There is a new delay in the construction of the tram west tangent: As Deutsche Bahn (DB) announced, Laim station, which is currently being rebuilt because of the second S-Bahn trunk line, will only be completed two years later than planned. This also delays the completion of the so-called environmental composite tube through which the western tangent will run. The tunnel with the awkward name is being built next to the Laimer underpass and is reserved for environmentally friendly tram, bus, bicycle and pedestrian traffic. The DB is building the shell on behalf of the city, and later the building department and the Munich Municipal Utilities (SWM) are taking over the interior work of the tunnel.
The tram west tangent will be built in several sections. At the end of 2025, a short section of the route between Agnes-Bernauer-Straße and Ammerseestraße is scheduled to go into trial operation. In the second half of 2026, according to current planning, the route in the north should be expanded and the Romanplatz – Agnes-Bernauer-Straße section should be accessible. However, the prerequisite for this would be the timely handover of the tunnel in Laim; the most recent (also already delayed) date for this was the end of 2025.
It looks like nothing will come of this because of the renewed delay in the construction of the station. In Laim, significantly more old foundations were found than expected, which would first have to be removed, explains Kai Kruschinski, DB overall project manager for the construction of the second main line. “Such supposedly minor delays mean that we have to significantly postpone and reschedule entire construction phases given the large number of construction projects on the Munich rail network.”
Another reason is the highly complex S-Bahn system on the existing main line. It is one of the busiest railway lines in Europe with specially installed control and safety technology – and a correspondingly demanding testing and acceptance process. The DB says it is now planning additional time windows for this work.
The work on the environmental composite pipe in the northern area has already been completely completed. In addition, according to DB, work on the shell of the southern tunnel under the tracks is progressing according to plan. Nevertheless, the environmental composite tube can probably only be completely handed over to the city around two years later than originally planned, as the complex construction site logistics will be provided in the tunnel until the station is completed.
How the Munich transport company (MVG) is dealing with the new circumstances was not yet known on Wednesday because of the public holiday.