Construction work Hamburg - Berlin: Further Information, Questions & Answers and Downloads

Das Foto zeigt ein Baufahrzeug auf einer Bahnstrecke, das Bahnschwellen geladen hat sowie einen Bauarbeiter in Warnweste auf einem Gleis.
Bauarbeiten an der Bahnstrecke. © Deutsche Bahn AG / Oliver Lang

Due to extensive construction work on the Hamburg <> Wittenberge <> Nauen <> Berlin railway line from 1 August 2025 to 30 April 2026, there will be substantial changes to regional rail services along this route. The amended timetables can be accessed in the VBB journey information and VBB apps as well as in the Journey Planner at www.bahn.de and DB Navigator app, so that passengers can find out about the new connections.

To replace local train services that cannot be offered due to the construction work, 27 replacement services will be operated along the entire Hamburg - Berlin route at peak times.

The railway lines will run as follows from 2 August 2025

For the Berlin and Brandenburg region, the closures will result in extensive changes on the Hamburg railway and also on some of the connecting services. In addition to the RE8 line Berlin <> Wittenberge <> Schwerin <> Wismar, the RE6 line between Perleberg and Wittenberge, the S1 between Osterburg and Wittenberge and the RB73 are also affected.

In order to continue to ensure a fast connection between Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Berlin and to ease the pressure on the replacement services, a direct connection from Schwerin to Berlin will be offered as RE85 for the duration of the construction work. The trains run every two hours via Bad Kleinen, Güstrow, Neustrelitz (stop only in the direction of Schwerin) and Oranienburg to Berlin.

Due to parallel construction work between Neuruppin Rheinsberger Tor and Kremmen or Velten, the RE6 and RB55 lines are also disrupted on this section. While replacement buses will be used between Neuruppin and Kremmen, the RE6 line from Perleberg will continue to run from Neuruppin to Berlin via Löwenberg and Oranienburg.

Some of the regional services cancelled between Nauen and Berlin-Spandau can be diverted to the railway line from Berlin-Spandau to Dallgow-Döberitz and Wustermark. At the Wustermark, Elstal, Dallgow-Döberitz and Berlin-Staaken stations there is thus a significantly increased service for passengers from the Falkensee and Brieselang area. In addition, the capacity of the RE4 and RB21 lines, which continue to run on schedule, can be significantly increased.

The RE2 line runs from the Berlin city railway via Berlin-Spandau and Dallgow-Döberitz to Hennigsdorf. It therefore replaces the RE6 line on this section.

The RE5 will be diverted between Rostock and Langhagen, the Güstrow stop will be closed. From/to Güstrow you can also use the RE50 line from Neustrelitz, Kratzeburg, Waren (Müritz), Langhagen, Rostock Hbf (as well as from Berlin with a change in Neustrelitz), which runs 1 hour later. The RE85 line also runs between Berlin, Oranienburg, Waren (Müritz) and Güstrow. The Rostock S-Bahn can also be used between Rostock and Güstrow. 

The RE6 line runs a shortened route between Perleberg and Berlin, but will be rerouted between Neuruppin and Berlin due to further construction work and will now stop in Löwenberg (Mark), Oranienburg and Berlin Gesundbrunnen.
The RB55  line runs between Kremmen and Hennigsdorf (with stops at all stations) and there are also shuttle services on the RE6 (stops only in Kremmen, Velten and Hennigsdorf). The RE2 line runs between Hennigsdorf and Berlin city centre, and a replacement bus service runs between Neuruppin and Kremmen.

The RE8 line runs from BER airport to Elstal via the Berlin city railway, Berlin-Spandau and Dallgow-Döberitz.
For people travelling a long distance, the dedicated line RE85 follows an alternative route between Schwerin Hbf and Berlin Südkreuz with stops in Bad Kleinen, Güstrow, Waren (Müritz), Neustrelitz (only in the Schwerin direction), Oranienburg, Berlin Gesundbrunnen, Berlin Hbf and Berlin Potsdamer Platz.

The RB10 line will be closed completely.
The RB14 line runs from the Berlin North-South Tunnel via Berlin-Spandau and Dallgow-Döberitz to Wustermark.

The RB20 line is closed between Oranienburg and Birkenwerder. Passengers should use the S-Bahn line S1.

The RB32 line is closed between Oranienburg and Berlin-Lichtenberg and only runs on the Berlin-Lichtenberg section <> Schönefeld (near Berlin).

The RB54 line will continue to run between Rheinsberg (Mark) and Löwenberg (Mark), but with slightly adjusted timetables so that the additional RE6 can also run on this route.

The RB73 line does not run between Kyritz and Neustadt (Dosse). The replacement line R and the ORP buses can be used as an alternative.

The replacement service on the road connects with this condensed train service. The centrepiece of the replacement service in the state of Brandenburg is the inter-regional X4 line, which runs from Wittenberge via Perleberg and the B5 with stops in Kyritz and Nauen to Wustermark. From there, it continues to Brieselang to quickly connect the community to Wustermark railway station. There you can continue your journey to Berlin with a short transfer time.
Line X4 will be supplemented by other regional replacement services, which will be linked at central hubs with short transfer times. The aim is to reduce the restrictions for passengers as far as possible by providing a frequent service and stopping the replacement buses close to the city centre. The replacement buses also connect the Falkensee area to Dallgow-Döberitz station.
In Wustermark and Dallgow-Döberitz there are connections from the replacement buses to the train services.
In the Falkensee, Finkenkrug and Brieselang area, replacement services and municipal bus services complement each other
 

You can find a complete overview of all replacement bus routes here.

Long-distance trains continue to run between Hamburg and Berlin. The connection remains attractive in terms of train frequency, journey time and price. With up to 65 daily ICE journeys – 36 of them direct – DB offers a reliable service between Germany's two largest cities: Hourly with direct connections without changes, mostly as long ICE 4 trains for up to 830 passengers. As with previous construction measures, trains will run via Uelzen and Stendal. The journey time between Hamburg and Berlin will be 45 minutes longer. The long-distance trains also stop in Salzwedel and Stendal and usually also in Lüneburg and Uelzen on an hourly basis. Direct replacement buses (IC buses) will run between Wittenberge and Ludwigslust and Hamburg at the start of the general refurbishment.

General refurbishment 2025 Hamburg - Berlin | Questions and answers

From August 2025, the railway line between Berlin and Hamburg will be completely closed due to extensive construction work up to and including April 2026. This affects both long-distance services and regional trains in the districts of Prignitz, Ostprignitz-Ruppin and Havelland. Here you will find all the important information about the restrictions and answers to frequently asked questions.

General FAQ

The general refurbishment of the Hamburg-Berlin railway line will take place from the beginning of August 2025 up to and including April 2026. As a result, the railway line will be completely closed to passenger and freight traffic. DB InfraGO is still examining whether the Nauen – Berlin section can be put back into operation as early as February 2026.
 

Questions and answers about the scope of the general refurbishment, what is being built and where, can be found on the DB InfraGO information portals: hamburg-berlin.deutschebahn.com

 

No train services will be possible on the main Hamburg <> Ludwigslust <> Wittenberge <> Berlin-Spandau line during the general refurbishment of the Hamburg-Berlin line. This also fully includes those stations from which other lines branch off, e.g. Neustadt (Dosse) and Wittenberge.
Local transport therefore has to be replaced by extensive bus services, and long-distance transport between Berlin and Hamburg is being diverted via Stendal and Uelzen. The detailed replacement transport concept has been presented in various formats since February 2025.

 

If you have any questions, please contact DB InfraGo's project communications team for the Hamburg-Berlin general refurbishment. You can find contact details here.
 

If you have any questions about the replacement service, please contact our information centre at info@vbb.de.

 

FAQ – Berlin-Brandenburg Region

  • All trains travelling between Berlin, Falkensee, Nauen and Wittenberge are affected by the closure: RE2, RE6, RE8, RB10 and RB14.
  • Due to the complete closure of the Neustadt (Dosse) and Wittenberge stations, the S1 lines in Saxony-Anhalt and Brandenburg (Wittenberge - Stendal - Magdeburg - Schönebeck) and the RB73 (Neustadt (Dosse) - Kyritz - Pritzwalk) are also affected.
  • These lines will either be shortened or diverted via other routes.
  • Due to parallel construction work, including on the railway embankment between Velten, Kremmen and Neuruppin, the RB55 line is also subject to restrictions. The lines will run as follows from 1 August 2025:
    • RE2: from/to Cottbus <> Berlin Ostkreuz <> Berlin Ostbahnhof <> Berlin Alexanderplatz <> Berlin Friedrichstraße <> Berlin Central Station <> Berlin Zoologischer Garten <> Berlin-Charlottenburg <> Berlin-Spandau <> Dallgow-Döberitz <> Hennigsdorf (near Berlin)
    • RE6: Perleberg <> Pritzwalk <> Neuruppin Rheinsberger Tor <> Löwenberg (Mark) <> Oranienburg <> Berlin Gesundbrunnen
    • RE8: BER Airport <> Berlin Ostkreuz <> Berlin Ostbahnhof <> Berlin Alexanderplatz <> Berlin Friedrichstraße <> Berlin Central Station <> Berlin Zoologischer Garten <> Berlin-Spandau <> Berlin-Staaken <> Dallgow-Döberitz <> Elstal
    • New RE85: Berlin Südkreuz <> Berlin Central Station <> Berlin Gesundbrunnen <> Oranienburg <> Neustrelitz <> Waren <> Güstrow <> Bützow <> Bad Kleinen <> Schwerin Central Station
    • RB10: suspended
    • RB14: Berlin Südkreuz <> Berlin Potsdamer Platz <> Berlin Central Station <> Berlin Jungfernheide <> Berlin-Spandau <> Berlin-Staaken (only in the direction of Wustermark) <> Dallgow-Döberitz <> Elstal (only in the direction of Wustermark) <> Wustermark
    • RB20: Birkenwerder <> Hennigsdorf <> Potsdam-Griebnitzsee
    • RB32: Berlin-Lichtenberg <> Schönefeld (near Berlin)
    • RB55: Hennigsdorf (near Berlin) <> Velten (Mark)
    • RB73: Kyritz <> Kyritz Am Bürgerpark <> Wutike <> Rosenwinkel <> Blumenthal (Mark) <> Bölzke <> Sarnow <> Pritzwalk

       
  • Wherever it is not possible to travel by rail, regional trains will be replaced by a comprehensive replacement bus service.
  • Buses run more frequently than trains on many routes to give passengers as much flexibility as possible on their daily journeys.
  • In view of the high volume of traffic in the Berlin city-surrounding area, routes were chosen that deviate from those of the trains in order to avoid congested roads.
  • You can find the exact routes and stops on our Page for replacement services.
  • In addition, some buses in the Nauen, Brieselang and Falkensee area take over the feeder and drop-off function for regional transport. The plans are still being finalised. New information will be made available on this website as it becomes available.
     

Passengers in the Wittenberge - Nauen - Berlin area travel on many individual routes, so that – as with train services – it is not possible to offer direct connections for every passenger. For this reason, special consideration was given to transfer connections where necessary when planning the replacement services. For the transfer hubs, including in Perleberg-Quitzow and Kyritz, it is planned that the buses will meet at the same time and wait for each other. For the high-traffic towns along the railway line, however, there are largely direct connections to the Berlin area.

  • It is not possible to make a general statement on this question, as passengers undertake a wide variety of individual journeys. In principle, however, the majority of people will experience some major increases in journey times. This is particularly due to the fact that the buses will "go with the flow" of existing road traffic and will also be restricted a maximum speed of 80 km/h. Compared to regional transport with a top speed of 160 km/h, this alone results in a significant increase in journey times. In terms of planning, this is countered by routing the bus routes through the towns, in some cases also omitting the (unserved) railway stations. This should at least shorten the journey to and from the replacement bus.
  • It is also planned that passengers will be able to get into a train again as early as possible – for example, at Wustermark and Dallgow-Döberitz stations to the trains travelling there in the direction of Berlin.
  • Travel time examples:
    • Wittenberge - Berlin Hbf
      Train service: approx. 1:30 hrs
      Replacement transport and train: approx. 3:30 hrs.
    • Neustadt (Dosse) - Berlin Hbf
      Train traffic: approx. 1:00 hrs
      Replacement transport and train: approx. 2:00 hrs.
    • Nauen - Berlin Hbf
      Train service: approx. 45 min
      Replacement transport and train: approx. 60 min
    • Falkensee - Berlin Hbf
      Train service: approx. 20 min
      Replacement transport/bus and train: approx. 40 min

       

School transport will be taken into account when planning and coordinating the overall transport offer during the general refurbishment. A combination of replacement buses for cancelled trains and additions to municipal transport (including Havelbus) ensures that schoolchildren can also continue to travel by public transport. Coordination is currently underway.

The replacement bus service is based on the existing train service. Consideration is also given to the fact that bus journey times are longer than those of trains. This means that buses will still be travelling at very early and very late times.

A direct replacement route between Falkensee and Spandau along Falkenhagener Str., Spandauer Str. and Falkenseer Chaussee as well as an alternative route via Seegefelder Straße was initially considered, but then rejected due to the general conditions. Both routes are already subject to high levels of congestion from car and existing bus traffic, especially at peak times. The journey to Spandau takes a foreseeable 30 minutes before you can change trains there. The replacement concept that has now been developed is based on an initially counter-intuitive but comparatively short journey with the replacement or municipal buses to Dallgow-Döberitz station, where passengers can change to one of the numerous train connections (RE2, RE8 and RB14 in addition to RE4 and RB21 during the construction work). This will reduce the journey time for the majority of passengers compared to a direct replacement service from Falkensee to Spandau. In addition, we expect the connections to be far more reliable as road sections at risk of congestion are largely bypassed.

FAQ about the replacement buses

The aim of planning the replacement service is to offer all passengers a convenient travel option under the circumstances. This also means that every passenger is offered a seat. However, there is little or no empirical data available on the extent and breadth of the restrictions during the construction work. The replacement service is structured in such a way that, where possible, it is based on the capacity of the cancelled trains and can also react to changes in demand.
For passengers travelling near Berlin in the Falkensee area, it is foreseeable that it will not always be possible to offer a seat for every passenger. There are conflicting priorities between very high demand, which suggests the use of many buses, and an already dense local and city traffic by cars and other buses, which should not be excessively overloaded.

The transfer times at the connecting hubs are planned in such a way that a convenient transfer can be guaranteed even in the event of slight delays. Unfortunately, this cannot be guaranteed for longer delays. Nevertheless, the lines run every 30 minutes on many sections so that there is not too much waiting time in the event of long delays (e.g. 20 minutes).

FAQ – Fare & Sales

Yes, this applies accordingly to the replacement service. The replacement buses can only be boarded with a valid ticket. In general, the usual tickets, e.g. season tickets and single tickets, as they would apply to the train journey, apply to the replacement service. 

No, it is not possible to buy tickets on the buses. Tickets can be purchased in advance, for example at sales points and ticket machines at stations or digitally via the available apps. 
In addition, it is not possible to validate tickets intended for validation on the replacement buses. The ticket must be validated before the journey. The replacement buses can only be boarded with a valid ticket.
An overview of the sales and validation options (sales facilities) at regional railway stations can be found here.
 

Yes, with a valid VBB travel pass you can use all replacement buses that run in the VBB network area. This also applies to all holders of a valid VBB travel pass between the Glöwen <> Breddin stations who are travelling on the SEV route via Havelberg in Saxony-Anhalt. It is not necessary to take the diversions - the VBB fare for the usual route applies. Instead, the German travel passes for the corresponding train journey are also valid on the replacement service.

Yes, all replacement buses can of course be used with the Deutschlandticket. 

Everyone involved is aware of the inconvenience caused by extensive closures. At the same time, the construction work is now necessary so that trains can run reliably in future. They will be announced in good time so that customers can prepare for the associated circumstances. A refund, even a partial refund, is therefore not possible. 

These groups of people are prioritised for transport. The replacement service will be operated with low-floor buses. We also recommend that people with restricted mobility register with the Mobility Service Centre (MSZ) in advance register in advance.

It is not possible to take bicycles on replacement services due to the limited capacity of the buses. 

FAQ – Passenger Information

The first connections have been available in the VBB information systems since 10 February 2025. This corresponds to the current status of work. The information systems are currently not yet reliable, especially with regard to continuous journey chains (rail <> replacement transport <> bus). Therefore, the current status may result in incorrect information in the systems.