Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe : With 40 years on the backburner

It's Monday lunch: The huge hall is full with trains. What is in each industry a sign of boom would be economic, for the LPP, the exact opposite – a sign of acute crisis. On a working day not actually subway cars are allowed in the workshop, you will need to drive. So it was not a pretty date for the BVG Boss Sigrid Nikutta and the economy, Senator Ramona Pop (Green). Both are guest in the Britzer U-Bahn. The Manager explained the two Track for Track, why a train is parked.

On the first, the biggest problem child of the LPP, the number of F79. The "79" is for the year 1979. The train is almost 40 years old and scrap. Pop and Nikutta consider a bare place on the wagon box. A worker has erased the yellow color, now a crack can be seen. Pop and Nikutta feel with the fingers. Irreparably. Next Stop of the car, number 2662: junkyard. 26 of 70 cars of this series continue for the remaining F79 are likely to need to be retired in the year 2019, says Workshop Manager, Thomas the castle master.

Each train is all of ten weeks in the workshop

The statement is a disaster. Then, even more trains are missing in the daily operation, the first of the new trains will only come in 2020, says Nikutta. And the trains on the other tracks? Number 2520 has a broken door, a drive fault, and the fuse jumps out. 2826 in addition to the routine examination, all of the 240 000 kilometres of the wheelsets should be examined with ultrasound, it will take time. Every 30 000 km, a little investigation is due, each train is so all ten weeks of the schedule in the workshop. On the other tracks, two trains with a Door and an electrical malfunction.

a Track has just become free. Vandals have kicked a car a slice out of it. Although this is used for fast – Curing of the adhesive takes but twelve hours. As long as the train in the network is missing, add hours for arrival and departure. On the Track, something separated, cleaned, and Graffiti. Laboriously by Hand, and a MOP. The takes, this train is missing.

"We realize that for 20 years nothing was invested in new trains."

At the end of the tour, Ramona Pop says soberly: "We realize that for 20 years nothing was invested in new trains." In addition to the purchase of the car, the LPP also plans to expand the workshop in Britz, nearly three hectares of land would be free, but must be paid for. "Anyone who buys new trains, it must wait somewhere," says Nikutta. This hall is to get an extra "Graffiti Track", so that graffiti can be removed.

The work is not out of the 700 technicians in the four workshops. For castle master has bad news of Europe. The state of the art series, for lines 5 to 9 of the (series of delivery from 1997) comes in the years, it, technical problems are piling up to the "H"trains, especially on the drive and at the Transitions. "We ride the trains to 110 percent," says Burgermeister and says it will not go well for a long time.

Defective car BVG needs U more-track the operation

With the continuous Abundance in the trains were burdened much more than in the past. Starting in March, the clock will be extended on busy lines, probably on five minutes. As a result, the BVG will win a pair of reserve trains that have only been saved a few weeks ago out of necessity, reported Nikutta. A train is not currently available, it cannot be replaced. On the display on the train platform the next train in 11 minutes " – then:" so on the Monday after the workshop visit. The economy Senator know now where the missing train.