Monday, April 2, 2007

Yes, it's that time of the year again when the BVG and S-Bahn decide to reach that little bit deeper into your pockets. First, the good news: fares aren't rising that much. The most popular ticket, the 2 hour one for zones A and B (i.e. all of Berlin) remains stable at €2.10, while the same ticket for zones A, B and C rises from €2.60 to €2.70. The excellent value-for-money (at least in comparision to other major European capitals) monthly ticket goes up from €67 to €70, but remains the same price for yearly subscribers.

Friday, March 16, 2007

Travelers to / from Berlin's Schönefeld Airport beware: on the next three weekends the S-Bahn train link will be interrupted due to building work. Trains will still be running but there will be no direct connection between the airport and the city centre.

• March 16, 2007 (Friday), 10pm - March 19, 2007 (Monday), 1.30am
• March 23, 2007 (Friday), 10pm - March 26, 2007 (Monday), 1.30am
• March 30, 2007 (Friday), 10pm - April 2, 2007 (Monday), 1.30am

Passengers are advised to take the regional train (Regionalbahn) instead: these run every half-hour from Flughafen Berlin-Schönefeld Station.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

The pay strikes which have been threatening to close Berlin's threeAirports have been called off following agreements between the main service workers' union Verdi and the airport operators, Berlin Flughafen-Gesellschaft.

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Following replacement of a century-old bridge (we reported), the U2 will be reconnected between Gleisdreieck and Nollendorfplatz on March 19. Work was originally scheduled for completion in December 2006, but problems with the construction of the new bridge caused the completion date to be put back. 

Thursday, March 1, 2007

From March 7th, travel by taxi in Berlin will become more expensive - but it's the first fare increase since 2001, and has been long overdue - operating costs, especially fuel prices, have risen massively in the intervening period. On average fares will rise by around 7-10%.

Friday, February 23, 2007

In Berlin, tram construction is tradtionally conducted at glacial speed, it seems. The much needed extension of the M10 to Berlin-Hauptbahnhof from the current provisional terminus at Nordbahnhof won't now be completed until 2011.

Monday, February 5, 2007

Berlin is to gain a further intercontinental air route: Oasis Hong Kong Airlines is to start flights between Schönefeld and Hong Kong in 2008. Prices are expected to be in the region of €300.

Friday, January 19, 2007

Following yesterday's storm, the Berlin-Hauptbahnhof's upper section - the east-west tracks of the Stadtbahn - is closed due to damage to the station's structure. This affects both the S-Bahn and regional / inter-city trains. S-Bahn trains from the east are terminating in Friedrichstraße, while trains from the west terminate at Zoo Station or Bellevue_Station.

Trains which run through the North-South Tunnel are not affected. However, as a result of the suspension of all intercity trains yesterday, and storm damage in the region, most trains are running with delays and some are cancelled.

Currently it is not known how long the closure will last.

Update (2:30pm): the S-Bahn is now running through Hauptbahnhof again; regional and intercity services on the Stadtbahn are expected to be restored during the afternoon.

Tuesday, December 26, 2006

Berlin has round-the-clock public transport, and never more so than on New Year's Eve (German: Sylvester), when half the city is on the move to throw fireworks at the other half. All U-Bahn and S-Bahn lines will be running through the night, as well as the bus and tram night lines.

The S-Bahn will be running trains at 20 minute intervals through the night, with trains at 10 minute intervals on the lines S1, S25, S3 and S41/42 (ring line) until around 3am. Lines S45 and S85 will not operate.

The U-Bahn will be operating on the normal Sunday timetable with trains at ten minute intervals until around midnight; after midnight until 8am on January 1st they will be running approximately every 15 minutes, except for lines U12, U2, U6 and U9, which will continue at 10 minute intervals.

All bus and tram night lines will be running (with the exception of bus lines N1-N9, which follow the U-Bahn lines with the same number, except for N2, which will run between Zoo and Hackescher Markt). The 24-hour "Metro" bus and tram lines (route numbers beginning with "M") will also be running, with more frequent service than usual on the most important routes.

Wednesday, December 6, 2006

Every 18 months or so there are a few weeks of controversy as the politicians and the various public transport companies (BVG, S-Bahn, Deutsche Bahn and every little bus company in the state of Brandenburg) battle it out with one another to see who can get the best deal: the transport companies always want more money, of course, while the politicians want to keep the inevitable fare rises (there are rarely fare reductions) as low as possible.

This time round the politicians seem to have won and the new fare prices, to come into effect in April 2007, are barely changed from the existing ones. A standard 2-hour ticket for zones A/B (i.e. within the Berlin city limits) will remain at €2.10, while a monthly ticket will rise from €67 to  €70. If bought annually, the price will not change however.