en.Wedoany.com Reported - Germany's Deutsche Bahn (DB) will resume direct long-distance services between Hamburg and Berlin on June 14, following the completion of a major infrastructure modernization on one of the country's busiest rail corridors. Daily direct services will increase from 38 to 52 trains, a rise of over 35%; DB will offer 100,000 special tickets at €14.99, available for purchase from June 12 to 14, with travel validity until December 12, 2025.
The modernization includes upgrading track infrastructure, installing new signaling and control systems, and reintroducing three intermediate stations—Büchen, Ludwigslust, and Wittenberge—which were previously excluded from the long-distance network due to construction detours. Michael Peterson, DB Board Member for Long-Distance Transport, stated that the corridor serves approximately 20,000 passengers daily. Acceptance tests on the Hagenow Land–Berlin-Spandau section are still ongoing, with DB InfraGO conducting load tests, meaning trains will not immediately operate at full speed across all segments. DB did not disclose the total capital expenditure for this modernization. Work on the Hamburg hub is scheduled from July 18 to August 15.
DB's €14.99 special ticket is similar in pricing strategy to other European corridor reopenings, but the volume is substantial. Based on the corridor's daily passenger flow of 20,000, the special tickets equate to roughly five days of full demand. In comparison, Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) offered special tickets starting at €9.90 with an allocation of about 30,000 tickets when reopening the upgraded Vienna-Salzburg western rail corridor in 2024. Germany's broader urban rail investment trends in 2025 prioritize sustainability and digitalization, with federal funding for renewable energy integration and smart city-oriented signal upgrades on the DB InfraGO network, aligning with the new European Train Control System (ETCS) compatible control systems being commissioned on the Hagenow Land–Berlin-Spandau section. (Source: German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport, 2025)
Following the reopening of the Hamburg-Berlin line, Railjet trains operated by Czech Railways (České dráhy, ČD) will also serve the Hamburg-Berlin-Prague-Vienna corridor, with three trains per day in each direction. Direct connections to Budapest, Bratislava, Prague, and Vienna will resume on June 14. Travel time on the Hamburg-Dresden service will be reduced by 40 minutes to approximately 3.5 hours. DB has not yet announced the specific Hamburg-Berlin end-to-end travel time for the reopened line. Additionally, DB confirmed that the new ICE L trains, featuring barrier-free level boarding, will enter service for the first time on the Berlin-Westerland (Sylt) tourist route on June 14. (Source: Deutsche Bahn, June 2025)
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