• de
  • en

Munich: A new tram route in regular service and the extension projects

Two trams on its way to pick up service on line 23 at the Kölner Platz stop along Parzivalstr. | © Urban Transport Magazine (b)

The timetable change on 1 January 2025 will also bring a whole series of changes in Munich, the most noticeable of which is likely to be the extension of the existing tram line 12.

Here is an overview of the most important measures:

Metro

MVG is constantly putting new Siemens Mobility C2 series trains into operation. They are fully accessible and offer more space for passengers than before. They are gradually replacing older double metro trainsets.

Metro train of the C2 series from Siemens Mobility on the U6 in Garching | © Urban Transport Magazine (b)

The service on the U3 line will be doubled to every 5 minutes in the Olympiazentrum – Moosach section during rush hour. All trains that previously started or ended at the Olympiazentrum will be extended to Moosach Station. This will improve the service, particularly at the Moosach transport hub with connections to the S-Bahn. In future, the U4 will run all day with long trains – increasing capacity by around a third. In contrast, the U6 in the Garching-Forschungszentrum – Fröttmaning section will be reduced to an all-day 20-minute service on Saturdays by decision of the district council, but there will still be extra services for football matches and the Oktoberfest.

In the new year, there will be a continuous underground service at weekends on the nights from Friday to Saturday, Saturday to Sunday and before public holidays. In the city centre, there is a service every 15 minutes in each direction. The U2, U3 and U5 lines each run every 30 minutes and meet at the central transfer stations (Hauptbahnhof, Odeonsplatz and Sendlinger Tor) as well as at Scheidplatz (U2/U3) and Innsbrucker Ring (U2/U5). The U1, U4 and U6 lines also run every 30 minutes allowing a combined 15 minutes frequency on the joint sections with lines U2, U3 and U5.

Tram

MVG is also constantly putting new tram vehicles into service – the four-car Avenio trams, also from Siemens Mobility. The four-section tramcars offer significantly more space than the older three-sections trams.

The hospital complex München Klinik Schwabing will be much better connected with the new tramway – Kölner Platz stop | © Urban Transport Magazine (b)

Tram 12 will be extended and will operate all day every 10 minutes from Scheidplatz via Parzivalstraße to Schwabing Nord at a frequency of 10min, creating new direct connections from Parkstadt Schwabing to the U2 underground line at Scheidplatz, meaning that the main railway station can also be reached with just one change. There had been long discussions as to whether the tram should really be allowed to run on Parsivalstraße all day – residents had lodged various complaints against it. The section had previously only served as a service route for incoming and outgoing trips to line 23 (Schwabing Nord – Münchner Freiheit), which otherwise operated without any other connection to the rest of the tram network. The Kölner Platz stop at Munich Schwabing Hospital will also be regularly served by the tram.

Tram 17 is expected to be able to cross the Ludwigsbrücken bridges again in spring 2025 and thus use the regular route via Max-Weber-Platz and Isartor. Tram 16 will then also return to its usual route through Lehel.

Short Siemens Avenio on line 16 aprroaching Mauerkirchnerstr. stop iin October 2022 | © Urban Transport Magazine (b)
Line 29 – Willibaldplatz loop | © Urban Transport Magazine (b)

On the other hand, the 29 service (Munich University of Applied Sciences – Willibaldplatz), which has not been operating since summer 2023 due to staff shortages and the difficult financial situation, will not be reinstated. Official statements from July 2024 cite increased capacity due to longer trains on the main lines along the route as the reason.

In the bus sector, larger vehicles will be operating on several lines from the timetable change in response to increased passenger demand.

Apart from the various “Bus trains” (Buses with coupled trailers) there currently is just one single Mercedes-Benz CapaCity L at MVG | © Dirk Budach

The tram extension projects

The government of Upper Bavaria has issued the planning approval decision for the extension of line 23 from Bauhausplatz via Neufreimann to Kieferngarten; the trams are scheduled to run here at the end of 2027. The second construction phase as a branch to the Am Hart metro station will be realised later. A first section of the western bypass in Fürstenrieder Straße is expected to go into operation in 2025, while the entire 8.3-kilometre section from Romanplatz to Aidenbachstraße should be completed by the end of 2028.

Following delays in the approval process, the 700 metre-long section to Johanneskirchen S-Bahn station could go into operation by the end of 2027.

In contrast, other announced tram extensions have been delayed indefinitely. The long-planned feasibility study for a tram from Amalienburgstraße to Freiham will not take place for several years, and the extensions Ramersdorf – Perlach, Berg am Laim – Daglfing, the planned southern tangent from Waldfriedhof to Tegernseer Landstraße and the tram connection along Wasserburger Landstraße in the direction of Haar are currently not foreseeable, as the necessary funding is not currently available. The construction of the important connection through the English Garden on the existing bus route has reportedly been blocked by the Bavarian state government:
https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/setback-for-the-tram-extension-in-munich-still-no-approval-for-the-nordtangente-tramway-through-the-english-garden/ .

(Updated version of the orginial article published on 13 Dec 2024)

29.12.2024