Stuttgart 21 opening pushed to 2031 as costs set to rise by billions more

Project history

Since the mid-1990s, Stuttgart 21 has been planned as a transformation of the city's rail hub. The project's opening has been repeatedly postponed, and costs have ballooned from an initial estimate of around 2.5 billion euros in 1995 to roughly 11.3 billion euros by 2025. Construction began in February 2010, sparking massive protests that culminated in the "Black Thursday" police crackdown on 30 September 2010. A 2011 referendum saw 58.8% of voters support continued state funding.

New delay to 2031

Deutsche Bahn now expects the new underground station to enter service only at the end of 2031, five years later than the previous target. Bahnchefin Evelyn Palla informed the Bundestag transport committee on Wednesday, citing the digitalisation of the Stuttgart rail node as far more challenging than anticipated, insufficient maturity of planning processes, and problems with a technical building. Media reports also point to issues with the emergency power concept and over 1,000 kilometres of incorrectly laid cables that must be largely replaced.

I don't want us to get new figures every year now.

Political pressure

At a steering committee meeting today, Palla faces tough questions from project partners. Baden-Württemberg's Ministerpräsident Cem Özdemir (Greens) has demanded a reliable timetable. Stuttgart's mayor Frank Nopper (CDU) called for a "ruthless disclosure of the project status" and insisted that the long-distance walking route from the tracks into the city must become a short-distance walk.

The long-distance hiking trail from the tracks into the city must become a short-distance hiking trail.

Cost explosion

The extension of construction is expected to drive costs even higher. The Stuttgarter Zeitung reported additional costs of between two and three billion euros, citing informed circles. The last official figure stood at around 11.3 billion euros. However, a court ruling means the project partners (state, city, and region) are not liable for any costs beyond the 2009 financing agreement, which capped their share at roughly 4.5 billion euros. Deutsche Bahn must bear all further overruns alone.