The common toad has made it just as comfortable on the Hüllgraben in the east of Munich as the dragonfly and the tree frog. There are also dogwoods and euonymus on the banks of the creek and cyclostomes and salmonids in the water. However, all these animals and plants are about to move. The Deutsche Bahn (DB) acts as a relocation helper, so to speak. She is planning to relocate the enclosing ditch for her large-scale project Daglfinger and Truderinger Curve. In the future, its water will no longer flow northwards from St.-Veit-Straße in Berg am Laim, but instead along the tracks to the east and past Trudering S-Bahn station before the newly created watercourse in Kirchtrudering flows into the Truderinger Hüllgraben.
DB representatives around project manager Michelle Dewald presented these plans on Thursday and also referred to the ecological gain. The relocation creates a near-natural body of water in a residential area as well as relief in the event of flooding, improves the climate and brings the stream from the depths to the surface over long distances. “We are trying,” emphasized Dewald, “to reduce the piping to a minimum.”
For common toads, dragonflies and co., this means an improvement in their habitat, for which the railways spend a lot of money. According to the project manager, the estimated costs for relocating the stream are in the two to three-digit million range. Whereby the railway does not spend this sum out of pure love for nature, but because of tangible constraints.
To be more precise, it is the European Water Framework Directive that obliges the group to take into account both a ban on deterioration and an imperative for improvement when it comes to large-scale projects. In other words: the ecological condition of the Hüllgraben, which crosses the existing rails several times and flows right through the planning area, must not deteriorate, but must be maintained or, if possible, improved.
“The current course of the Hüllgraben is not compatible with the planned route,” explained Michelle Dewald. Therefore, the decision was made to relocate the creek – “which is not very common for a railway infrastructure project”. Twelve structures have to be erected for the new course of the stream, primarily road and railway bridges.
According to Dewald, the existing enclosing moat should be retained – as a biotope and for flood protection. In the meantime, the new section of the stream is being designed to be close to nature, which could be a benefit, especially for the planned new development area on Heltauer Straße. The extent to which its future residents can use the stream and its banks as a recreational area will be decided as part of the development plan process for the district, said Dewald. “The ball is in the city.”
Despite the effort that DB puts into relocating the creek, this is “almost a minor problem” compared to the challenges of the overall Daglfinger and Truderinger bend project, said the project manager. The major project, with which Deutsche Bahn wants to strengthen freight traffic in particular, envisages the construction of two new connections in the east of Munich. On the one hand, the single-track Truderinger curve between the Trudering and Riem stations, on the other hand, the double-track Daglfinger curve for freight traffic between the Riem and Daglfing stations. The project also includes the double track expansion in the section between Daglfing and Trudering.
Planning for this railway hub in the east of Munich has been going on for years and has been met with fierce criticism from many residents and local politicians. In the meantime, they had called for two alternative routes to be examined. However, the railways have been sticking to their plans since the end of 2020 and are already quite far: next year, said Michelle Dewald, they want to submit the documents for the approval process to the Federal Railway Authority.
The rail connection in the east of Munich is to be expanded primarily for freight transport.
(Photo: Stephan Rumpf)
How long the test will take there can hardly be predicted. “We hope that such an approval process will only take two or three years,” said Dewald. After that, construction can begin. “And if everything is up and running by the mid-2030s, that would be great.”
The planned relocation of the enclosing trench – which will also be part of the approval process – should largely take place before the other construction work, said the project manager. In addition to the new course of the stream along the tracks, DB will also upgrade the bed of the Truderinger Hüllgraben so that it can absorb the additional water. This stream, which has its source in Kirchtrudering north of the church of St. Peter and Paul, is mostly just a trickle in many places before it flows into the Hüllgraben north of the animal shelter in Riem. Shortly before that, the Truderinger Hüllgraben will have to be relocated a good bit to the east to enable the rails to be crossed. Overall, the planned creek relocation affects a section of almost five kilometers, said Michelle Dewald.
Details of the project can be found on the project website www.abs38.de. Interested parties can also register there for a digital citizens’ consultation hour on the topic of relocating the Hüllgraben. It will take place on April 24 at 5:30 p.m.