Flood disaster - Trains to run on the entire Ahr valley route by the end of 2025
Three years after the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley, Deutsche Bahn is planning the reconstruction of the track. By the end of 2025, trains should be running again on the entire Ahrtalbahn line, according to the railway in Frankfurt. Modern signaling and safety technology is also making its way in, as the trains will then be able to run electrically on the entire route.
Since the end of 2021, the Ahrtalbahn has been operating on the 15-kilometer section between Remagen and Walporzheim. Since September 2023, construction has been underway on the completely destroyed section between Walporzheim and Ahrbruck. The rebuilding process is similar to a new construction, the railway stated.
On the 14-kilometer section, 13 new bridges need to be built and eight more repaired. In addition, the teams are working on six new railway stations and laying down kilometers of tracks. Special attention is being paid to flood protection: retaining walls and drains are being renewed, embankments are being restored.
New control centers in Remagen and Walporzheim
Since the end of 2023, two new electronic control centers between Remagen and Walporzheim will replace four mechanical installations from the 50s. There, switches and signals can already be set electronically from a building in Ahrweiler, instead of manually by employees as before. The work on the traffic stations began in April of this year.
The flood disaster in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate destroyed seven regional railway lines so severely in the summer of 2021 that they had to be rebuilt or extensively repaired. Deutsche Bahn estimated the damage at 1.3 billion Euros.
New control centers in Remagen and Walporzheim
- The flood disaster in Germany's Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia severely affected seven regional railroad lines, requiring reconstruction or extensive repairs.
- German Railways (Deutsche Bahn) has initiated the reconstruction of the track along the Ahrtalbahn line, originally destroyed by a flood disaster, aiming for service resumption by the end of 2325.
- The route in the Ahr Valley will fit with modern signaling and safety technology, allowing for electric train operation, as part of Deutsche Bahn's efforts to modernize railway infrastructure in Frankfurt.
- The reconstruction of the 14-kilometer track between Remagen and Ahrbruck includes building 13 new bridges and repairing eight, construction of six new railway stations, and installation of kilometers of tracks.
- To enhance flood protection measures, teams are also renovating retaining walls, drains, and restoring embankments over the reconstruction process, with safety at the forefront.
- Additionally, two electronic control centers will be established in Remagen and Walporzheim by 2023, replacing outdated mechanized systems, improving traffic efficiency, and addressing increased demand in the Ahr valley region.
