Deutsche Bahn’s large‑scale track renovations trigger extended delays and closures across Germany

Deutsche Bahn has announced several major construction programmes that will affect passenger services nationwide. From October 2026 to December 2027 the Berlin‑Lehrte corridor – the main Berlin‑Hannover route – will undergo a general overhaul. Sections between Berlin‑Spandau and Fallersleben will be fully closed in two periods (Oct‑Dec 2026 and the same months in 2027), forcing ICE trains onto detours via Braunschweig or Magdeburg and extending travel times by 60‑80 minutes; bus replacement services will operate where regional trains cannot run. A separate project on the left‑bank Rhine line between Cologne and Mainz runs until 10 July 2027, with track and signalling upgrades that reroute long‑distance trains, suspend stops at Cologne Hbf, Bonn Hbf, Remagen and others, and replace services with buses on affected sections. In January 2027 the Cologne Hauptbahnhof will be closed for eleven days to commission a new electronic interlocking and carry out roof demolition, platform works and lighting upgrades; S‑Bahn services will continue. On 15 June 2026 the new S‑15 line began operating between Gesund brunnen and the Berlin Hauptbahnhof, running every ten minutes and expected to carry about 40 000 passengers daily. In the Harz, the Brockenbahn has temporarily switched from steam to diesel locomotives because of heightened forest‑fire risk. The combined works affect hundreds of thousands of daily travellers and will require updated timetables in DB Navigator and regional apps.