Overview

• Nearly 1,000 Baureihe 481 cars have been refurbished since late 2019, with the last two units still in the workshop.
• S‑Bahn says the final modernized train will return in the first half of 2026, pushing the share of new or modernized stock above 90%.
• Vehicle cabling defects have proved more extensive than anticipated and have affected operations, according to S‑Bahn chief Peter Buchner.
• Repeated outages on the Stadtbahn have been traced in part to infrastructure cables, prompting a Deutsche Bahn task force and replacement work, said Alexander Kaczmarek.
• Procurement delays mean replacement trains are not expected before 2031, extending reliance on the refurbished 481 fleet into the mid‑2030s.