This Sunday marks a significant change for train passengers in Berlin and Brandenburg, as a new train schedule comes into effect. The most notable development is the opening of the Dresden Railway, promising quicker connections to Berlin-Brandenburg Airport (BER).
Key Changes for Passengers
The 16-kilometer new line between Südkreuz and Blankenfelde, part of the Dresden Railway, represents the largest railway commissioning in the region in many years. This means a potential 23-minute journey from Berlin Hauptbahnhof to BER, if trains run on schedule.
Long-Distance Services
- Berlin-Munich: An increase to 16 fast ICE connections daily in each direction, three more than before.
- Berlin-Halle-Erfurt: A half-hourly service with no intermediate stops.
- Berlin Hauptbahnhof to Halle (Saale) Hauptbahnhof: Travel time reduced to one hour and seven minutes following the completion of Anhalter Bahn construction.
- Berlin Hauptbahnhof to Leipzig Hauptbahnhof: Journey time reduced to one hour and 15 minutes, down from approximately two hours.
- Berlin Hauptbahnhof to Lutherstadt Wittenberg: Fast trains will now take around 40 minutes, with long-distance trains stopping there again.
- Berlin to Erfurt: Faster travel times, taking just over one and a half hours.
- Berlin to Stuttgart: A new ICE Sprinter will be introduced, stopping only in Nuremberg, reducing travel time to less than five hours.
- Berlin-Cologne-Bonn Sprinter: Three daily services will be cancelled from early February next year due to extensive construction work.
- Berlin-Hamburg: Construction continues until the end of April, with services diverted via Uelzen and Stendal. Rail replacement services will operate for regional traffic.
International Services
- Berlin-Paris: The daily direct train will now take a new route via Halle, Erfurt, Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof, and Mannheim, reducing travel time by 15-20 minutes.
- Berlin-Warsaw: A seventh daily direct connection will be introduced, offering Eurocity services every two hours with a journey time of approximately five hours.
- Overnight Connections: New overnight services will be available between Berlin, Warsaw, and Chelm, as well as between Berlin, Krakow, and Przemysl.
Regional Services
- Airport Express (FEX): The FEX will now operate from Hauptbahnhof via Südkreuz to BER, bypassing Gesundbrunnen and Ostkreuz. Frequency will double to every 15 minutes.
- Eastern Berlin to BER: The RB24 from Eberswalde will be extended to BER. From February 2026, the RB32 from Oranienburg will also run hourly to BER. Both services will pass through Berlin Ostkreuz, providing two regional trains per hour to the airport.
- Spandau and Falkensee: Direct BER connections will be lost, requiring transfers at Hauptbahnhof or longer journeys via S9.
- New Line RE20: A new line, RE20, will operate daily hourly between Berlin Hbf and Lübbenau (with some services to Cottbus) from approximately 4 AM to 9 PM. It will stop at Potsdamer Platz, Berlin Südkreuz, BER, Königs Wusterhausen, and Lübben. The journey between BER and Lübbenau will be around 50 minutes.
- New Line RE30: This new line will operate every two hours daily, supplementing the RE3 for journeys towards the Baltic Sea, providing an hourly service between Berlin and Stralsund (with and without transfers).
Important Note: As of the timetable change, the recognition of VBB local transport tickets on all DB long-distance trains will cease. This affects Intercity services on the Berlin-Doberlug-Kirchhain-Elsterwerda and Potsdam-Cottbus sections, as well as ICE trains on the Berlin-Prenzlau section.
Source: https://www.zeit.de/news/2025-12/13/fahrplanwechsel-bringt-viele-aenderungen-eine-uebersicht
