Munich launches new tram line 14 on the West Tangent

On 19 February 2026, the first technical test run (dress rehearsal) took place on the completed section of the Tram West Tangent in Munich. From 28 February 2026, the new Line 14 runs there regularly. Used for this were the oldest vehicle in the MVG fleet – the 100-year-old overhead-wire inspection car – as well as the modern low-floor vehicle 'Avenio'. The experts checked overhead line voltage, pantographs and contact-wire compatibility. Operator: Münchner Verkehrsgesellschaft (MVG) / Stadtwerke München (SWM). Update (28 Feb 2026): With line 14, the first section of the Westtangente tram entered service on 28 February 2026; it has run since 11:30 a.m. every 10 minutes during the day over the almost exactly 1,500 m new line in Fürstenrieder Strasse between Agnes-Bernauer-Strasse and Ammerseestrasse (stops Fürstenrieder Strasse, Laimer Platz, Aindorferstrasse) and connects the Laimer Platz underground station to the tram network. The stops are step-free and designed for trains up to 56 m long, with three-section vehicles in service at first. Construction took about 22 months, and the carriageways and pavements are due to be finished by the 2026 Oktoberfest. The further sections from Ammerseestrasse via Waldfriedhof to Aidenbachstrasse and the gap closure to Romanplatz (dependent on the environmental-transport tube at Laim S-Bahn station) are planned for 2028; line 12 is later to run along the whole route. (LOK Report, 19 Feb, 25 Feb and 28 Feb 2026) Update (26 Aug 2026): After 100 days of operation, line 14 carried about 11,000 passengers on weekdays (over 4,500 on the new section Fürstenrieder Strasse–Laimer Platz) and almost one million in total; optimised traffic-light phasing raised punctuality from 65 to about 80%. For the first part of the demolition of the Fürstenrieder Strasse bridge over the A 96 (Stadtwerke München with Autobahn GmbH), the A 96 in Laim was to be closed completely from 3 June (10 p.m.) to 8 June 2026 (5 a.m.); according to Pro Bahn the line is being built and opened in stages because DB is behind schedule with the Laim environmental-transport tube and with the motorway bridges. SWM has received the planning-approval decision of the Government of Upper Bavaria for the second section, Waldfriedhof–Aidenbachstrasse (report of 26 August 2026), so the whole route is now approved; preparatory works are due to start in October 2026, drainage work probably in January 2027 and track-laying from July 2027. (LOK Report, 29 May, 10 Jun and 26 Aug 2026)