📋 Tender Overview
January 8, 2026
74 kilometers of railway lines will be electrified
Conversion of 20 diesel lines to climate-friendly drives
Diesel operation will be phased out by 2040
The switch to diesel-free local rail passenger transport in northern Bavaria is getting closer. The Free State today commissioned DB InfraGO AG to plan the infrastructure expansion. Bavarias Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter: The future of rail in Bavaria is electric! In northern Bavaria we want to end diesel operation by 2040 and convert all lines to electric operation or battery-powered trains. To achieve this, 74 kilometers of rail lines must be electrified and two new charging stations built. The Free State is voluntarily making advance payments and investing around 60 million euros in the planning.
A report presented in 2024 determined the necessary infrastructure expansions: battery-powered trains will run on a total of 20 lines in the future. They use electrified sections and charging stations in train stations to charge their batteries. The following routes are to receive overhead lines:
Oberkotzau - Rehau
Kirchenlaibach - Bayreuth - Trebgast
Hochstadt-Marktzeuln - Mainroth
Oberkotzau - Munchberg
Charging stations are to be built in Bad Steben and Neustadt (Waldnaab). In Nuremberg, Forchheim and Wicklesgreuth, charging options are being improved by electrifying additional tracks. The Free State is seeking federal funding for infrastructure expansion in accordance with the Municipal Transport Financing Act (GVFG).
In addition, the region will benefit from electrification projects that have already begun: The federal transport infrastructure plan includes the electrification of the Hof - Regensburg eastern corridor, the Franconia-Saxony mainline Nuremberg - Schirnding and the Nuremberg - Furth im Wald metropolitan railway. DB plans these projects on behalf of the federal government. As early as 2024, the Free State has also awarded the planning contract for electrification from Schnabelwaid to Bayreuth.
The section between Hof via Oberkotzau to Marktredwitz will be electrified as part of the eastern corridor and is scheduled to go into operation gradually between 2033 and 2036. This is followed by electrification to Rehau and Munchberg. The remaining projects will enable more economical battery use and the conversion of certain lines to fully electric operation.
Bavarias DB Group representative Heiko Buttner: We will only achieve our climate goals if we transport goods and people to their destination in an environmentally friendly manner. This is exactly what the switch to electric operation or battery-powered trains promises. With the start of planning for the necessary infrastructure expansion, we are working with the Free State to consistently push forward the climate-friendly transport transition on the rails in Northern Bavaria.
Klaus Peter Sollner, district administrator of the Kulmbach district: As spokesman for the IGE Upper Franconia Axis, I, together with District Administrator Dr. Oliver Bar, are very pleased that, based on the recommendations of our feasibility study on the Upper Franconia Axis, which was completed in 2024, the conversion of rail transport throughout northern Bavaria to climate-friendly drives was quickly decided and the concrete planning contract could be drawn up for a total of 20 rail routes within just one year. This is not a milestone only for Upper Franconia, but for the entire region in the fight for an end to the diesel island - many thanks to Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter and his team in the ministry and at the Bavarian Railway Company!
The switch to battery-powered trains should take place in several stages. From the mid-2030s, a new, barrier-free tilting technology vehicle will be used on the tilting technology lines. This concerns the following lines:
RE 30 Nuremberg - Bayreuth - Hof
RE 31 Nuremberg - Marktredwitz - Hof
RE 32 Nuremberg - Bayreuth - Coburg
RE 33 Nuremberg - Cheb (CZ)
RE 35 Bamberg - Hof
RE 38 Nuremberg - Bayreuth - Bamberg
RE 40 Nuremberg - Schwandorf - Regensburg
RE 41 Nuremberg - Neustadt (Waldnaab)
Battery operation is also scheduled to start on the following lines of the conventional network from the mid-2030s:
RB 18 Coburg - Bad Rodach
RB 22 Forchheim - Ebermannstadt
RB 26 Bamberg - Ebern
RB 82 Steinach - Rothenburg ob der Tauber
RB 91 Wicklesgreuth - Windsbach
RB 95 Hof - Cheb (CZ) - Marktredwitz
RB 96 Hof - Selb City
RB 97 Hof - Bad Steben
Finally, in December 2040, those lines that require a particularly comprehensive infrastructure expansion will be converted to battery operation:
RB 24 Coburg - Bayreuth - Hof
RB 34 Weidenberg - Weiden
RB 98 Helmbrechts - Munchberg - Hof
RB 99 Hof - Neuenmarkt-Wirsberg
An overview of the individual line changes and a map can be found in the appendix of this press release.
The picture shows Bavarias Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter and DB Group representative Heiko Buttner (seated from left) with local elected officials and supporters at the contract signing. (Source: StMB)
Press release on the publishers website
