By Sara Orlos Fernandes
Since May 11, the Stadtbahn between Friedrichstraße and the main station has been renovated. BZ took a look at the construction site.
Drills, excavators and screwdriving machines are in daily use on the 800 meter long section. It’s noisy, and an S-Bahn train rolls past the construction site every few minutes. “You get used to the noise at some point, maybe chatting a bit loudly at home,” says one of the track workers with a smile.
By May 25, 3.2 kilometers of long-distance railway tracks will be replaced on the route between Friedrichstraße and Ostbahnhof. The defective sound absorbers that lie between the rails and ensure less noise are also replaced.
The attachment points on the rails are also replaced. The old tension clamps (left) are replaced with new ones (right). Photo: Christian Lohse
On the Stadtbahn section, 1,000 fastening points and 40 percent of the dowels have to be renewed. For this purpose, holes are re-drilled and new dowels are fitted.
An anti-corrosion agent, the so-called “sausages”, is then placed in the dowels. These ensure that the screws remain greased.
Next to the tracks there are boxes with anti-corrosion agent. The so-called “sausages” ensure that the screws remain greased. Photo: Christian Lohse
Every day, 20 workers are on site between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., and another 15 weld the rails together at night. “They must not be warmer than 26 degrees. That’s why we weld at night,” explains master track builder Eric Hermann (34).
The sound absorbers from the 90s between the rails absorb 2-4 decibels of noise. About 25 percent are damaged and will be replaced. Photo: Christian Lohse
The next phase of construction will follow from June 9th. Then 6.8 kilometers of rails between Ostbahnhof and Friedrichstraße will be renewed. The work is expected to last until July 1st. The section is then closed to regional and long-distance traffic.