Permanent congestion on the tracks

185 trains run daily between Hamburg and Hanover, utilization is at 147 percent. Delays are the rule, not the exception. "We can't be on time here," admits railway spokesman Peter Mantik. For the railway, it is clear: Only a complete new construction along the A7 and B3 will help.

Politics Demands Old Compromise

But SPD and CDU in Lower Saxony oppose. Both parties insist on the ten-year-old "Alpha-E" variant: Expansion of the existing route with a third track. Prime Minister Olaf Lies (SPD) calls the new construction plans "a waste of time." CDU opposition leader Sebastian Lechner also speaks of the "fastest way." The railway considers it a fairy tale: The expansion would take 20 years longer and paralyze operations for decades.

Russlands Geldquelle versiegt – Öl- und Gaseinnahmen brechen ein

Die wichtigste Finanzader des Kremls verliert an Kraft: Neue Berechnungen zeigen, dass Russlands Öl- und Gaseinnahmen im September um fast ein Viertel einbrechen. Die Regierung denkt laut Insidern über Steuererhöhungen nach – ausgerechnet inmitten explodierender Militärausgaben.

Propaganda and Protest

With information markets, simulations, and promises of double capacity, the railway advertises for acceptance. However, on site, protest signs against land consumption and noise dominate. At the same time, supporters are forming: Green Youth, Fridays for Future, and parts of the city of Hanover are demonstratively backing the new line.

Fractured Camps, Unclear Majorities

There is indecision in the Bundestag. Only the Greens are openly in favor of the new construction. Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil, whose constituency is affected, warns of a "breach of trust" and wants to revisit the issue no earlier than after the general renovation in 2029. Federal Transport Minister Schnieder (CDU) now has to present a strategy – but hardly anyone expects him to contradict Klingbeil.