Plans call for the new timetable to be implemented in December of this year, but there will also be additional costs to bear for the towns and communities affected, so they still have to agree. Then in July, the city council would give formal approval. But if there is not enough support, the changes will only be implemented in 2019. Discussions about the changes have already taken place with the city and those municipalities involved. Here are the most important changes.

Lines 16/63: The well-used tram line 16, which connects Bonn and Cologne and partly runs along the banks of the Rhine, should run in 10-minute intervals instead of 20-minute intervals come December (from 6:30am - 8pm). Line 63, which runs on the same route but only as far as Tannenbusch, will run only three times every hour.

Line 18/68: On Saturdays, the tram between Bonn and Cologne currently runs once an hour between 3 and 8pm, and this will increase to every half hour. The same will apply to Sundays from 10am to 8pm. Line 68 to Bornheim will be cancelled. At night, the trams which come from Cologne and finish in Brühl, will go all the way to Bonn central station on weekends and public holidays.

Line 66: More frequent departures are also planned for line 66. Between Ramersdorf and Königswinter, commuter traffic beginning at 3 pm will run at 10-minute intervals, and in the future this is expected to be moved up to 1 pm. The hourly nighttime connection between Siegburg and Bonn Hbf will be extended during the week, until now the last train leaves at 2:04 am; on weekends and before public holidays, the train will go all the way to Bad Honnef.

Further changes: The city administration also believes more can be done for the express bus line 55 between Niederkassel and Bonn. In the future, the buses will run at 20-minute intervals between 5:30am and 8pm. They will continue to run at 10-minute intervals between 7am and 8am. Bus lines 601/602 to Venusberg should run more frequently at six times an hour beginning in December. Bus line 632 will have a new route taking it through Venusberg, Poppelsdorf, Endenich, Probsthof, Nordstadt, Bertha-von-Suttner-Platz and Beueler train station on a trial basis.

From the perspective of the city, improvements need to be made to public transport in the coming years. A projected population growth for Bonn by the year 2030 up to 342,000 inhabitants means more commuter traffic, especially from the surrounding cities of Bornheim, Niederkassel, Sankt Augustin, Siegburg and Troisdorf.

(Orig. text: Philipp Königs, Translation: ck)