Signal Box Problems Expose the Risk of Radical Full Closures

The strategy of completely shutting down main lines for months is taking its toll. After Hamburg-Berlin, the Nuremberg-Regensburg project is also missing its deadline. A look at the facts.

03 July 2026

The Risk of the 40-Route Plan

By mid-2030, more than 40 central transport corridors are to be rehabilitated. The chosen method: months of full closures. The data shows that this approach is highly prone to errors. For the second time this year, a general renovation project is failing to meet its own schedule. After a six-week construction delay on the Hamburg-Berlin route in June, then caused by frost, the opening of the route between Nuremberg and Regensburg is now also being postponed.

Safety Inspection Blocks Hub

Normally, over 350 freight, regional, and long-distance trains pass through the Bavarian axis daily. Since February, traffic has been suspended for the five-month construction phase, during which, among other things, 20 stops are being worked on. In April, the infrastructure company InfraGo still named July 10 as the start date. InfraGo board member Gerd-Dietrich Bolte has now had to postpone this date to July 31. The reason for the failure at the start of the Bavarian summer holidays lies in outstanding safety checks of the signal box technology.

Buses and Diversions Remain

For the logistics sector and travelers, the postponement means that train diversions and replacement bus services will remain in place until the end of July. Only two other major construction sites - the Hagen-Wuppertal-Cologne and Hamburg-Hanover routes - can be reopened on time next Friday.