Berlin, October 6th, 2026 (The Berlin Spectator) – Inaugurated by Deutsche Bahn on May 26th, 2006, Berlin’s “Hauptbahnhof” is quite a structure. Previously, “Ostbahnhof”, former East Berlin’s largest station, was the reunited German capital’s central station. And it still counts more passengers. But the new one is far more impressive.
On several floors, a total of 12 platforms serve long-distance trains, four upstairs and eight in the basement. In addition, there are four city train (S-Bahn) platforms, while the U-Bahn (subway, underground, tube, metro) has one platform. Some 1,300 trains stop at this station every day. They transport 330,000 passengers who either board or leave trains at this station.
According to Deutsche Bahn, experts are in the process of looking at technical equipment and establishing which items need to be changed or replaced. It will be an extensive and therefore rather expensive renovation job. In the early 2030s, it is supposed to begin.
One of the issues could have been foreseen, but wasn’t: On platforms 11 to 14, upstairs, there are some pinch points Deutsche Bahn wants to eliminate. On busy days, passengers can hardly move up there during rush hours. This part is complicated because skylight openings, which are supposed to give the lower floors some daylight, might have to be removed. A new concept will have to be implemented.
More issues popped up on the northern station square, Europaplatz, where trams, taxis and a major traffic artery, Invalidenstrasse, all need room. The square looks sort of chaotic, also because there does not seem to be a good solution for taxis and bicycles. Deutsche Bahn is already improving things there. Some greenery is supposed to make the area more attractive.
In addition, there are issues that need to be fixed quickly, including train tracks in the basement. Next year, from February to April of 2027, Deutsche Bahn intends to renovate those. Of course, this has implications for passengers, especially those who need to go to BER Airport in Schönefeld, located in neighboring Brandenburg. The FEX Airport Express train will not serve central station for a while. During the renovation process, RE20, a regional train, will have to be banned as well.
S-Bahn Train Tracks
So far, Deutsche Bahn has not announced which long-distance train routes will be affected and how they intend to resolve the disruptions that will definitely result from the renovation efforts.
In the summer of next year, the S-Bahn train tracks upstairs will have to be refurbished too. This will affect several important city train lines. They have to bypass central station for a while.
