Berlin Haupbahnhof

[Solario]

I paid a quick visit to Berlin's new station last week and was very impressed.

It was opened just over two years ago and is supposedly the largest/busiest interchange station in Europe.

As you can see, it has acres of glass, evidently no two panes are the same dimensions. I imagine that lead to some interesting construction issues. The track is not ballasted but there is some sort of springing system under the fixings to reduce vibration.

There are seven stories to the building and rail tracks at two levels. The high level is on the elevated section of railway that runs for some considerable distance through the city. This carries the east-west traffic.

Several stories below, & below ground are tracks running at right angles to the high level lines, carrying the north-south traffic. (A red DB locomotive can just be made out in the picture).

The high level lines also carry the S Bahn Trains. The S Bahn (Stadtschnell Bahn) is the mainly above ground urban network of lines in Berlin and can be likened to the London Metropolitan & District lines, the carriages are in a livery very similar to the old BR "Blood & Custard". There is also an underground ( U Bahn) connection at the station.

The site of the station is in the old east Berlin and was an important station called Lerhter before the partition.

Berlin is fond of its statues and edifices and the station has been supplied with the stainless steel horse, presumably to represent an iron horse. The windows in the plinth give a sight of some relics. There is a small driving wheel on about half an axle and an air pump with the top cylinder removed; the rest of the stuff looks like building rubble which no doubt has some deep significance.

I can recommend the restaurant behind the horse which has its own micro-brewery; both food & drink quite acceptable.

Just to show that the Germans are as fallible as anyone else, some of the glass in the station blew out. They have also tried to save a bit of money and not extend the external canopy as per the original plans for passengers arriving by car or foot; there has been much criticism in the press about this.

Incidentally, the S Bahn is in deep trouble at the moment. It came to light recently that certain safety checks had not been carried out in a timely manner (to bogies, I think). The system was shut down by the authorities for a day, there have been some major sackings of the management and prosecutions will follow. The S Bahn is a subsidiary of DB.

[Ferrybridge Flyer]

Very clean,very efficient-but where's the character?Typical German.

[Solario]

Very clean,very efficient-but where's the character?Typical German.

That may be true, but would a brand new British station have any of the old time character? We seem to be more content with adding out of character appendages to our old stations. At least the monstrous carbuncle at the front of Hull Paragon is no more.

I have to say that I really quite liked the Hauptbahnhof, more character than most airports that I have visited and a micro brewery to boot!

[Ferrybridge Flyer]

Micro brewery? Now you're talking!I know not all old stations are good-look at Birmingham New Street!