If the train only drives 20 km/h: Track damage in Bavaria - Bahn can hardly keep up with repairs

Created: 05/12/2022 15:46

By: Dirk Walter

Track workers at work - and there is still a lot to do.

Photo: achim Schmidt © achim Schmidt

The railways can hardly keep up with the repair of their routes in Bavaria.

In an internal report on speed restrictions and other disruptions to the infrastructure, numerous damage to the tracks are recorded, most of which were only discovered in the past few weeks.

Munich – Travelers usually only notice it when the train attendant makes an announcement.

It sounds something like this: Dear traveller, our train is now only allowed to travel at 20 km/h for one kilometer – there is a slow-moving section.

For example, you can currently hear it in the BRB meridian on the journey to Munich between Grafing and Kirchseeon.

Anyone who takes the BRB from Holzkirchen to Munich also heard the announcement last week.

The train had to brake in three places.

Deutsche Bahn: "We are currently struggling with three slow-moving zones on the way into and out of town"

This annoys companies too.

"We are currently struggling with three slow-moving sections on the way into and out of town," reports company spokeswoman Sabine Floßmann about the situation in Holzkirchen.

The result was long delays of 30 minutes and more.

After all: On Monday, the slow-moving sections should be eliminated again.

At the end of June, the public learned from a report in our newspaper that slow-moving sections are compiled anew almost every day for the train drivers in a so-called day-La and that this report has reached a considerable extent for southern Germany alone.

Because after the train accident in Burgrain near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the train had started looking for dilapidated sections of track.

She often found what she was looking for.

On the accident route Munich-Pasing to Oberau alone, five speed restrictions were ordered in the days and weeks after the accident with five fatalities due to defects on the track.

At one point, near Gauting, the Werdenfelsbahn train was only allowed to travel at 20 km/h.

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Deutsche Bahn: 171 pages about damage

In the meantime, this damage has largely been eliminated.

So is everything ok on the train?

Not at all.

Because the report with the daily La, which bears the nice subtitle "Compilation of the temporary speed restrictions and other special features", has become even longer despite the renovation in the Werdenfels network.

The version from Friday, December 2 has 171 pages - at the end of June it was 150 pages.

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Deficiencies on railway lines: examples near Munich, Tutzing and Bad Tölz

In the past few weeks and months, further defects have been identified on numerous routes and entered in the daily schedule.

Here are some examples:

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Munich-Mühldorf: Due to a lack of superstructure, the railway has ordered two slow-moving sections.

The train is only allowed to travel 70 km between Thann-Matzbach and Dorfen and Dorfen-Schwindegg.

In addition, there is bridge damage near Weidenbach.

Tempo 50 is arranged here.

Delays are currently the norm.

This is problematic on the single-track route because oncoming trains have to wait in the stations.

■ Tutzing-Kochel: Five slow-moving sections were set up, the last only on November 11 at Bichl.

The train has to slow down here to 20 km/h.

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Bad Tölz-Schaftlach: The BRB has to throttle twice to 70 km/h.

The slow driving sections have existed since August 25th and September 16th.

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Landshut-Mühldorf: Here, too, the train is slowed down twice to 70 km/h due to a lack of superstructure near Kirchweidach.

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Freilassing-Berchtesgaden: It's a leisurely stretch anyway, since June 14 between Bayerisch Gmain and Hallthurm it's only 20 meters ahead over 600 meters.

Speed ​​limit also on Werdenfels route near Wilzhofen

The list goes on.

For example, the railways again ordered a speed limit on the Werdenfels route near Wilzhofen at the end of November, although the area was actually considered to be renovated.

Even in the S-Bahn network (S2 near Schwabhausen) there has been an ailing spot since the beginning of October.

And between Murnau and Oberammergau, five speed restrictions were identified on November 15th.

But only rail replacement traffic will run on the route until at least next Saturday – a bus.

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