Overview
- DB InfraGo chief Philipp Nagl says more than half of the 2026 budget will go into the existing network rather than expansion.
- Passengers should expect extensive works and low punctuality to persist as construction sites rise from about 26,000 in 2025 to roughly 28,000 next year.
- In 2025 Deutsche Bahn spent around €19 billion, renewing thousands of turnouts, hundreds of kilometers of overhead line, about 2,300 kilometers of track, and commissioning 60 new interlockings.
- Digital train control remains limited with 683 kilometers equipped with ETCS nationwide, including 157 kilometers added in 2025, and many trains lack onboard equipment, so the Hamburg–Berlin upgrade mostly omits ETCS for now.
- Major projects continue with corridor overhauls such as Hamburg–Berlin, better Berlin Brandenburg Airport links, and the Ahrtalbahn rebuild, and InfraGo plans its next network condition report for April 2026.