German rail operator Deutsche Bahn (DB) has begun work on railways leading to the €3.5bn undersea Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link connecting Hamburg and Copenhagen.
It will install 88km of track to double the capacity of the line between Puttgarden and Lübeck on the German side of the tunnel.
The first of 10 construction phases begins on Fehmarn with the double-track expansion of the existing line, electrification and the construction of new noise barriers over a length of 1.6km. Other phases will include the construction of six stations.
For their part, the Danes began work on the Fehmarnbelt tunnel in 2020. The aim is for both sides to complete their sections in 2029.
DB said: “From now on, the excavators are finally rolling … on the German side. A huge step forward for the mobility transition – throughout Europe!”
The project has attracted EU investment.
“The connection to the Fehmarnbelt crossing not only brings Germany and Denmark closer together, but also the whole of Europe,” said Susanna Henckel, the state secretary to the German federal minister for transport.
“From Hamburg to Copenhagen, train travellers will only need half as long as now at 2.5 hours. But the connection brings so much more, a European rail network is being created on which goods can travel more quickly from north to south – from Oslo to Palermo.”
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