The City Tunnel is a twin-bore railway tunnel for the city-centre S-Bahn in Leipzig. It links Leipzig Hauptbahnhof with the central Markt station, Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz station and Bayerischer Bahnhof.
Construction began in July 2003. The first bore was structurally completed in March 2008, the second in October 2008. The tunnel and new tracks linking it with the rest of the network were opened for commercial service on 15 December 2013, the date of the timetable change in December 2013.
Route From South to North Leipzig MDR (originally Leipzig Semmelweißstraße, outside the tunnel) Leipzig Bayerischer Bahnhof (platform length of 140 m) Leipzig Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz (platform length of 140 m) Leipzig Markt (platform length of 140 m) Leipzig Hauptbahnhof (platform length of 215 m. Option to extend in a northerly direction to a length of 400 m); 800 m long ramps Leipzig Nord (originally Leipzig Theresienstraße, outside the tunnel)
In addition to the four underground stations of the City Tunnel, the shells of the new stations Leipzig MDR and Leipzig Nord - Berliner Brücke were completed in January 2011.
The northern ramp to the entrance of the tunnel is 600 m long and has a slope of 40 ‰
Operating schedule It was planned that each hour and in each direction, there would be up to ten S-Bahn, two regional trains and one express ().Citytunnel (fertig 2011) - Fahrplan ist schon da. In: Sächsische Zeitung online. 19 July 2007.
The S-Bahn network, which is in service since 15 December 2013, is operating as follows (December 2019):
Line Route Leipzig Miltitzer Allee – Leipzig-Leutzsch – Leipzig-Gohlis – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Stötteritz Lutherstadt Wittenberg -/Dessau - Bitterfeld – Delitzsch – Leipzig Messe – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Stötteritz Halle (Saale) – Schkeuditz – Leipzig-Gohlis – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Stötteritz – Wurzen (– Oschatz) (Wurzen – Oschatz is only operated in weekend nights) Hoyerswerda – Torgau – Eilenburg – Taucha – Leipzig-Mockau – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Connewitz – Markkleeberg-Gaschwitz Halle (Saale) – Leipzig Messe – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Connewitz – Markkleeberg – Altenburg – Zwickau Halle (Saale) – Leipzig/Halle Airport – Leipzig Messe – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Connewitz – Markkleeberg – Altenburg – Zwickau Leipzig Messe – City Tunnel – Leipzig-Connewitz – Markkleeberg – Borna – Geithain
All lines run with intervals of between 30 minutes and 120 minutes. Due to the high number of trains (regional trains, S-Bahn and ICE) between the main station and Leipzig-Leutzsch, since December 2013 the S1 has operated at 15-minute intervals. For this a supplementary track between Leipzig Messe and Leipzig-Stötteritz was introduced. Since December 2017, the S1 is operating in a 30 minutes-interval between Miltitzer Allee and Stötteritz, the services Messe-Stötteritz has been replaced by the new S6.
Before construction, capacity was limited to eleven S-Bahn trains, two regional express trains and one express train per hour in each direction. Critics have expressed doubts that a more appropriate mixed mode of regional and long-distance traffic in the tunnel is possible.Der ICE im Leipziger Citytunnel bleibt ein Märchen . In: Leipziger Internet Zeitung 5 July 2010.
History A connection between Leipzig Hauptbahnhof and Bayerischer Bahnhof was first considered in 1892. The implementation was planned as an underground railway, running parallel to the two mainline tracks from Borsdorf via the Hauptbahnhof and the Bayerischer Bahnhof and on to Connewitz and Gaschwitz. It would be powered by a Third Rail system. During the construction of the main station (started in 1909), between 1913 and 1914 a 140m long entrance ramp was built from the direction of Dresden with a 675m long tunnel under part of the station. The tunnel ended 8.5 m in front of the station building under the inner city ring road. Beneath the current tram and bus stops, underground platforms 22 and 23 of some 40m in length were built. An extension below the ring road was planned and prepared to a length of 100m. The construction work was suspended during World War I and was not resumed thereafter.
During World War II the tunnel and underground stop were converted to provide air-raid shelters. During the bombing raid on Leipzig on 7 July 1944, there were two explosions that destroyed the tunnel at two places and thus divided it into three parts. During reconstruction of the main station, the area around the second impact point was walled-in, and the platform under the east portico converted into the DEFA-Zeitkino Cinema and was used for this purpose until 1992. During the redevelopment of the main railway station in the years 1995 to 2000, parts of the tunnels under the station were demolished. The tunnel below the apron and the first few metres of the station hall were closed, but remained preserved.
Shortly after World War II, in 1946, planning for an underground city crossing restarted. In order to accommodate the entrance of the tunnel, redevelopment work at the corner of Windmühlen- and Grünewaldstraße was delayed. That would allow a curve to be built with a suitable arc for long-distance trains. The plan foresaw an S-Bahn route and a mainline railway tunnel in the direction of Munich. The latter was dropped a few years later due to the division of Germany. By 1967 three variants for the S-Bahn tunnel had been developed which, together with the current tunnel, no longer ran in the direction of the Dresden route, but rather in the direction of Magdeburg and Berlin. Stations were planned under the Western Hall of the Hauptbahnhof and under the city-centre Markt. Due to the expected high financial and technical effort, the plans were not realized before the end of the GDR.
Planning The tunnel is used by 6 out of 7 S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland lines. It is hoped that shorter intervals and faster connections will allow public transport to carry more passengers and thereby relieve road traffic in the city. In addition, it will bring more passengers directly by rail from Leipzig Hauptbahnhof to the city centre and convert the terminus to a partial through-station.
Additionally, it was planned to run one intercity train per hour in each direction through the tunnel. However, until December 2012 the electrified route ended in Reichenbach im Vogtland. Therefore, the states of Saxony and Bavaria, the Federal Government and DB were planning to continue rail electrification first to Hof, and later on to Regensburg and Nuremberg. The section to Hof was fully electrified by 15 December 2013.
Early in 2002, the Saxony State Government gave support for the implementation of the City Tunnel.Meldung Bahn begrüsst Leipziger City-Tunnel. In: Eisenbahn-Revue International, April 2002, , S. 163. On 18 March 2003, they approved the project formally.City-Tunnel für Leipzig. In: Eisenbahn-Revue International, May 2003, , S. 194.
On 6 January 2010 a correction notice to the tender for the Leipzig train network was issued, announcing that the start of the new train service would be delayed for another year until the timetable change in December 2013.Supplement zum Amtsblatt der Europäischen Union: D-Leipzig: Öffentlicher Schienentransport/öffentliche Schienenbeförderung 2010/S 3-001741, 6 January 2010
Costs The 2002 framework agreement foresaw the total project cost as €571.62 million, financed by funds from the State of Saxony (€182.02 million), by the European Union (ERDF programme, €168.73 million), the Federal Government (€191.73 million), Deutsche Bahn (€16.36 million) and the City of Leipzig (€12.78 million).Deutscher Bundestag (Hrsg.): Antwort der Bundesregierung auf die Kleine Anfrage der Abgeordneten Stephan Kühn, Dr. Anton Hofreiter, Daniel Wagner, weiterer Abgeordneter und der Fraktion BÜNDNIS 90/DIE GRÜNEN –Drucksache 17/2826 – Künftige Entwicklung des Eisenbahnknotens Leipzig. Drucksache 17/2939 vom 15 September 2010. This agreement covered many issues, including the refurbishment of the stations and the electrification of several sections.
At the end of 2001 it was expected that the total cost would amount to 1.04 billion DM. DM 240 million would come from the EU Structural Fund. Additional safety measures led to increased costs.
In 2006, the ERDF funding allocated at the end of the funding period was reduced from 168.73 to 127.59. million Euro, which was spent in its entirety. For the 2007-2013 funding period, a further follow-up funding application was submitted, but was not approved (February 2011).Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Arbeit und Verkehr (Hrsg.): Kleine Anfrage der Abgeordneten Dr. Volker Külow und Dr. Dietmar Pellmann, Fraktion DIE LINKE. Drucksache 5/4639. Thema: Zahlungen aus dem EFRE-Programm der EU für Leipziger City-Tunnel. Dokument vom 8 Februar 2011.
The contractor's representatives DEGES expected the costs in December 2006 to amount to 585 million euro. A risk analysis by Deutsche Bahn saw at that time possible additional costs of up to 73 million euro.Bohrarbeiten für City-Tunnel können wie geplant beginnen. In: Leipziger Volkszeitung, 29 December 2006. In December 2007, the additional cost was estimated at 133 million euro, so that the expected total cost will be 705 million €.Leipziger City-Tunnel kostet 133 Millionen Euro mehr. in: ddp. 14 December 2007.
After the estimated total costs had risen by the end of November 2009 to 893 million euro, the state auditors of Saxony reviewed the project. At the end of February 2010, a further cost increase to 960 million Euros was announced.Morlok: City-Tunnel wird noch teurer . Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, 24 February 2010 According to the State of Saxony, this remains the expected total cost ().
The federal share provided is limited, in line with the framework agreement, to 191.73 million euro (plus wage and price increases). With the exception of the indexation component, the federal share has already been used in full (as of September 2010). The additional costs are mainly supported by the Free State of Saxony and the City of Leipzig, and to a lesser extent, the German Railways.
The project has been criticised by various parties because of the high construction costs for the relatively lightly used Leipzig S-Bahn, for the limited usability by long-distance trains and for the long-lasting construction work in the city centre, with its associated obstruction and loss of revenue.
Construction
When constructing Leipzig Hauptbahnhof, the Saxon State Railway had planned a tunnel to Bayerischer Bahnhof. In 1913 and 1915, a 710m long section below tracks 22 and 23 was created before the work came to a halt due to World War I and a lack of funds. As part of the modernisation of the railway station, this tunnel section was excavated in 1997 and demolished within the station hall area.Reinhard Nickell: Die Umbauarbeiten in Leipzig Hauptbahnhof. In: Eisenbahn-Kurier. Nr. 300, September 1998, S. 60–3.
In the early 1990s the plans for a public transport tunnel through central Leipzig, which had existed for decades, were presented together with the results of new planning in 1995. In 1996 the DB and the Land of Saxony, expressed their support for the project. In the same year the Land, City Planning and DB AG Company founded the planning company S-Bahn Tunnel Leipzig GmbH.Meldung Leipziger City-Tunnel. In: Eisenbahn-Revue International, 11/2001, , S. 474. Following a cost-benefit analysis in 1998, a planning application was issued. In 2000 planning approval was granted.
In the autumn of 2001, Saxony invited DB to be the owner of the City Tunnel project. The company was therefore expected to build the tunnel on its own financial risk. After the completion of a financing agreement in the spring of 2002Meldung City-Tunnel Leipzig wird realisiert. In: Eisenbahn-Revue International, May 2002, , S. 211. the invitation of the individual building sub-contracts took place.