Feasibility study on the Chemnitz–Leipzig railway line: Campaign groups see no solution for the congested line

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On Tuesday 16 June, the feasibility study by the Free State of Saxony and DB InfraGO on the upgrade of the northern section (Geithain – Bad Lausick – Leipzig) of the Chemnitz–Leipzig railway line was presented at Chemnitz Town Hall. The planned high-capacity upgrade falls well short of the needs of the regions of south-west Saxony and Leipzig, as the Chemnitz Rail Initiative, the passenger association PRO Bahn and the Industrieverein Sachsen 1828 e.V. have now also noted. Not even the business community is satisfied with this ‘scaled-back’ solution.

The feasibility study presented not only reveals significant shortcomings in infrastructure development but also calls into question the very feasibility of the proposed operational concept, according to the three initiatives, which have identified this as the central problem. From the perspective of the Chemnitz Rail Initiative, this threatens to stifle development across the entire south-west Saxony region.

In the Rail Initiative’s view, this amounts to a breach of key promises made in recent years. Neither the announced upgrade to accommodate long-distance services nor the promised operational concept – featuring a continuous half-hourly service on the Regional Express between Chemnitz and Leipzig – will be implemented.

The upgrade plans that have now come to light still envisage long single-track sections, despite full electrification. Of the approximately 44 kilometres in the northern section between Leipzig and Geithain, only 24 kilometres are to be upgraded to double track. Almost half of the line will remain single-track permanently.

Only an hourly service between Leipzig and Chemnitz

“Despite full electrification, the expansion plans fall far short of the expectations originally promised and the region’s actual needs,” summarises Sebastian Drechsler, spokesperson for the Chemnitz Rail Initiative. He also criticises the underlying operational concept: “Instead of the half-hourly service promised on several occasions, only an hourly service with occasional additional trains during peak times is still planned. A half-hourly service will therefore only be available in the early morning and late afternoon.”

For a route linking Saxony’s largest and third-largest cities – which is already operating at around 140 per cent of capacity – this clearly fails to meet passengers’ actual needs.

“The public, and passengers in particular, have been misled both regarding the infrastructure expansion and the promised half-hourly service with overlapping long-distance services every two hours. The announced improvements will not materialise in this form,” said Markus Haubold, chairman of the passenger association PRO BAHN Mitteldeutschland.

Worse still, he notes, the double-track expansion and electrification are essential prerequisites for a potential connection to long-distance services.

“With the reduced expansion plans that have been presented, Chemnitz is being deliberately cut off from long-distance services for decades, and yet another promise is being broken. After all, it has always been claimed that the only realistic chance of a long-distance rail link lay in the expansion of this line. That is the real scandal. The few scheduled trains have nothing to do with an attractive long-distance service and do not fit in with the ‘Deutschlandtakt’ concept at all.”

A vulnerable operating system

However, another point weighs particularly heavily: According to information available to the Chemnitz Rail Initiative, the feasibility study itself concludes that even the proposed scaled-back operational concept – with hourly services and occasional additional trains – will almost completely exhaust the capacity of the infrastructure in the northern section. According to the feasibility study, a high standard of service and an effective reduction in delays cannot be expected.

“With the expansion plans set out in the feasibility study, even this reduced operating concept will not be feasible on a long-term, reliable basis,” adds Sebastian Drechsler. “This means the infrastructure remains vulnerable to disruption.”

Katrin Hoffman, Managing Director of Industrieverein Sachsen 1828 e. V., therefore makes it clear: “It is particularly disappointing that the originally envisaged continuous double-track expansion has been abandoned. Recent years have shown how important resilience and redundancy are in critical infrastructure. Largely single-track operation not only limits future development opportunities but also increases vulnerability to disruptions, construction works and rising traffic volumes.”

These findings from the feasibility study are not mentioned in the positive official statements. From the railway initiative’s perspective, this gives the impression that critical findings from the feasibility study, as well as the considerable doubts regarding the stable operation of the operational concept, are being deliberately omitted from public communications. It is now essential that the City of Chemnitz, the Free State of Saxony and the Federal Government ensure transparency, take the findings of the feasibility study seriously and revise the expansion plans accordingly.

Cutting corners in the wrong place

“We must not repeat the mistakes of past cost-cutting measures in rail infrastructure. Anyone who builds on too small a scale today is jeopardising development opportunities for the coming decades. That is precisely why we need an efficient and resilient infrastructure,” explains Markus Haubold.

In conclusion, Sebastian Drechsler makes it clear: “Anyone who seeks to create an efficient rail network through cost-cutting measures is relying on wishful thinking rather than a sustainable transport policy.”

Contrary to the assurances given at the rail summit in April, the results of the study and the expansion plans derived from them were presented exclusively to a select group of participants. Interest groups such as the Industrieverein Sachsen 1828 e.V., the Chemnitz Rail Initiative and their members – who have been constructively supporting the line’s expansion for years – were deliberately excluded, despite corresponding assurances.

“It is highly concerning when representatives of the region are deliberately excluded and promises made are not kept. Such an approach can certainly be perceived as lacking transparency and questionable,” explains Sebastian Drechsler, spokesperson for the Chemnitz Rail Initiative.