Deutsche Bahn opens upgraded Dresden Railway Südkreuz–Blankenfelde

Along the roughly 16 km Dresden Railway between Berlin Südkreuz and Blankenfelde, two new electrified long-distance tracks were built and all nine level crossings replaced by rail or road bridges/underpasses, letting S-Bahn, regional and long-distance trains (including services to BER airport and Dresden) share the line. The financing agreement was signed on 30 May 2016, and per DB InfraGO AG the upgraded line entered service on 14 December 2025 (official inauguration with federal transport minister Schnieder held 11 December 2025). A few ancillary works (Wolziger Zeile pedestrian underpass, Karl-Marx-Straße road link, Teltow canal towpath) are, per the operator, still ongoing into 2026; the source states no investment figure. Update (11 Dec 2025): According to DB, the federal government, the Länder and DB invested a total of about EUR 1.1 billion in the Dresden line; preparatory works began in October 2017 and official construction started on 5 Feb 2019. The supervisory authorities declared the line ready for service on 7 Dec 2025, with catenary test runs on 8 and 9 Dec 2025. Trains may run at 160 km/h between Südkreuz and Lichtenrade and at 200 km/h from the state border; the whole line has electronic interlockings, and the Anhalter Bahn from Südkreuz to Bitterfeld was renewed in parallel. The new road bridge at Buckower Chaussee in Marienfelde (works from July 2023) was opened on 8 Oct 2025 (LOK Report, 11 Dec 2025). Merged (7 Oct 2026): The separately recorded entry 28873015 on the BER airport link has been folded into this one. Since 14 Dec 2025 the Airport Express (FEX) reaches BER via Südkreuz instead of the northern route; the journey from Südkreuz to the airport drops to about 13-14 minutes and frequency rises from every 30 to every 15 minutes (Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg, 12 Dec 2025).