1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
Live TV
Latest audioLatest videos
In focus
Russia's war in UkraineIsrael-Hamas warIndia elections

German Rail to Stay Put in Berlin

January 12, 2006

After months of bickering between Hamburg and Berlin on whether the German Rail would move is headquarters, the state-owned company is staying in Berlin. In fact, they said, they never planned to leave at all.

https://p.dw.com/p/7mFs
Never planned on leaving: Bahn CEO Hartmut MehdornImage: dpa

The story dominated Berlin newspapers in the final months of 2005: Would the Deutsche Bahn take its headquarters and 1,000 jobs to Hamburg, pushing up the city's 18.1 percent unemployment rate even more?

CEO Hartmut Mehdorn, who had expressed the desire to see the state-owned company go private in a few years, wanted to move the headquarters from Berlin to demonstrate independence from the federal government. After a talk with transportation minister Wolfgang Tiefensee Mehdorn, he said discussion about the Bahn's move was a "misunderstanding."

"The Bahn never planned to move its headquarters from Berlin to Hamburg," said a Bahn spokesman on Thursday. Rather the talk was of moving "central functions" from Berlin to Hamburg. The rail company also planned to invest in Hamburg's harbor company and the city's public transportation company, Hochbahn.


Thos investments now appear in doubt, although Hamburg Mayor Ole von Beust says he will continue negotiations with the Bahn.

Skip next section Explore more

Explore more

Derailing an Icon of West Berlin

Derailing an Icon of West Berlin

German Rail has announced that starting next May, long-distance trains will no longer stop at Berlin's Zoo Station, once West Berlin's primary train terminal. It marks the end of an era for many Berliners. (July 14, 2005)
July 14, 2005

Government Tells German Rail to Stay in Berlin

Government Tells German Rail to Stay in Berlin

While some companies see Berlin as a hot address in the middle of Europe, Germany's rail operator, Deutsche Bahn, is the most recent one to consider pulling out of the German capital. (Nov. 30, 2005)
November 30, 2005

Hamburg's Harbor of Hope

Hamburg's Harbor of Hope

On an island inhabited for years by old storage yards and warehouses, the city of Hamburg is embarking on one of the biggest redevelopment projects in Europe in recent years. (May 5, 2005)
May 24, 2005