Overview
- From the evening of November 14 until the morning of November 24, only S-Bahn and U-Bahn reach the Hauptbahnhof as long-distance and regional tracks are closed.
- Commissioning of the new electronic interlocking was postponed to spring 2026 after last-minute software errors, with InfraGo’s Matthias Gramer saying the second closure will be shorter.
- Crews are using the current shutdown to ready signals, points and overhead lines for the new system so next year’s cutover focuses mainly on removing legacy equipment.
- Many ICE services are calling at Cologne-Ehrenfeld or Messe/Deutz instead of the Hauptbahnhof, and roughly a dozen regional lines are rerouted or curtailed, while S-Bahn trains continue under a separate signal box.
- NRW Transport Minister Oliver Krischer criticized the late change of plan, as disruptions ripple through a hub that handles about 1,300 trains and hundreds of thousands of passengers daily.