From Friday at 9pm until November 24th at 5am Cologne's Central Station will be closed to all regional and long-distance rail traffic. Long-distance and regional connections that usually pass through Köln Hauptbahnhof are to be diverted around the city centre instead.
The closure had been planned so that a new electronic signal box and track switches could be installed, according to a railway spokesman. But just before the ten day closure, the German Press Agency has reported that a software error has disrupted Deutsche Bahn's plans for the installation.
The closure is going forward as planned, but then another closure will need to be scheduled in the near future, DPA reported.
How is rail traffic affected?
Virtually all rail traffic to/from or passing through Cologne's Central Station is to be paused for ten days during the works.
Only the S-Bahn will continue to stop there, and this will be cancelled during the night of November 19th into the morning of the 20th.
Deutsche Bahn's long-distance (ICE) train routes that typically pass through Cologne's Central Station will instead be diverted to either Cologne-Ehrenfeld or Messe/Deutz stations:
- ICE trains to Aachen/Brussels will depart from Cologne-Ehrenfeld.
- ICE trains to Amsterdam will depart from Cologne Messe/Deutz
- Two-hourly direct connections to Berlin will depart from Cologne Messe/Deutz, and all other trains will be cancelled. (However, there are also hourly transfer connections via Düsseldorf. On November 15th, only the transfer connections via Düsseldorf will operate.
- ICE trains to Frankfurt via high-speed line will run via Cologne Messe/Deutz. The trains that only run between Cologne and Frankfurt will be cancelled.
- ICE/IC trains to Bonn/Koblenz/Mainz will run on a reduced schedule. Single trains will stop in Cologne South as a substitute.
- ICE/IC direct trains to Bremen and Hamburg will run from Cologne Messe/Deutz.
- Direct connections to Norddeich will only run from Düsseldorf or will be cancelled.
- IC trains to Gera and Dresden will only run from Dortmund.
According to local news outlet WAZ, the following regional (RE) connections are also affected: RE 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 22, 24, 26, 27, 38, and 48.
You can find more detailed information about how and when those connections are affected in this report (German). Affected passengers can also see the latest updates on Deutsche Bahn's website or plan routes on affected lines in the DB app.
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S-Bahn and local transport will "ensure the accessibility of the Cologne hub," Deutsche Bahn has announced, adding that a rail replacement service will be in effect "on isolated nights".
In Cologne Hbf and Cologne Messe/Deutz, Cologne West and Cologne South, additional service staff are on duty to support travellers.
Construction disrupted
Unfortunately for rail passengers in Cologne and the surrounding regions, the ten-day closure won't be the last to come, because a software error is reportedly messing up Deutsche Bahn's plans to install the new signal box in the Cologne station.
The software error was discovered during an inspection, a Deutsche Bahn spokesman told DPA, adding that the error meant that crucial tests could not be carried out.
Therefore, the old signal box will continue to be used even after the current construction period is finished, and a second closure will need to be scheduled at a later date to make the switch.
The second closure is not yet scheduled.
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In February 2026 a general renovation is scheduled on the Cologne-Wuppertal-Hagen line. The closure there, set to last five-months, will have far-reaching effects on long-distance and regional traffic in Cologne.
With 1,300 trains and hundreds of thousands of passengers per day, Cologne Central Station is a central hub for rail traffic in western Germany.
As part of its ongoing efforts to overhaul and upgrade Germany's railway infrastructure, Deutsche Bahn has built three new electronic signal boxes and switches around the Cologne junction in recent years. These upgrades are intended to make rail transport more reliable and punctual for passengers.
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