Deutsche Bahn (DB) has announced repairs to be carried out between Saarbrücken and Mannheim from June 4th to the 13th -- including the Whitsun holiday weekend.
The construction work will bring long-distance rail services through the region to a halt, affecting trains travelling between Frankfurt or Stuttgart and Saarbrücken.
The work is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, June 4th, at 7:00 p.m. and finish on Friday, June 13th, at 5:00 a.m.
During this time some long-distance services between Paris and Frankfurt will be disrupted. DB's long-distance (ICE) trains as well as France's high-speed intercity TGV trains, which normally stop in Saarbrücken, will be diverted via Karlsruhe and Strasbourg.
Long-distance disruptions around Saarbrücken
During the work, long-distance EC trains that run between Saarbrücken, Stuttgart, Munich, and Graz are to be cancelled between Saarbrücken and Stuttgart.
The same applies to the ICE trains between Saarbrücken and Munich.
So passengers coming from Saarbrücken, Homburg, Kaiserslautern, and Neustadt (Weinstraße) will only be able to connect to long-distance services via regional trains and S-Bahn services to and from Mannheim.
Local and regional disruptions
S-Bahn services in the Saarland will also be affected (and replaced with bus services in some instances).
The S2 line from Kaiserslautern to Mosbach (Baden) will be cancelled between Neustadt and Kaiserslautern in both directions. According to a report by SR Aktuelle, an hourly connection on the S1 line -- linking Homburg, Kaiserslautern, Mannheim, Heidelberg, and Osterburken is available as an alternative.
In the evening, both the S1 and S2 will be replaced by buses -- starting in Neustadt from 8:39 p.m., and in Kaiserslautern from 8:58 p.m. Buses will also run for the S44 from Kaiserslautern at 3.55 a.m. and 4.00 a.m. to Neustadt.
Several regional (RB) connections will also be cancelled or altered.
The RE 6 line from Kaiserslautern to Karlsruhe will be cancelled in both directions between Neustadt and Kaiserslautern.
The RB56 from Kaiserslautern to Bundenthal Rumbach will be cancelled at certain times: on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 8.37 a.m. In the opposite direction, the train from Neustadt to Kaiserslautern will be cancelled from 5.50 p.m. on Sundays and Mondays.
Between Neustadt and Kaiserslautern, the RB45 trains will be cancelled at specific times on June 5th, 6th, 10th, 11th and 12th.
Both regional and long-distance passengers travelling in this region would be advised to double check current timetables on the DB app or website before beginning their journey.
LISTED: The major rail disruption to prepare for in Germany this summer
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