A ghost station is a closed or never opened train station through which revenue-service passenger trains (especially rapid transit trains) pass but at which they do not stop. The term is also sometimes used for any unused underground station or any unused station, whether or not trains pass through them. In Germany, a station that has been built in the course of constructing something else as a so-called "Bauvorleistung" (roughly: construction pre-effort) is referred to as a "ghost station", despite the different purpose and origin of the terms. Some English-language publications also refer to "pre-built" stations or parts thereof that have yet to see service as "ghost stations".
Origin of the term The term "ghost station" is a calque of the German word (plural ). The German term was coined to describe certain stations on Berlin's U-Bahn and S-Bahn networks that were closed during the period of Berlin's division during the Cold War because they were an integral part of a transit line mostly located on the eastern side of the Berlin Wall. The term was coined by West Berliners who observed the dim lit, heavily guarded stations through their carriages, likening the guards of East German borders to ghosts. Soon after the Wall fell, most of the stations reopened.
Ghost stations in Berlin Background
In August 1961 the East German government built the Berlin Wall, ending freedom of movement between East and West Berlin. As a result, the Berlin public transit network, which had formerly spanned both halves of the city, was also divided into two. Some and lines fell entirely into one half of the city or the other; other lines were divided between the two jurisdictions, with trains running only to the border and then turning back. However, there were three lines—the lines now designated U6 and U8, and the Tunnel on the —that ran for the most part through West Berlin but passed for a short distance through the borough of Mitte (the historic city centre), which was East Berlin territory. These lines continued to be open to West Berliners; however, trains did not stop at most of the stations located within East Berlin, though for technical reasons they did have to slow down significantly while passing through.Originally , after an East German policeman tried to jump on a moving train the mandatory speed was later increased to . 2009 p. 119 The name was soon aptly applied to these dimly lit, heavily guarded stations by travellers from West Berlin, who watched them pass by through the carriage windows. However, the term was never official; West Berlin maps of the period simply labelled these stations "" ("stations at which the trains do not stop"). East Berlin maps neither depicted the West Berlin lines nor the ghost stations. maps in the transfer station were unique: They depicted all the Western lines, but not the , and showed the city divided into "" ("Berlin, capital of the German Democratic Republic") and "", the official terminology used by East Germany.
The lines were a vital part of the West Berlin transit network, but because part of the route of some of the lines lay in East Berlin territory, it was difficult for Western support staff to perform maintenance work on the tracks and tunnels. If a train on a West Berlin line broke down in East Berlin territory, then passengers had to wait for Eastern border police to appear and escort them out. The East German government occasionally hinted that it might someday block access to the tunnels at the border and run its own service on the East Berlin sections of these lines. However, this awkward status quo persisted for the entire 28-year period of the division of Berlin.
At the closed stations, barbed wire fences were installed to prevent any would-be escapees from East Berlin from accessing the track bed, and the electrically live third rail served as an additional and potentially lethal deterrent. An alarm was triggered if anyone breached one of the barriers. As for the entrances, the signage was removed, walkways were walled up and stairways were sealed with concrete slabs. Police stations were built into the windowed platform service booths, from which the whole platform area could be monitored.
A wide white line on the wall marked the exact location of the border. Later, gates were installed at some stations that could be rolled into place at night while the guards were off-duty. Guard posts at other stations were staffed continuously, creating additional employment positions with the transport police. In the platform area, the guards always worked in pairs, and care was taken in their assignment to assure that there would be no personal ties between them. In addition, superior officers could conduct surprise inspections at any time, thus, maintaining maximum security. Other stations were secured by the East German border guards.
Particular stations
station, though served by Western lines and located in East Berlin territory, was not a . Instead, it served as a transfer point between U6 and several lines. Western passengers could walk from one platform to another without ever leaving the station or having to show papers, much like air travellers changing planes at an international airport. Westerners with appropriate visas could also enter East Berlin there (they could even get a visa in the station). There was an Intershop in the station that could be accessed without having to pass a border or customs checkpoint of either East or West Germany and it was thus a popular place for westerners to buy cheap alcohol in D-Mark, but the West Berlin customs considered goods bought there contraband and did spot checks on what they considered customs evasion.
The station was the only ghost station not located in a tunnel. It was situated close to the wall near the border crossing. West Berlin trains passed through it without stopping. East Berlin trains passed the same station but on different tracks. The tracks used by Western and Eastern trains were sealed off from each other by a tall fence.
Another oddity was station. Like , it was an stop served by West Berlin trains, but located on East Berlin territory just behind the border. However, was in use and accessible for West Berliners, as one of its exits opened on a West Berlin street. This exit was exactly on the border line, a warning sign next to it informing passengers about the situation. Its other exits to East Berlin streets were blocked.
Reopening
The first people to enter the ghost stations after the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 found that they lived up to their informal name, with ads and signage on the walls unchanged since 1961. None of them have been preserved.
The first ghost station to reopen to passenger traffic was (U8) on 11 November 1989, two days after the fall of the Wall. It was equipped with a checkpoint within the station akin to , where East German customs and border control were provisionally installed to facilitate passengers heading to or coming from East Berlin. Hand-drawn destination signs were hung up covering the old ones from pre-1961; these signs were both crumbling from age and obviously missing the termini of post-1961 line extensions. On 22 December 1989, (U8) was reopened with a similar provisional checkpoint.
On 12 April 1990, the third station to reopen was (U8). As its northern exit was directly on the border, it could be opened with direct access to West Berlin without the need of a checkpoint. Its southern exit towards East Berlin was not reopened until 1 July 1990.
Discussions on reopening all the U6 and U8 stations including the S-Bahn station , and had begun on 13 April 1990 without border controls. These took two months to clean up, removing all the dirt and refurbishing the interiors; all stations had been reopened on 1 July 1990 at 11 a.m., as East Berlin and East Germany had adopted the West German currency (DM), leaving the border checkpoints abandoned.
On 2 July 1990, was the first ghost station on the to reopen. On 1 September 1990, and were opened following reconstruction works. On 12 December 1990, was reopened for West Berlin trains; a second platform for East Berlin trains allowing interchange followed on 5 August 1991. The very last ghost station to reopen was , which opened on 3 March 1992, following an extensive restoration of the entire North–South tunnel.
In the following years, the city and German government put a great deal of effort into restoring and reunifying the and networks in Berlin. The U-Bahn system reached its pre-war status in 1995 with the reopening of on U1. The system reached a preliminary completion in 2002 (with the reopening of the ring), even though there are still disused sections of lines closed in the aftermath of the wall. Decisions on reopening of some of these sections are still to be made. There was a political promise made in the course of reunification that all S-Bahn lines and services shut down due to partition were to be restored – with federal funds if need be – but this is still not the case and some former services are seen to be as of lower importance than proposed entirely new construction.
List of all Berlin ghost stations
This list only includes those stations in East Berlin territory that western trains passed through without stopping. There were other stations on both sides of the wall that were closed during the division because those sections of track were not in use.
Temporary checkpoints were set up for stations with access to East Berlin that were reopened before 1 July 1990. Checkpoints were no longer necessary for those reopened after that date when border checks were eliminated with the currency union between East and West Germany.
List of Berlin's ghost stations as a result of the Cold War (S1, S2 and S25) No. Station Date reopened Remarks Order of reopening 1 12 December 1990 7 2 1 September 1990 6 3 2 July 1990 First S-Bahn ghost station to reopen 5 4 1 September 1990 Renamed Brandenburger Tor station. Named in honor of East German Prime Minister Otto Grotewohl, 1949–1989. 6 5 3 March 1992 Named in honor of East German President Wilhelm Pieck, 1949–1989. 8 U 6 1 1 July 1990 From approximately 1951 to 1971, the station bore the name after a nearby stadium named in honour of , then the First Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party (SED) and leader of East Germany. In 1971, when was deposed and replaced by , the stadium and station were renamed (Stadium of World Youth). The original name was restored in 1991. 4 2 1 July 1990 Renamed (1991–2009), then (from 2009) 4 3 1 July 1990 4 4 1 July 1990 Closed again December 2020 (see below) 4 5 1 July 1990 Only the U6 station was closed. East Berlin Underground line A (part of today's U2) trains continued to stop here. 4 U 8 1 12 April 1990 Only direct access to West Berlin was opened on this date (without the need for a checkpoint). The southern exit to East Berlin was not reopened until 1 July 1990. 3 2 22 December 1989 Temporary checkpoint set up for border crossing into East Berlin. 2 3 1 July 1990 4 4 1 July 1990 Only the U8 station was closed. East Berlin Underground line A (part of today's U2), and line E (today numbered U5), as well as trains continued to stop here. 4 5 11 November 1989 Only the U8 station was closed. East Berlin S-Bahn trains continued to stop here. After reopening, checkpoints were set up for border crossing into East Berlin. 1 6 1 July 1990 4
New ghost stations after reunification
In contrast with the above-listed stations, multiple stations in the Berlin area that were of high importance during the Cold War rapidly lost importance and passengers after reunification, some to the point of becoming ghost stations. The most notable examples are: