Deutsche Bahn increases ICE trains on central routes with new schedule

With the timetable change at the end of the year, Deutsche Bahn is increasing the frequency of long-distance services on central routes. "The route network, on which a high-speed train runs approximately every half hour, will grow from 900 to 2,300 kilometers," DB explained. - AFP

With the timetable change at the end of the year, Deutsche Bahn is increasing the frequency of long-distance services on central routes. “The network on which a high-speed train runs about every half hour is expanding from 900 to 2,300 kilometers,” the railway company said on Friday. However, the company is significantly reducing some less frequented ICE connections, citing a lack of economic viability.

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From Hamburg via Hannover to Göttingen, or from Berlin via Halle and Erfurt to Nuremberg, an ICE train will run roughly every half hour starting 14 December. Additionally, DB is deploying more so-called Sprinter trains on major axes such as Hamburg-Frankfurt and Berlin-Munich, which travel faster and make fewer stops. Travel time will also be significantly reduced on the Berlin-Stuttgart route via Nuremberg.

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However, the company explained that DB could no longer offer "some trains with very low demand" "given the economic conditions with high cost increases." For example, on the route from Leipzig to Nuremberg via Jena, only two IC trains will run in each direction instead of five.

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DB also points to the Deutschlandticket: on many routes where alternative regional services exist, passengers have increasingly switched to it. The IC from Leipzig to Jena, for instance, was reportedly only about ten percent full at times.

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In cross-border rail traffic, a new Eurocity connection from Leipzig to Krakow, Poland, will start with the timetable change, and additional cities in Switzerland will also be served by ICE trains. From May, a new connection from Prague to Copenhagen via Dresden, Berlin, and Hamburg will begin. Starting in September, an ICE from Cologne to Antwerp will run four times a day, stopping at Brussels Airport.

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Booking for international travelers will also become easier: in addition to long-distance trains operated by the Austrian and Swiss railways, “from now on, many domestic French TGV connections as well as Eurostar tickets” can be purchased directly via bahn.de or the DB Navigator. The Eurostar links London with Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam. By the end of 2026, “tickets for all major railways in neighboring countries” are expected to be bookable through DB.

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Connections under the new timetable will be available from 15th October.

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