Saturday, October 6, 2007

The rail strike went ahead on Friday as planned, chaos all around was the consequence.

However, neither party has yet changed their stance, and the GDL hasn't ruled out further strikes: in fact, judging from the tone of their statements, further stoppages from Tuesday Wednesday onwards are almost inevitable, and they're indicating that any new strikes will be at very short notice.

We'll keep you posted.

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Compared to other major cities, it doesn't cost much to get to Berlin's airports by public transport: even the most distant, Schönefeld falls just within the €2.10 AB zone ticket, valid even on the fast Regional Express trains. When the new BBI airport opens at Schönefeld though, it's unlikely that this happy situation will continue.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Bad news for rail travellers: one of Germany's rail unions, the GDL, will be going on strike on Friday (October 5). This will affect Deutsche Bahn services at all levels, from ICE trains to Berlin's S-Bahn. Not all train drivers belong to the GDL, and Deutsche Bahn will be attempting to run as many services as possible, but it's likely at least half of all scheduled trains will be cancelled, and massive delays / overcrowding can be expected on many routes.

Saturday, September 29, 2007

2007 is turning out to be a year of sudden price increases, but good news - or at least lack of bad news - in one area: the VBB, the body which oversees public transport in Berlin and Brandenburg, has confirmed that there are no plans to raise prices on public transport in the region in 2007. The next fare rises will definitely take place in 2008 though, once the effects of recent shifts in the cost of energy have been taken into account.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

The tram line M2, which runs from the north of Berlin via the Prenzlauer Allee through the increasingly popular Prenzlauer Berg district, finally received a direct connection to Alexanderplatz earlier this year, replacing the former route inherited from the GDR which took a circuitous route through the back streets to Hackescher Markt. The new section of line, although just 900 metres long, cut around 10 minutes off the typical journey time to Alexanderplatz.

Monday, September 10, 2007

The last "missing piece" in Berlin's central public transport network is a section of S-Bahn line running north-south which would connect the Ringbahn to the Berlin-Hauptbahnhof, which is currently only served by the Stadtbahn and a few buses. This line, known as the S21, was meant to be part of the same packaged of construction measures which brought the Hauptbahnhof and the much delayed U55, but problems with financing mean it's been put back several times.

Friday, September 7, 2007

It's one of Berlin's never ending debates: should the Berlin-Hauptbahnhof get a roof extension? Due to the inevitable delays to the construction the North-South Railway Tunnell, about a quarter of the station's steel-and-glass roof structure were left off so the station could be opened in time for the World Cup in 2006, which means passengers (particularly first class passengers) boarding trains at either end of the above-ground platforms are exposed to the elements, and the station as a whole isn't as impressive as it might be.

Monday, September 3, 2007

Bad news for fans / addicts of smelly, cancer-causing nicotine-based products, good news for everyone else: as of September 1, another step in Germany's gradual move towards a general smoking ban came into effect, with smoking now banned by law on all forms of public transport. This includes all of Deutsche Bahn's trains, which no longer have smoking compartments or carriages, and taxis. Smoking has also been banned on all stations except the 330 largest, where it is only permitted in strictly limited areas.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Berlin's Transport Museum has a large depot of historical public transport vehicles and oldtimer cars which isn't usually open to the public. However, every year on each Sunday in September the doors are thrown open to every one - and entrance is free!

Highlights include old S-Bahn and U-Bahn trains, various historical buses, and even a car used by former East German leader Erich Honecker while hunting. There's a free bus shuttle service between the depot and the transport museum itself, provided using working vintage buses. There will also be a train shuttling between the two locations, but you will need an entrance ticket for the Transport Museum in order to be able to use this.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

This time EasyJet reports that it served a record number of passengers at Schönefeld - 288,000 - in July (up from 286,000 in June). The former unloved child among the three Berlin airports is getting ever more popular - it may never become the international hub it was once envisaged as, but as one of mainland Europe's main bases for low-cost carriers it's certainly becoming ever more useful.

(And I can remember a time when, if you turned up at Schönefeld in the afternoon, there were so few remaining departures that screens would show the next flights right through until noon the next day).