New hope for ICE station at Munich Airport
The connection between Munich Airport and DB's long-distance rail network, which has been under discussion for over three decades, could become a reality after all. At the end of November, the Bundesrat is due to vote on a draft bill in which the ICE expansion line from Ingolstadt to Munich with a connection to Munich Airport is included in the rail infrastructure requirement plan as a "project of potential need".
According to the Munich Ministry of Finance, an ICE train station at the airport was not previously planned. "Munich Airport needs an ICE connection as soon as possible," demanded Finance Minister Albert Füracker on Friday. The "Münchner Merkur" reported earlier.
"A connection to Deutsche Bahn's ICE network is extremely important and has considerable potential: Munich Airport is one of the most important hubs in Europe for air traffic and is Germany's only five-star airport," said Füracker.
When planning what is now Germany's second-largest airport in the 1980s, both the construction of a long-distance train station and four runways were initially considered. However, neither was built. To date, the airport has only been connected to the regional and S-Bahn network. DB had already drawn up plans for a long-distance train station at the time, and the airport company is also in favor of this.
However, the classification as "potential need" does not mean that construction is now imminent. Normally, only projects that are classified as urgent in the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan have a chance of being implemented.
Füracker appealed to the federal government to promote the station plans accordingly: "It is now up to the Federal Ministry of Transport to pave the way for the project as quickly as possible and take the necessary decisions here."
According to the Ministry of Finance, the project will be upgraded from potential to urgent need if the cost-benefit analysis is positive.
The proposed ICE expansion line from Ingolstadt to Munich with a connection to the airport could potentially lead to improved air traffic connections, as Munich Airport is a significant hub for both railroad and air traffic. Despite the inclusion in the rail infrastructure requirement plan, constructing the ICE station at the airport isn't guaranteed yet, as projects classified as urgent have a higher chance of implementation.
Source: www.dpa.com
