Route expansion Rail line between Cologne and Düsseldorf closed during autumn holidays
Düsseldorf · The rail line between Cologne and Düsseldorf will be completely closed during the autumn holidays. The reason is construction work for the expansion of the rail line. Commuters and travellers must expect considerable restrictions.
Deutsche Bahn plans to completely close the busy rail line between Cologne and Düsseldorf during the autumn holidays to upgrade the line. The closure will last from Friday, October 8, at 9 p.m., until Friday, October 22, 2021, also at 9 p.m., Deutsche Bahn announced. During this time, trains would be diverted via the left bank of the Rhine or via the Wupper line, and in some cases rail replacement services with buses will be in operation. The Rhine-Ruhr Express (RRX) project is intended to improve the rail infrastructure in NRW.
During the interruption, work is to be carried out at full speed on the rail line, especially in the Leverkusen and Langenfeld sections. Signals and noise barriers will be erected, cables laid and work carried out on the Düsseldorf electronic interlocking. At the same time, Deutsche Bahn anticipates an end to the work on the rail upgrade: "The closure during the autumn holidays is the last major full closure of all four tracks before commissioning," the company explained.
Impact on local and long-distance traffic
RE1 (RRX) trains will be diverted between Düsseldorf Hbf and Cologne-Mülheim throughout the construction period. The trains of the RE 5 line, which also travel via Bonn to Koblenz, will also be diverted between Duisburg Hbf and Cologne Süd during the entire construction period, with a substitute stop in Neuss Hbf, Deutsche Bahn said. For both regional express lines, a replacement service with express buses has been set up between Düsseldorf Hbf and Cologne-Mülheim with stops in Düsseldorf-Benrath and Leverkusen Mitte.
Some long-distance trains will be rerouted between Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund or cancelled on individual sections. Departure and arrival times will change, and ICE and IC stops will be cancelled in Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Essen, Bochum and Dortmund, according to Deutsche Bahn. Travel times will be extended by up to 35 minutes in some cases. The routes from Düsseldorf, Duisburg and Essen in the direction of Hamburg/Northern Germany and in the direction of Berlin continue to exist with some restrictions.
Original text: (dpa/ga) - Translation: Mareike Graepel
