The states of Berlin and Brandenburg have signed a 4th instalment to finance further partial measures with Deutsche Bahn as part of the i2030 infrastructure project. This builds on the previously concluded collective agreement for the further development and elimination of bottlenecks in the Berlin S-Bahn network. Together with the tranches already signed for the expansion of the S-Bahn network, a total of around 170 million euros is now available for project planning. In a further financing agreement for Birkenwerder station, plans have been commissioned to unbundle the rail infrastructure of the regional and suburban railway. In the i2030 project, the states of Berlin and Brandenburg, Deutsche Bahn and VBB are working together to drive forward the expansion of the rail network in the capital region.
The i2030 package of measures to eliminate bottlenecks and further develop the Berlin S-Bahn network has the following objectives:
- More trains: expansion of services and more capacity
- Expansion of the 10-minute frequency, including on outer branches to Strausberg, Bernau, Oranienburg, and Königs Wusterhausen
- Improving punctuality and reliability
- Expansion of the network for stable transport even in the event of scheduled deviations such as roadworks or disruptions
- Changing the modal split in favour of public transport and thereby reducing CO2 emissions, among other things
In total, this includes more than 30 infrastructure projects. The expansion of the infrastructure is a prerequisite for the use of new vehicles, the ordering of additional transport services and more frequent services as well as the improvement of operating quality at many points in the S-Bahn network. The planning basis is the collective agreement of the i2030 partners from February 2021, which regulates the financing of the planning from preliminary to approval planning, and for selected projects even the preparation of the award of contracts by the federal states of Berlin and Brandenburg.
Further sub-measures have now been added in this fourth instalment. This time, the focus is on increasing the required capacities in the network for additional trains through new points and stabling facilities. In addition, the planning scope of individual sub-measures from the 1st to 3rd instalments has been expanded.
A significant addendum is the extension of funding for the extension of the S75 from Wartenberg to Karower Kreuz (northern section of the local transport tangent). In addition to the already agreed preliminary planning (service phase 2), the design and approval planning (service phases 3 and 4) for the Wartenberg – Sellheimbrücke section have now also been secured through state funding. The extension of the S75 beyond its current terminus in Wartenberg along the Berlin outer ring towards Hohen Neuendorf will create a new connection in north-east Berlin. The construction of new stations (Sellheimbrücke, Malchow Nord, Turmbahnhof Karower Kreuz, Bucher Straße and Schönerlinder Straße) along the new S-Bahn line is being investigated in order to provide rail access to new and planned residential areas in north-east Berlin. In addition, the Karower Kreuz tower railway station can be used as an important new junction in the north-east of Berlin as a transfer station.
Furthermore, the state of Brandenburg has concluded a separate financing agreement with Deutsche Bahn for the preliminary planning of around 2.2 million euros for the conversion of Birkenwerder station. In future, regional and suburban trains are to stop at separate platforms here so that the regional railway lines RB 12, RB 20 and RB 32 can also stop in Birkenwerder. At the same time, this will ensure that the ongoing planning of the S1 section between Frohnau and Hohen Neuendorf for a 10-minute interval of the S1 to Oranienburg proceeds in parallel.
The fourth tranche includes
- Capacity increase south-west
- Berlin-Wannsee points connection
- Zehlendorf sidings
- Steglitz sidings
- Conversion of the Rathaus Steglitz stop into a railway station by building a new points connection
- Traction current systems south-west with new construction or expansion of the energy supply in the Feuerbachstraße, Schlachtensee, Forstweg and Babelsberg areas
- Traction current systems south-east with new construction or expansion of the power supply in the Königs Wusterhausen railway station and Grünau area
- Traction current systems south with new construction or expansion of the power supply in the Lichtenrade, Glasower Damm area
In addition, line extensions in the S-Bahn network are also being analysed in other i2030 corridors. On 8 August 2024, the Berlin S-Bahn celebrates the 100th anniversary of the first electric journeys (on the line to Bernau) using the 800V= lateral conductor rail system still in use today.
(Info: VBB)
