The underground lines U3 and U6 between Goetheplatz and Implerstrasse have been interrupted for more than three months due to construction work. The work, costing 14.7 million euros, will begin this Monday and is expected to last until Sunday, June 19. For passengers, this results in some restrictions. However, the Munich Transport Company (MVG) provides a replacement service with buses.
What and why is being built?
After 47 years of operation, the route is showing its age and urgently needs an overhaul. North of the Implerstrasse underground station, the Stadtwerke (SWM) are replacing a total of eight switches, two crossings, rails, sleepers, several kilometers of conductor rails and 1,500 tonnes of gravel. Work begins on March 14th. There is a reason why SWM is using ballasted track again at this point and not converting the route to fixed track: According to SWM, a concrete support plate at only individual points in the network does not make sense, since the transitions between ballasted track and fixed track are structurally challenging. This would mean additional effort for maintenance and servicing in the future. In addition, the hardening of the concrete slab alone would take around 30 days and significantly increase the construction time on this important section of the network.
Isn’t it also possible without a route closure?
The MVG says: no. Due to the complex arrangement of the points and track crossings and because it is narrow in the tube, a complete closure is necessary.
How do the subways still run?
The U3 and U6 are each divided into a “southern” and a “northern” line branch. the U3 south operates the section between Fürstenried West and Brudermühlstraße every six to seven minutes during the day. Coming from Moosach, the U3 north usually every ten minutes to Sendlinger Tor, at rush hour between Olympiazentrum and Münchner Freiheit every five minutes. In off-peak times, the U3 also runs to Goetheplatz, Monday to Friday before 6.30 a.m. and after 8.30 p.m., Saturday before 10 a.m. and after 7 p.m. and on Sundays.
the U6 south shuttles every eight minutes between Klinikum Großhadern and Implerstrasse. the U6 north shuttles continuously between the Garching Research Center and Goetheplatz in the usual five to ten minute intervals.
What replacement program is there?
The MVG uses up to 42 buses, more than ever before. the replacement buses commute not only on the section closed to the subway. In order to keep the number of transfers for the affected passengers as low as possible, the Substitute bus line U3 Coming from the Brudermühlstraße to Goetheplatz and from there to the main station. The bus stop is on the south side of Bayerstrasse. There, passengers have various transfer options to the underground lines U1, U2, U4, U5, U7 and U8, to the tram and to the S-Bahn main line.
In addition, one Bus line U6 set up as a ring line from Implerstrasse to Goetheplatz and back. The Goetheplatz stop is on the corner of Häberlstrasse and Lindwurmstrasse. The Tumblingerstraße stop is on the corner of Ruppertstraße opposite the Volkstheater, the Poccistraße stop is on the corner of Lindwurmstraße and Schmellerstraße.
In addition to the SEV lines U3 and U6, the MVG is also extending and strengthening existing lines during the construction work in order to also offer spacious options for bypassing the construction site. So will the bus route X30 extended from the “Am Harras” stop via Schwanthalerhöhe, Trappentreustraße and Donnersbergerbrücke to Rotkreuzplatz and enables you to change to the S-Bahn, U-Bahn and tram.
To the east, the X30 also offers the usual direct connections to Giesing, Ostbahnhof and Arabellapark. The X30 runs every five minutes between Rotkreuzplatz and Ostbahnhof every day except Sundays and public holidays.
On the Metrobus line 63 Booster buses are used between Aidenbachstraße, Westpark and Donnersbergerbrücke on weekdays during the day. As a result, there is also a five-minute cycle on this route, which can be used as a bypass to the closed subway route, from Monday to Friday during the day.
As an alternative, passengers can also bridge the blocked section with an MVG bike. When they return their bikes at the Brudermühlstraße, Implerstraße and Kreisverwaltungsreferat bike stations as well as the temporary stations at Goetheplatz and Sendlinger Tor, users automatically receive a credit for ten free minutes. Before using the MVG bikes, you must register and download the “MVGO” app.
How much more travel time can passengers expect?
That also depends on how much traffic there is on Implerstrasse and Lindwurmstrasse. According to the MVG, the buses take six to ten minutes in each direction – about five minutes longer than the subway. If you change trains, the journey time will be about 10 to 15 minutes longer.
Where can passengers get information?
Information is available around the clock on the toll-free hotline 0800/344 22 66 00. MVG also offers personal advice on one infomobile, which will be present at different locations in the coming weeks. At the start of the construction work, the information mobile will be available from Monday, March 14 through Friday, March 18, at the Brudermühlstrasse underground station (Resi-Huber-Platz). Detailed information is also available in Internet under mvg.de/impler available.