December 16, 2024

Shortage of skilled labour leads to restrictions in local rail passenger transport

Due to staff shortages at the railroad companies and a lack of vehicle availability, there will also be restrictions in the timetable in the coming weeks. The aim is to reduce short-term staff-related train cancellations to a minimum and to create a limited but reliable service (as of 16.12.2024).

Shortage of skilled labour leads to restrictions in regional rail transport

There are currently timetable adjustments on the following lines:

Line S 2:

  • The line will only run every 30 minutes between Dortmund main station and Dortmund-Mengede even after completion of the planned construction work. This means that there will no longer be a 15-minute interval at peak times on Mondays to Fridays. Scheduled operation is planned at weekends.

Line S 3:

  • Until 5 January 2025, the line will only run hourly on weekends along the entire route (Oberhausen - Mülheim - Essen - Hattingen). Scheduled operation is planned for Mondays to Fridays.

Line S 5:

  • Until 5 January 2025, the line will only run hourly on weekends on the entire route (Dortmund - Witten - Hagen). The 30-minute interval between Dortmund and Witten will therefore be cancelled. Scheduled operation is planned for Mondays to Fridays.

Line S 28:

  • During the Christmas holidays from 23 December 2024 to 06 January 2025, the line will run between Kaarster See and Mettmann Stadtwald every 20/40 minutes during the day on Mondays to Fridays (cancellation of one journey per hour). On the Kaarster See - Neuss Hbf and Mettmann Stadtwald - Düsseldorf-Gerresheim sections, additional buses will run.
  • The Mettmann Stadtwald - Wuppertal Hbf section will be served by buses Monday to Friday during the day until around 8.30 pm (all day during the Christmas holidays from 23 December 2024 to 6 January 2025) until further notice.
  • On Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, the Wuppertal-Vohwinkel - Wuppertal Hbf section will not be served all day until further notice. Please switch to the other lines in this section.

Line S 68:

  • This line will not be running until further notice. Please switch to lines S 6 and S 8.

RE 3 line:

  • Cancellation of individual journeys during the day from 01 February 2025.
  • The line will not run at night from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. from 1 February 2025. Please switch to the SPNV lines running in parallel at these times.

RE 4 line:

  • The morning peak-period services from Aachen to Düsseldorf and afternoon services from Düsseldorf to Aachen will not be running until further notice.
  • The night journeys at weekends between Düsseldorf and Hagen will not be running until further notice.

RE 6 line (RRX):

  • From 02 January 2025, this line will only run daily until approx. 10 pm. Please switch to the RE 1 (RRX) line.
  • From 2 January 2025, the Düsseldorf - Cologne/Bonn Airport section will only be served between approx. 5 am (Mondays - Fridays) or 9 am (weekends, public holidays) and approx. 9 pm. Please switch to the S 11 line.

RE 7 line:

  • From 2 January 2025, the line will only run daily until approx. 9 pm due to a large number of night-time construction sites spread along the route.
  • In addition, individual journeys will be cancelled in the early hours of the morning.
  • Buses will run between Cologne and Krefeld and between Hagen and Hamm in the evening and at night; on the remaining sections of the route, please switch to other lines (especially RE 4, RB 48, S 8, S 11).

RE 11 line (RRX):

  • The Düsseldorf - Hamm section will only be operated with six journeys in each direction until further notice. These journeys will once again run continuously to/from Paderborn/Kassel.
  • Scheduled services are planned on the Hamm - Kassel section.

RE 13 line:

  • From 01 February 2025, the line will mainly only run every 2 hours.
  • Supplementary buses will run on the Mönchengladbach - Venlo section.

RE 42 line:

  • The line will only run hourly on weekends during the Christmas holidays (28 and 29 December 2024 and 04 and 05 January 2025). The 30-minute interval between Essen and Münster will be cancelled on these days. On the remaining days during the holidays (including public holidays), scheduled operation is planned.

RE 44 line:

  • This line will not be running until further notice.
  • Buses will run on the Bottrop - Oberhausen section. Buses will run continuously between Bottrop and Duisburg-Ruhrort (lines RE 44/RB 36).
  • On the Oberhausen - Duisburg - Moers section, please switch to the other regional rail services.

RE 47 line:

  • This line will be served by buses until further notice.

Line RB 34:

  • Monday to Friday mornings, one journey in each direction will be replaced by buses until further notice.

Line RB 36:

  • The line will be served by buses until further notice. The buses will run continuously between Duisburg-Ruhrort and Bottrop (lines RE 44/RB 36).

Line RB 39:

  • Until further notice, there will be no five morning services on the Grevenbroich - Neuss section from Monday to Friday. All other journeys and sections will operate as normal again.

 

Further up-to-date information on the lines can be found at zuginfo.nrw