Deutsche Bahn has begun construction of the rail connection for the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link, which from late 2029 will enable trains to travel from Copenhagen through the Fehmarnbelt tunnel via Lübeck to Hamburg in just two and a half hours. The new link is crucial to connecting the Fehmarnbelt tunnel, which joins the Danish island of Lolland to the German island of Fehmarn, with the mainland in Schleswig-Holstein. For freight transport between northern Europe and Italy, this link is vital to ensuring that traffic is shifted to rail as required. The project involves a total of 88 kilometres of track in Germany between the village of Puttgarden on Fehmarn and Lübeck. The link is scheduled to enter service at the end of 2029.
Personen
Berthold Huber, DB Management Board Member for Infrastructure (l), Schleswig-Holstein's Prime Minister Daniel Günther (2nd from right), Susanne Henckel, State Secretary to the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (2nd from left) and Philippe Chantraine (r), representative of the European Union, give the starting signal for the Belt connection.
A project that connects countries
The project was officially launched on Fehmarn in December by Berthold Huber (DB Management Board Member for Infrastructure), Daniel Günther (Premier of Schleswig-Holstein) and Susanne Henckel (State Secretary to the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport). "After years of planning, today we can celebrate the start of construction for the rail link here on Fehmarn. With our Danish partners, here in the middle of the Baltic Sea we'll complete a new European rail link from Denmark through Germany to Italy by 2029. This corridor is equally important for local and long-distance transport here in Schleswig-Holstein and for European freight transport," Huber said at the project's opening ceremony. Günther added, "The start of construction for the rail link is an event we've been working towards for a long time. With this international transportation project, we're bringing Denmark and Schleswig-Holstein, their economies, and especially their people closer together. The Fehmarnbelt tunnel is a powerful symbol of European cooperation and solidarity."
From Norway to Italy
The Belt link is at the heart of the new European freight corridor between Oslo and Palermo; 68 freight trains will run along it daily. They will be joined by another 30 freight trains moving from the port of Travemünde to Italy. This is one of the many ways in which Deutsche Bahn plays an important role in shifting traffic to climate-friendly rail and helping to achieve the climate policy goals set by the German government.
Deutsche Bahn is beginning the project with the double-track upgrade and electrification of the 11.4-kilometre line between Puttgarden and the Fehmarn Sound Bridge, the first of ten construction sections. Starting in 2026, work on all sections between Fehmarn and Lübeck will proceed simultaneously. Of the project's 88 kilometres of rail lines, 55 kilometres are planned as new construction.
Go
