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Train chaos in the Pegnitztal: Commuters can hope for a little relief!
Commuters between Hof and Nuremberg affected: train route closed, new bus connections and upcoming improvements announced.
Train chaos in the Pegnitztal: Commuters can hope for a little relief!
The situation for commuters in the Pegnitztal remains tense after Deutsche Bahn has caused a lot of discontent by closing the train route between Hersbruck and Pegnitz since September 19th. The reason for the interruption are dilapidated bridges whose condition has proven to be critical. Since then, commuters have had to resort to buses, which leads to uncertainty and frustration. How BR24 reports, a commuter at Pegnitz train station said that due to the closure she is no longer sure how to get to her place of work.
However, Deutsche Bahn has now promised smaller improvements. From October 13th, continuous journeys between Nuremberg, Marktredwitz and Hof will take place again. The trains will bypass the closed route and use a bypass via Weiden and Marktredwitz. Seven pairs of trains are scheduled every two hours every day until December 13th Northern Bavaria reported.
Extensive alternatives for commuters
While this news is a ray of hope for commuters, the situation remains challenging. The rail replacement service between Hersbruck and Pegnitz includes over 60 buses that ensure hourly connections to Nuremberg. Other bus lines connect Bayreuth and Neuhaus with Nuremberg, but travelers from Hof, Marktredwitz and Bayreuth have to forego direct connections. The overload caused by the rail replacement service has already turned the traffic situation into a “homemade catastrophe,” as District Administrator Armin Kroder notes.
Freight trains have been banned from the Pegnitztal since the beginning of September, causing a further shock to regional transport. The plans to renew the bridges are already in the design phase, but the exact timing is still pending, which is causing great unease among the politicians concerned.
Political reactions and future prospects
Politicians are demanding quick action from Deutsche Bahn and the federal government because they bear responsibility for the inadequate infrastructure. “The closure was avoidable,” criticizes Bavaria’s Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter. Dirk Flege, Managing Director of the Pro-Rail Alliance, also warns that a new future strategy for rail transport is necessary in order to finally address the massive deficiencies in the rail network.
How BMVI as part of their modernization strategies, the age structure of bridges in Germany requires comprehensive maintenance and modernization measures. In the last few decades, many bridges were built between 1960 and 1985, all of them are now exposed to high loads and it is necessary to adapt them to today's requirements.
With a planned resumption of train traffic by February 2026 at the latest and new timetables that will be valid from December 14, 2025, there remains hope that the traffic situation in the Pegnitztal will soon ease. But until then, commuters have no choice but to accept the replacement rail service and a potentially chaotic everyday life.