By Michael Sauerbier
Campaign help for Franziska Giffey (44, SPD)? Or does Dietmar Woidke (61, SPD) mean it seriously? Brandenburg is to pay three quarters of the construction costs for the extension of Berlin’s subway line 7. That doesn’t go down well in the country.
Friday from one everyone does their own: On Friday afternoon, Woidke finished work as head of government – and continued as SPD chairman. Election campaign tour with comrade Giffey from Berlin-Rudow to BER. The government presented her favorite project: the extension of the U7 from Neukölln to Schönefeld.
The 8-kilometer route should cost almost a billion, from 2035 bring 40,000 commuters daily to the commercial areas of the airport community – the richest in Brandenburg. But Mayor Christian Hentschel (57, independent) expects “that the federal states will pay the costs for their route shares.”
Franziska Giffey (44) and Dietmar Woidke (61, both SPD) with the route map Photo: Olaf Selchow
Woidke confirmed: “We pay construction costs in Brandenburg.” That is 75 percent of the extension – makes around 700 million euros! Hoping for federal help, he claimed, “This is a project of national importance.”
With Giffey, Woidke sent a begging letter to Transport Minister Volker Wissing (52, FDP): “It would be particularly gratifying if this project could be funded at 90 percent.” And if not? Woidke: “That would be scandalous!”
CDU state manager Gordon Hoffmann (43) outraged: “The costs and benefits are out of proportion. I expect the Prime Minister to have the interests of the people of Brandenburg in mind more than Ms. Giffey’s election campaign!”
Transport politician Andreas Büttner (49, left): “The country must not give preference to its richest community over many poorer ones. Woidke has to explain the subway millions to us in the state parliament.”
The excuse of the head of government: “I didn’t say all that as prime minister, but as SPD chairman.”