberg (Rheinland) Hbf to Stolberg Altstadt passenger service to Breinig (now a part of Stolberg so officially known as Stolberg-Breinig) is not now due to open until 2027. Progress was originally delayed by the need to lower the trackbed under a bridge at Stolberg Altstadt to provide safe clearance for the overhead wires, and by serious damage sustained to the existing line in the July 2021 floods.

Reopening of the northern section of the Gessertshausen - Markt Wald Staudenbahn as far as Langenneufnach has been agreed with the much-delayed construction (including electrification) beginning in 2026 and opening scheduled for December 2027.

The TWE (Teutoburger Wald-Eisenbahn) is to be reopened in December 2027 between Harsewinkel, Gütersloh and Verl (Bz Detmold).

A new S4 line of the S-Bahn Hamburg is under construction. It will run from the existing S1 station of Hasselbrook to Bad Oldesloe. It will have its own new formation from Hasselbrook to Ahrensburg-Gartenholz, which will be double-track from Hasselbrook to Ahrensburg and single-track to Gartenholz, where it will merge with the existing Hamburg to Lübeck main line. The new line will have 1200 V dc third-rail electrification as far as Bovestraße, just beyond the former Wandsbek station, and 15 kV ac overhead electrification from there to Gartenholz. The first section as far as Hamburg-Rahlstedt is due to open in 2027, with the remainder following in 2029. The second stage may be delayed by up to a year by planning permission objections.

It is planned to introduce a regular passenger service between Bremervörde and Stade by the end of 2027. Currently only the summer weekend trains between Bremen and Stade run on this route.

Work was due to start in January 2024 on the reactivation of the Horlofftalbahn between Wölfersheim-Södel and Hungen, but these works will now not start until late 2026, with reopening delayed until December 2027 at the earliest.

The first 2.9 km of the Wrist - Itzehoe line as far as Kellinghusen is to be reopened. Financing was agreed in December 2019 after years of procrastination, but opening has been deferred until 2027 at the earliest; mainly, it is reported, because of flood protection issues in Kellinghusen. New overhead electrification masts are visible on the branch from passing trains on the main line, so progress is definitely being made, albeit slowly.

2028

Stuttgart S-Bahn line S2 is to be extended by 4 km by reopening the route between Filderstadt and Neuhausen auf den Fildern, which was closed to passengers in 1955, and completely in 1983. Financing was approved in late 2022 with construction starting in mid-2023. Opening is now delayed until December 2028.

The reopening and electrification of Homburg (Saar) to Einöd (Saar) is planned for December 2028, with construction due to start in autumn 2025. The electrification will extend over the existing line to Zweibrücken to allow through electric S-Bahn services from Homburg.

An extension of Kassel RegioTram route RT5 from Melsungen to Melsungen Süd is now planned to come into service in 2028, some five years later than originally planned. The station at Melsungen Süd will be on a short spur just off the main line.

Provisionally in December 2028 the AKN (Altona-Kaltenkirchen-Neumünster Eisenbahn) line from Hamburg Eidelstedt to Kaltenkirchen will be electrified at 15 kV AC and incorporated into the Hamburg S-Bahn as an extension of the S5 which will then no longer terminate at Elbgaustrasse.

A west-to-south curve is under construction to link the Lübeck - Bad Kleinen line with the main line to Schwerin, avoiding Bad Kleinen. To be known as the Gallentiner Kurve, this will allow direct trains to run between Lübeck and Schwerin. Work started in June 2025 with an estimated opening date of 2028.

2029

The Euregiobahn line from Herzogenrath to Stolberg (Rheinl.) via Alsdorf-Annapark is to be extended with an electrified branch line from Alsdorf-Kellersberg to Alsdorf-Mariagrube. This is planned for December 2029. A further extension to Aldenhoven-Siersdorf is planned for December 2033. An invitation to tender for these services was issued in August 2025.

Preliminary work has started on the reconstruction of the closed 4.46 km Berlin S-Bahn branch from Jungfernheide to Gartenfeld. Known as the Siemensbahn, as it served the large factory of that firm, the last train ran on September 17 1980. With the closure of the factory in 2018, a research campus and large residential development is being built on the site. Reopening of the line is planned for Autumn 2029. A study is underway for a possible new-build extension to Hakenfelde.

Reopening of the line from Wittgensdorf to Limbach-Oberfrohna is planned as Stage 4 of the Chemnitzer Modell tram-train system. This is targeted for late 2029.

2030

The Barth - Zingst - Prerow Darßbahn is to be reopened. Tripartite funding, split between the federal government, Land Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Usedomer Bäderbahn has been agreed for the reconstruction of the Meiningenbrücke road/rail bridge just north of Bresewitz, which will allow reopening of the entire line to Prerow. This is now targeted for 2030.

2031

In February 2024 final approval was given to extending Berlin U-Bahn line U3 from Krumme Lanke to Mexikoplatz where a new interchange with the S-Bahn will be available. It is planned to open in 2031.

2032

The Vögelfluglinie railway between [Lübeck -] Bad Schwartau and the island of Fehmarn is being completely rebuilt. It will be a double-track electrified railway, mostly on a new alignment which will in part run alongside the A1 Autobahn. The existing line from Lübeck to Puttgarden closed north of Neustadt (Holst.) Gbf on 30 August 2022. On reopening, it will form part of a new high-speed line to København via the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link, which will include the world's longest immersed tube tunnel. Neustadt (Holst.) will be served by a link from Haffkrug on the new line to the existing line via Sierksdorf, which will become a branch line. The old route from Ratekau to Haffkrug through Timmendorfer Strand will be abandoned, as will the sections north of Neustadt, through Lensahn and Oldenburg (Holst.) and from Fehmarn-Burg to the previous terminus at Puttgarden. Most stations on the old route will have replacements on the new route, but they will be at some distance from the towns they are intended to serve, especially at Timmendorfer Strand. The railway on the Danish side is also being reconstructed. Opening of the new line was originally planned for 2029, but in July 2025 the Federal Ministry of Transport announced that it would not be ready until 2032.

The Niederbarnimer Eisenbahn is rebuilding the line from Berlin-Wilhelmsruh to Wilhelmsruher Damm, therefore reopening the Heidekrautbahn between Bornholmer Straße and Schönwalde (Barnim) to passenger service for trains from Berlin-Gesundbrunnen to Basdorf and beyond. This was originally planned for December 2024 but may now be as late as 2032. The existing line via Berlin-Karow will be retained.

Projected Developments

Note: As this section has become extremely large, it has been rearranged into sub-sections for each Land, and in approximate date order (earliest projected opening to latest or undated) in each section. Note that any scheme that has definitely been given the go-ahead and has a concrete opening date (even if this is likely to slip) should be in "Forthcoming Openings" above, under the appropriate year heading.

Baden-Württemberg

The District (Landkreis) of Tübingen is planning to convert some lines in their area to a tram-train system known as Regional-Stadtbahn Neckar-Alb. This involves construction of a new line known as the Gomaringer Spange between Nehren, on the Tübingen - Balingen line, and Reutlingen. This will partially re-use the formation of the Reutlingen West to Gomaringen branch. Other plans include the reopening of the Albstadt-Ebingen to Albstadt-Onstmettingen and Engstingen to Reutlingen lines, and the introduction of a regular passenger service between Hechingen and Burladingen on the line to Gammertingen. Tramway-style lines into Tübingen town centre and through Reutlingen are also planned.

Reopening of the line across the Rhein between Breisach and Colmar (France) is planned.

Reopening of Ludwigsburg - Markgröningen is also under consideration.

Bayern

A new S-Bahn line between Fürth (Bayern) Hbf and Eltersdorf via Fürth-Steinach is planned but construction has been delayed by legal challenges. The new S-Bahn lines will be brought into use where they run parallel to the main lines, but the original line between Fürth-Stadeln (north of Fürth Klinikum) and Königsmühle (south of Eltersdorf) will remain a two-track bottleneck until the S-Bahn deviation is eventually opened. This is not now expected until the mid-2030s. A freight bypass in tunnel, avoiding Fürth Hbf by linking the west end of the Nürnberg southern ring line with Eltersdorf, is also planned.

Dombühl - Dinkelsbühl was planned for reopening to passengers in December 2019, but this has been deferred. It is still planned to open the line to Dinkelsbühl or even Wilburgstetten, but a definite date for this is not currently known.

The Landshut (Bay) – Plattling line is to be upgraded with four new passing loops and two extended ones. A short section of the line will be doubled and line-speed improvements are planned. These improvements will allow a half-hourly service on the RE3 "Donau-Isar Express" service between Passau and München. Also planned is a single-track curve to the west of Plattling, linking the Landshut and Regensburg lines, but this may only be intended for use by freight, primarily traffic to and from the large BMW factory at Dingolfing.

Reopening of the Münchener Güternordring (München northern freight ring line) for passenger transport is planned.

Berlin and Brandenburg

The Potsdamer Stammbahn (Zehlendorf to Griebnitzsee) is projected to reopen, to give a more direct route between Berlin and Potsdam for regional trains. The main line tracks from Schöneberg to Zehlendorf through Rathaus Steglitz, out of service since the war and subsequently lifted, will also be reinstated, along with a possible curve to the Innenring at Schöneberg. This may not occur until the early 2030s.

Planning work has started to reopen the S-Bahn line from Spandau to Falkensee in the early 2030s. It was closed in 1961.

Other projects in the i2030 scheme for rail development in Berlin and Brandenburg include:

• Reopening of the S2 from Blankenfelde to Rangsdorf along the Dresdner Bahn, in conjunction with the rebuilding of the long-distance lines north of Blankenfelde
• Extension of the S21 from Teltow Stadt over a new-build line to Stahnsdorf
• Extension of the S75 along the Außenring to Karow
• Reopening of the S25 between Hennigsdorf and Velten (Mark).

Reinstatement of regional tracks between Schönholz and Hennigsdorf to give a more direct route to the Wittstock line was considered but has been discounted on cost grounds. However capacity improvements between Velten (Mark) and Neuruppin are still going ahead.

Longer term it is planned to build a new S-Bahn line from Grünau to Springfühl via Wuhlheide. Plans for this line were already developed by the DDR in the 1980s.

Hessen

The Lumdatalbahn (Lollar – Mainzlar – Londorf) is registered for inclusion in a federal funding package for reopening.

The following lines are also under consideration for reopening:

• Neu-Isenburg Bf – Neu-Isenburg Stadtzentrum
• Kirchhain - Nieder-Gemünden (mittelhessische Ohmtalbahn)
• Darmstadt - Groß-Zimmern
• Wiesbaden - Diez (in Rheinland-Pfalz) (Aartalbahn)

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

Land Mecklenburg-Vorpommern published an invitation to tender in 2024 which included reinstatement of passenger services between Hagenow Stadt and Zarrentin (23.9 km) from December 2025. This line lost its passenger trains in May 2000. However in the award of the tender in November 2025 for Parchim area services to ODEG (the incumbent operator), there was no mention of any extension to Zarrentin. Apparently it remains an objective but requires federal funding and any new service is not expected to start until 2028 at the earliest, if at all.

In August 2023, the Länder of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Brandenburg launched their review into the development and potential reopening of all or part of the so-called Karower Kreuz network radiating from Karow (Meckl). This covers the north-south Neustadt (Dosse) – Pritzwalk – Meyenburg – Karow – Güstrow route which has sparse services south of Meyenburg and is closed north of there apart from summer weekend services between Karow and Plau am See, and the east-west Mecklenburger Südbahn (Parchim – Waren (Müritz)) which only has summer weekend services between Parchim and Inselstadt Malchow.

In early 2020, the Prime Minister and Transport Minister of Land Mecklenburg-Vorpommern restated their commitment to the rebuilding of Ducherow – Świnoujście/Swinemünde (Poland) but as this project would involve complete reconstruction of the bridge at Karnin between the mainland and the island of Usedom, this would appear to be a long-term aspiration.

Niedersachsen

Plans to re-open the line between Salzgitter-Lebenstedt and Salzgitter-Fredenberg surface every few years. The most recent study, which reported in early 2025, concluded that reopening was viable so some progress may at last be made on this scheme. The line is planned to be built and owned by the Land Niedersachsen-owned infrastructure company SinON (Schieneninfrastruktur Ost-Niedersachsen, formerly OHE) as this will be quicker and cheaper than having it built by DB InfraGO.

Reopening of Buchholz (Nordheide) - Hamburg-Harburg via Jesteburg is under consideration.

Nordrhein-Westfalen

In early 2023, the new public transport authority for the Köln/Aachen areas, known as go.Rheinland, announced its plans for the networks of 2032 and 2040. By 2032 the following lines are planned to be reopened to passengers:

• Linnich – Hückelhoven-Baal
• Erkelenz – Baal – Ratheim
• Stolberg-Breinig – Walheim – Eupen (BE).

By 2040 further reopenings are planned:

• Ratheim – Wassenberg
• Dalheim – Roermond (NL)
• Köln-Mülheim – Opladen via Morsbroich
• Köln Frankfurter Straße – Köln Süd via the Südbrücke
• Gummersbach-Dieringhausen – Waldbröl (although a study in 2023 rejected potential reopening of this line as too costly given the likely demand and poor journey time to Köln).

The following lines have also been mentioned as possible candidates for reopening:

• Oberhausen - Spellen (Walsumbahn)
• Duisburg Hbf - Düsseldorf-Rath (Ratinger Weststrecke)
• Kellersberg – Baesweiler

Rheinland-Pfalz

The Langenlonsheim – Büchenbeuren Hunsrückquerbahn, which has been without regular traffic for over 20 years, is in the process of being reactivated for freight traffic, which is expected to start running some time in 2025. It is intended at some point to start running passenger trains over the route as well.

Saarland

Land Saarland announced in mid-2025 that it was to go ahead with the reopening of three branch lines by the early 2030s:

• Dillingen (Saar) – Schmelz-Limbach (21.3 km), plus the connecting line to the existing Lebach-Jabach station (3 km) (Primstalbahn)
• Saarbrücken – Völklingen-Fürstenhausen – Großrosseln (15.1 km) (Rosseltalbahn)
• Völklingen-Fürstenhausen – Überherrn (17.4 km) (Bisttalbahn).

All three lines are expected to become part of a new Saarbrücken S-Bahn system, with lightweight tram-trains to be used on the latter two lines.

Sachsen

As Stage 5 of the Chemnitzer Modell tram-train network, a new connection is planned between Stollberg (Sachs) station and the line to St. Egidien. This will run south of Stollberg station on the formation of the former line to Zwönitz, then run west and north around Stollberg as a completely new-build line, joining the existing line to St. Egidien a few hundred metres east of Niederwürschnitz station. Once this section is open, the existing line from the north end of Stollberg station towards Niederwürschnitz will presumably close. Services over the new line will be extended from St. Egidien to run to Glauchau (Sachs).

In July 2024, DB RegioNetz Infrastruktur GmbH published an invitation to tender for the planning phase of the reopening to passengers of the line between Pockau-Lengefeld and Marienberg. A planned date for reopening is not yet known.

Sachsen-Anhalt

Reopening of part of the Kanonenbahn over the bridge over the river Elbe between Gnadau, Barby and Güterglück is under consideration.

In the "tourist/museum line" sector

The Warnetalbahn GmbH, which operates the museum line between Salzgitter-Bad and Börßum, took a lease in December 2019 of the line between Rottleberode and Stolberg (Harz), with the intention to run freight (timber) trains and occasional tourist passenger services. The branch from Berga-Kelbra closed to passengers in December 2011 and had been conmpetely out of service since then. Unfortunately because of the condition of a bridge over the river Thyra at Rottleberode, the reintroduction of regular services to Stolberg has been postponed indefinitely, although occasional excursion trains have run since December 2022.

Schleswig-Holstein

Reopening of approximately 3 km of the Rendsburg - Husum line as far as a new station at Rendsburg-Seemühlen is planned, with two new intermediate halts.

Planned permanent closures (without replacement)

With the timetable change on 14 December 2025, it is expected that Regional services to and from Schönefeld (b. Berlin) (the former Flughafen Schönefeld station, latterly Flughafen BER Terminal 5) will cease, thus leaving the curve between Grünauer Kreuz West and Grünauer Kreuz Süd and the section of the Außenring between Grünauer Kreuz Süd and Schönefeld with little or no service. This will leave Schönefeld station served only by the S-Bahn; given the extremely low demand at the station since the closure of Terminal 5, this would appear to be more than adequate.

The weekend-only extension of the RB27 service between Wensickendorf and Schmachtenhagen is to cease from the December 2025 timetable change. Services used to run to serve a farmers' market at Schmachtenhagen but that apparently has closed, so the demand for the service has dried up. Services on the section between Basdorf and Wensickendorf will be cut back to weekday peak-hours only at the same time.

The peak-hour RE8 trains between Berlin and Finsterwalde (Niederlausitz) will be withdrawn from the December 2025 timetable change. This will leave the north to east curve at Doberlug (Abzw Doberlug-Kirchhain Nord) – Abzw Hennersdorf West) without passenger services.

There has been some doubt about the future of services on the Neustadt (Dosse) – Pritzwalk line (KBS 209.73), particularly the section between Kyritz Am Burgerpark and Pritzwalk, and on the Pritzwalk West – Pritzwalk – Meyenburg line (KBS 209.74) for several years. Between August 2025 and April 2026, the section between Wusterhausen (Dosse) and Neustadt (Dosse) will be closed to allow reconstruction of the main line through Neustadt. After some initial misunderstandings, Land Brandenburg has assured the local councils in the area that the entire Neustadt – Pritzwalk – Meyenburg line is to be retained at least in the short term, with a tender issued in June 2025 for services for 36 months from December 2025.

In the "tourist/museum line" sector:

In August 2025, the Ministry for Infrastructure and Development of Land Sachsen approved the request of the owners of the Adorf (Vogtl) – Zwotental line (Regio Infra Service Sachsen GmbH (RIS)) to close it from December 2025. This will mean an end to the Musikwinkel-Express tourist service and other excursions that use the line. The 12.7 km-long line lost its scheduled passenger services in December 2012, by which time they only ran at weekends. Local politicians are opposing the closure, not least because one branch of the Sachsen government (the tourism department) had supported the venture with grants while another branch decided to close it down.

Planned permanent closures (with replacement)

As a result of the reinstatement of the main-line tracks of the Dresdner Bahn between Berlin Südkreuz and Glasower Damm, expected on 14 December 2025, the following line is expected to lose most if not all of its services, as the FEX (Flughafen-Express) service will be replaced with a new airport express service via Glasower Damm.

• Berlin Gesundbrunnen – Berlin Ostkreuz via the Ringbahn Ferngleise.

The main-line terminus station at Hamburg-Altona is due to close with a replacement through station being built roughly on the site of the previous Diebsteich S-Bahn station. The low-level S-Bahn station at Altona will remain, although with a change of name to "Mitte Altona". According to the project website the planned opening date of the new Altona main-line station is 2027. The proposed track layout and usage can be seen here.

There have been numerous deviations of railways to allow open-cast mining. There will be a significant re-routing of the Görlitz to Cottbus line, with the the closure of around 10 km of the existing line between Weißwasser and Rietschen, to be replaced by a 13 km-long deviation to the east. Work is due to start in March 2024 with the line opening in June 2027. See this DB pdf about the project.

The mainline tracks between Stuttgart-Vaihingen and Stuttgart Hbf (line 4860, part of the Gäubahn) will close permanently at end of traffic on 23 April 2026. They will eventually be replaced by a new tunnel connection to the underground Hauptbahnhof and the new line to Ulm but this is not expected to open until December 2032. Until the new line opens, passengers from the southwest, including those on IC trains from Zürich, will have to change to the S-Bahn at Stuttgart-Vaihingen.

It is planned to build a new Fangschleuse station on the Berlin - Franfurt (Oder) line, west of the existing one at the north end of a currently under construction extension to the Tesla electric car factory. This station is expected to replace both the current Fangschleuse station and Fangschleuse Tesla Süd, the latter only opened on 4 September 2023 serving the existing part of the factory. This will mean the withdrawal of the passenger service from Erkner to Fangschleuse Tesla Süd via a previously freight only branch, with presumably complete closure of the approx. 0.5 km line off the GVZ freight branch into the station itself. A date for this closure is not yet known.

Temporary closures

Baden-Württemberg

Electrification from Basel Badischer Bahnhof to Erzingen (Baden) (KBS 730) is due to start in September 2025 with completion scheduled for the December 2027 timetable change. During the work there will be no trains between Rheinfelden and Erzingen from April 2026 until March 2027. The closure will then be reduced to Rheinfelden to Erzingen which should reopen in July 2027.

Bayern

The Nürnberg to Bayreuth line has been closed between Hersbruck (rechts Pegnitz) and Pegnitz since 18 September 2025 because of the poor condition of two bridges. The line is not expected to reopen until February 2026. Trains to and from Neukirchen via the connecting line to the links Pegnitz route are unaffected.

Berlin and Brandenburg

Between 2 August 2025 and 30 April 2026, the Hamburger Bahn between Berlin and Hamburg will be closed for almost all of its length (between Berlin-Spandau and the outskirts of Hamburg). Long-distance trains between Berlin and Hamburg will be diverted via Stendal and Uelzen and local services replaced by buses. Other connecting lines will also be closed; see the respective Land heading for details.

Also between 2 August 2025 and 30 April 2026, the Berlin to Pritzwalk line (KBS 206) will be closed between Velten (Mark) or Kremmen and Neuruppin. RE6 services are diverted via Herzberg (Mark) - see "Openings" above;

The Berlin Hbf (tief/low level) to Jüterbog line (KBS 203) will be closed between Berlin Südkreuz and Jüterbog from 24 September to 13 December 2025. Between 24 October and 13 December, the closure will be extended to include the section between Berlin Südkreuz and Berlin Hbf (tief/low level). This closure also affects trains via Blankenfelde (Teltow-Fläming) and Elsterwerda (RE8S and IC/EC services to/from Dresden, which will be diverted via Berlin Ostkreuz).

The two tracks for regional and long distance trains between Berlin Ostbahnhof and Charlottenburg will be closed from start of traffic 14.06.2026 until end of traffic 12.12.2026; see this press report. The two S-Bahn tracks will remain operational.

Hessen

The line between Frankfurt an Main-Höchst and Bad Soden (Taunus) (KBS 643) is closed from 29 March 2024 until probably 2028 and the RB11 service replaced by buses. This is in connection with construction of the new Regionaltangente West line, which will link the Bad Homburg and Bad Soden lines via Eschborn.

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

The Hamburger Bahn (Hamburg – Berlin) will be closed between 1 August 2025 and 30 April 2026 between the outskirts of Hamburg and Wustermark. Long-distance Hamburg – Berlin trains are diverted via Uelzen and Stendal, and local trains are replaced by buses. Long-distance trains between Hamburg and Rostock/Stralsund are diverted via Lübeck with no services running between Hagenow Land and Schwerin Süd, Ludwigslust and Parchim or between Ludwigslust and Schwerin Süd.

Niedersachsen

The line between Ihrhove and Nieuweschans (KBS 397) closed after a ship hit and destroyed the main span of the bridge over the River Ems on 3 December 2015. DB has reconstructed the bridge, and the line is now expected to reopen fully on 14 December 2025. The train service on the German section west of the bridge, between Nieuweschans and Weener, resumed on 30 October 2016. Once the bridge has reopened a direct Bremen – Groningen service is planned, to be known as the "Wunderline".

ICE trains between Berlin and Hamburg are diverted via Stendal and Uelzen between 1 August 2025 and 30 April 2026 owing to work on the direct route via Ludwigslust. This means that westbound trains are expected to use the Veerßer Kurve at Uelzen (DE25/188).

Nordrhein-Westfalen

The following lines remain closed after the severe floods of mid-July 2021. Planned reopening dates are as below.

• 475 Euskirchen – Bad Münstereifel (14 December 2025)
• 482 (part) Stolberg (Rheinl) Hbf – Eschweiler West (14 December 2025)
• 482 (part) Stolberg-Rathaus – Stolberg Altstadt (14 June 2026).

The service from Bottrop Hbf to Duisburg-Ruhrort (KBS 447) is closed and replaced by buses for the whole of the 2024-25 timetable period because of staff shortages. This means that there is no service on the lines between Bottrop Hbf and Abzw Oberhausen Obn via Oberhausen-Osterfeld Süd and between Oberhausen Hbf and Duisburg-Ruhrort.

The section of KBS 437 between Unna and Fröndenberg has been closed since December 2022 because at least 140 badger tunnels were found to have undermined the whole line. In June 2025 DB InfraGO announced that work to reinstate the line will start in 2027 and trains will resume in 2028. RB54 services are replaced by buses until then.

The Rothaarbahn from Erndtebrück to Bad Berleburg (KBS 443) was closed between Aue-Wingeshausen and Bad Berleburg on 18 May 2025 by DB InfraGO because of the dilapidated state of two bridges on the route. Reopening is not foreseen before 2029.

Rheinland-Pfalz

The Zellertalbahn between Monsheim, Langmeil (Pfalz) and Münchweiler (Alsenz) (KBS 662.1) has been closed since 2018 because of the condition of the track. The most recent planned start date of 2 August 2025 did not happen. A new start date is not yet known but is likely to be around April 2026 at the earliest.

The western end of the Ahrtalbahn (KBS 477) between Walporzheim and Ahrbrück remains closed after suffering severe damage in the floods of mid-July 2021. It is being rebuilt and electrified and is due to reopen on 14 December 2025.

DB InfraGO closed the Neustadt (Weinstr) – Bad Dürkheim line (KBS 667) between Deidesheim and Bad Dürkheim from 17 March 2025 because it has been undermined by badger tunnels. Reopening is expected in December 2025 at the earliest.

Sachsen-Anhalt

The short (2.9 km) branch of the Harzer Schmalspurbahnen system between Alexisbad and Harzgerode is closed from 25 April 2025 until the end of November with passengers to use parallel scheduled buses instead as there will be no rail replacement service provided.

Schleswig-Holstein

Because of the condition of the Lindaunisbrücke combined road-rail bascule bridge over the Schlei sea inlet between Rieseby and Süderbrarup on the Kiel to Flensburg line (KBS 146), it was closed to rail traffic on 31 October 2021. Since September 15 2022 the service has terminated at temporary platforms either side of the inlet, known as Rieseby Schleibrücke Süd and Boren-Lindaunis Schleibrücke Nord, with passengers having to walk over a newly-built footbridge between them, a distance of 264 metres. A 126-metre long replacement bascule bridge is to be built, 13 metres to the east of the old bridge. Unfortunately the EBA (Federal Railway Authority) has introduced new, stricter, standards for railway bridges and so DB's plans for the bridge have been delayed and completion is not expected for several years.

Museum lines

As a result of serious flood damage in June 2024, the Schwäbische Waldbahn between Rudersberg and Welzheim is suspended. Financing for reconstruction has been secured and museum services are expected to resume in May 2026. Regular passenger services resumed over part of the shared section between Rudersberg and Rudersberg Nord (0.8 km) in May 2025.

The Bremen-Thedinghauser Eisenbahn ("Pingelheini") service closed once again between Stuhr and Leeste (b. Bremen) after service on 16 June 2024, so that work can actually commence on the long-awaited extension of Bremen tram route no. 8. This section originally closed at the end of the 2015 season to allow work on the tram extension but reopened on 22 August 2021 with no progress on the tramway having been made. It is believed that eventually the Pingelheini trains will resume as far as Bremen-Kirchhuchting, sharing the track with the trams as far as a junction just short of there.

Services on the museum line between Rinteln and Stadthagen were thought to have ended after a final day of operation on 21 April 2024, because extensive repairs to bridges and track were required. However in March 2025 it was announced that the line has been taken over by the Diepholzer Kreisbahn, principally for goods traffic, but this will also allow the museum service to resume at some point.

The museum line between Bremerhaven-Fischereihafen, Bremerhaven Hbf and Bad Bederkesa last had scheduled services on 17 September 2023. According to their website. no services were offered in 2024 and the site has not even been updated for 2025. It is not known when, or even if, services will resume.

The Wiehltalbahn from Gummersbach-Dieringhausen to Waldbröl was closed in summer 2020 because of fire damage to a bridge over the Wiehl river at Bielstein. It was reopened as far as Wiehl on 26 March 2023; however their website does not show any journeys since August 2023, apart from short draisine runs in Waldbröl in September 2025. In July 2025, the line's owners, Rhein-Sieg Eisenbahn GmbH, announced that they would be putting the line up for transfer to another operator, but if this was not successful, they would be applying to have the line officially closed.

The Museums-Eisenbahn-Club Losheim was closed suddenly in April 2017 by the authorities because of the condition of the track. Following this closure, trains only ran between Großer Wald and Dellborner Mühle and since September 2022 no trains have run at all. In mid-2025, Land Saarland decided not to proceed with a scheme to reopen the line to regular passenger traffic, following objections from the local authorities on the route. One of the grounds for objection was the effect that the reopening would have on the preservation operation. Ironically in May 2025, the Merzig and Losheim town councils, as infrastructure owners (EIU), also the district council, all voted to close the line completely and probably replace it with a cycle path. However in July 2025, the preservation society MECL with the backing of a local entrepreneur stated that they wished to buy the line. Apparently if a line is put up for formal closure but another bidder wishes to take it on, the line cannot be closed despite the wishes of the current owners, so it may be that the line will be saved at the eleventh hour.

Older Changes

For details of older changes see Germany - Older General Information.

Special notes

Train services in Germany are divided into a number of distinct categories:

• S (S-Bahn): Regular interval local trains in urban and suburban areas, often using segregated tracks, particularly in city centres.
• RB (Regionalbahn): Basic local services, usually calling at all stations except where a parallel S-Bahn route exists.
• RE (RegionalExpress): Regular interval local or semi-fast trains calling at fewer stations than RB services.
• IRE (Inter-Regional Express): Long-distance semi-fast trains. This designation is now only used for the infrequent Kulturzug services between Berlin and Wrocław; it ceased being used in Baden-Württemberg at the December 2024 timetable change when the remaining IRE services there became standard RE.
• IC (InterCity): Long-distance expresses, making limited stops. 'Traditional' loco-hauled IC trains are now rare with many former IC services having been converted to ICE operation and many of those that remain being operated with double-deck IC2 rolling stock.
• EC (EuroCity): Similar to IC, but for international journeys, often using non-German rolling stock.
• RJ / RJX (Railjet / Railjet Xpress): High-speed Austrian Railways (ÖBB) trains, mainly to and from München via Salzburg.
• ICE (InterCity Express) & ICE Sprinter: High-speed, long-distance electric trains worked with dedicated ICE trainsets. These are the only trains to operate on certain stretches of high-speed line (Schnellfahrstrecken) such as between Frankfurt (Main) and Köln and between Hannover and Würzburg.
• ECE (EuroCity Express): Trains between München and Zürich are designated ECE and are operated by Swiss Railways (SBB) high-speed trainsets.
• EST (Eurostar): High-speed trains on the Köln – Brussels – Paris route, managed by the French and Belgian railways, rebranded from Thalys in October 2023. Not to be confused with the Paris/Brussels – London services through the Channel Tunnel, although they have been part of the same group since 2021.
• NJ (Nightjet): Almost all of the remaining sleeper trains to and from Germany are operated by ÖBB (Austrian Railways) and branded as "Nightjet", the exceptions being non-ÖBB operated services such as those to Stockholm (operated by SJ) or Zagreb (operated by HZ) which retain the designation EN (EuroNight).
• D-Zug: This designation is derived from Durchgang, the German for corridor. Its use for regular passenger trains is now very rare — the only remaining instances in Germany are on the Snälltåget-operated Berlin – Malmö – Stockholm overnight services. It may still be used for an excursion or other special passenger train.

A few services operate only during school term time, or are extensively altered during school holidays. The dates of holidays vary from Land to Land.

A brief Guide to German railway terminology is available.