By Stefan Schilde
1. FC Union Berlin has long played in the Bundesliga and the European Cup. Now the Köpenick train station is finally to be upgraded: from the S-Bahn station to the regional train station! Construction started on Wednesday. Planned completion 2027.
The costs: a whopping 420 million euros. The federal government contributes 75 percent and the state of Berlin 17 percent. Deutsche Bahn finances the rest.
Treptow-Köpenick’s district mayor Oliver Igel (SPD, r.) with Berlin’s current governor Franziska Giffey and DB board member Berthold Huber Photo: Ralf Lutter
“The expansion is part of the traffic concept for the expansion of the old forester’s office,” says Treptow-Köpenick’s district mayor Oliver Igel (44, SPD).
And this is how it should look in four years: A new, 220 meter long and mostly covered platform is being built. The popular commuter Regio RE1 (connecting Magdeburg with Frankfurt/Oder) will stop there on two tracks. Three entrances, two of which are barrier-free by elevator, lead to the platform, S-Bahn passengers get a new elevator on the east side.
This is what the entrance to Köpenick train station currently looks like Photo: Ralf Lutter
3.2 kilometers of track will be expanded, new overhead lines are intended to reduce the risk of disruption. Express trains will soon be roaring through at up to 160 km/h on a new overtaking track.
The expected noise should be kept out by 4.2 kilometers long, up to six meter high soundproof walls and so-called rail dampers, and a “rubber sole” under the railway sleepers should absorb vibrations.
Means: The environment of the finished station will be noticeably quieter, the measures should also help against the heavy freight trains.
Foreman René Wasewitz (49) and his Leipzig construction company will be digging until 2027. Photo: Ralf Lutter
Until then, Köpenicker still have to cope with a lot of construction noise and long closures of the Bahnhofsstrasse, which is already plagued by traffic chaos, and travelers due to route closures (soon again from April 3rd to 14th) have to switch to rail replacement services.
Ur-Köpenicker Frank Neumann (49) mostly drives the S-Bahn, but still thinks the expansion is good: “It’s about time!” Photo: Ralf Lutter
There’s also a lot of criticism of the concept for the passage under the bridge: too narrow to accommodate the tram stop and sufficiently wide cycle paths.