Shortcut to Denmark: DB starts rail construction to Fehmarnbelt tunnel
Visualiation of the railway connecting to the Fehmarnbelt tunnel Deutsche Bahn / Rambøll
Deutsche Bahn (DB) has started construction of the railway connection upgrade to the future Fehmarnbelt tunnel. This tunnel under construction will form a shortcut to Danish capital Copenhagen across the Fehmarn strait. The travel time between Hamburg and Copenhagen will be cut from 4.5 hours to 2.5 hours when the tunnel and rail connection are finished in 2029.
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It is certainly a pity that trains will not use the Fehmarnbelt bridge any more, an thus miss any view of the sea. The change from two lanes for cars to six lanes (4 in the tunnel and 2 on the bridge) also seems outlandish. The existing bridge could have taken two rail tracks plus low speed traffic (e.g.bike+pedestrians). Alternatively, one direction of train travel could have remained on the bridge with only the opposite direction in the tunnel, which would also increace redunancy somewhat.
Timmendorfer Strand will lose its rail connection for a realignment of the track to the west, and now starts to regret the decision and the loss in tourists and replacement of some rail visitors by visiters that bring a car and need parking and street space.
Some years ago, they still had opposed an extension of the existing rail track at its original route for NIMBY reasons.
Hopefully there will be enough bike spaces as crossing the Storebelt with a bike or as a pedestrian is pretty damn expensive and the trains are not very bike (especially ont cargobike) or wheelchair friendly and this always seems to be a problem going to or coming from Copenhagen in any direction. Please make taking bikes free across the waters.