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S21 – restructuring the Stuttgart rail node

The Stuttgart-Ulm railway project consists of two sub-projects: Stuttgart 21, which involves the complete reorganisation of the Stuttgart rail node, and the Wendlingen-Ulm new-build line.

Stuttgart 21: Much more than a railway station

Stuttgart 21 involves the complete reorganisation of the Stuttgart rail node. The decision to conduct the joint project was made in 2009 in a financing agreement between the German federal government, the state of Baden-Württemberg, the state capital of Stuttgart, Verband Region Stuttgart (the political entity of the Stuttgart region), Stuttgart Airport and Deutsche Bahn. The following are being built as part of the project:

Stuttgart 21 will help to significantly reduce travel times on long-distance and regional routes and will connect Stuttgart Airport to the long-distance rail network, shifting traffic from road to rail. Examples:

The future through station will enable many new direct regional connections, which will also relieve some of the pressure on the S-Bahn, which sees high passenger numbers every day.

The through station will have eight inbound and outbound tracks, allowing it to accommodate significantly more train traffic than the current terminal station, which has only five inbound and outbound tracks and experiences many crossing conflicts in the station throat. A 2011 stress test, which was recognised by all of the project partners, demonstrated the high performance of the through station. In addition, the Stuttgart rail node is being fully equipped with digital control-command and signalling systems as part of the Stuttgart Digital Node (DKS), a Germany-wide pilot project. This will increase the capacity demonstrated in the stress test even further.

The expansion of the Stuttgart rail node and the Wendlingen–Ulm high-speed line are expected to benefit more than ten million long-distance passengers throughout Germany each year, and demand is expected to increase by around two million passengers. Seventy-five percent of Baden-Württemberg's 11 million residents live in urban and rural areas that will benefit from transport and traffic improvements as a result of the Stuttgart–Ulm rail project. In addition, Stuttgart 21 will make the Germany-wide integrated regular-interval timetable (Deutschlandtakt) possible in southwest Germany.

The major transport benefits of the project were also reflected by a clear majority in the 2011 referendum: 58.9% voted for further financial participation by the federal state (69.1% in Ulm, 52.9% in Stuttgart).

The future Stuttgart Main Station is the project's primary structure. The station's roof, designed by ingenhoven architects, consists of 28 chalice-shaped supports, each with a diameter of 32 metres – a concrete shell design that has never been built before. On 27 of the chalice supports, glass skylights with an area of up to 350 square metres will illuminate the platform hall with daylight. The concrete work for all 28 chalice supports is done, the platform hall roof is finished and the interior work is in progress.

In 1997, a 32-member jury consisting of 14 experts and 18 representatives from the city, federal state and DB unanimously chose this design from 126 submissions, stating that it would "add a major urban-planning landmark to the city layout without any monumentality and without competing with the Bonatz station building in any way".

The 56 kilometres of tunnel tubes for Stuttgart 21 have been bored completely. Now DB Projekt Stuttgart–Ulm GmbH is working on other projects such as the southbound Pfaffensteig tunnel and the northbound Wartberg tunnel, which in combination with Stuttgart 21 will make the region ready for the Germany-wide integrated regular-interval timetable.

The Stuttgart–Ulm railway project provides jobs for several thousand people, including tunnel miners, geologists, ironworkers, designers, engineers, finance professionals and biologists.

Stuttgart 21 will also make space for two new districts in the city centre, with 100 hectares of land available for urban development. In the Rosenstein district, 50 hectares are planned for residential and commercial space, 10 hectares for green spaces and public squares, and 20 hectares will be added to the Schlossgarten park. The Europa district covers 20 hectares.

Wendlingen-Ulm new-build line: faster service

The Wendlingen-Ulm new-build line is part of the upgraded and new Stuttgart–Augsburg line, a 60 kilometre component of Deutsche Bahn's high-speed network and part of the Stuttgart-Ulm rail project. The following are being built in conjunction with the new-build line:

The new-build line will shorten travel time on the Frankfurt–Stuttgart–Munich route and create major benefits for regional and local transport in Baden-Württemberg. Together with Stuttgart 21, the new infrastructure will lay the foundation for more attractive rail transport:

The four longest tunnels on the new line are the Albvorland Tunnel (8,176 metres) between Wendlingen am Neckar and Kirchheim unter Teck, the Bossler Tunnel (8,806 metres) and the Steinbühl Tunnel (4,847 metres) leading up to the Swabian Jura, and the Albabstieg Tunnel (5,940 metres) between Dornstadt and Ulm.

The 485 metre long and 85 metre high Fils valley bridge is the third-highest railway bridge in Germany. It consists of two adjacent bridge structures between the Bossler Tunnel and the Steinbühl Tunnel. The bridge builders had to cross not only the Fils valley, but also the A8 motorway.

Much of the new-build line runs parallel to the A8 motorway, protecting the landscape. The lowest point of the line is 271 metres above sea level at the Neckar bridge near Wendlingen. The line reaches its highest point, at 746 metres above sea level, shortly before leaving the Steinbühl Tunnel on the Swabian Jura plateau.

The track area at Ulm main station is being rebuilt to connect the station to the new-build line, and a new signalling system is being built.

The 61 kilometres of tunnel tubes have been completely excavated. In the Swabian Jura, installation of the railway equipment for the new-build line began at the end of 2018. Some 120 kilometres of track have now been almost completely laid, and the overhead line supports along the route are in place.

The expansion of the Stuttgart rail node and the new-build line between Stuttgart and Ulm are expected to benefit more than ten million long-distance passengers throughout Germany each year, and demand is expected to increase by around two million long-distance passengers.

The new-build line is listed as a priority requirement in the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan, i.e. has been given the highest priority, and is co-financed by the state of Baden-Württemberg and the European Union.

The new-build line was put into operation in December 2022.