Berlin Airport boosts rail accessibility
From 14 December 2025, passengers travelling to Berlin-Brandenburg Airport (BER) will be able to look forward to improved connections thanks to the entry into service of the new Airport Express FEX on the revamped Dresdner Bahn, new regional lines and the expansion of the S-Bahn. The entire system increases the frequency of trains and reduces travel times from both the capital and the main cities of northern and central Germany. Passengers from Hanover, Leipzig or Erfurt will also benefit from travel reductions of up to half an hour.
FEX: up to five connections per hour between BER, Hauptbahnhof and Südkreuz
The Airport Express FEX operates up to four times an hour between Berlin Hauptbahnhof (23 minutes), Potsdamer Platz (19 minutes), Südkreuz (14 minutes) and BER.
Combined with the hourly regional RE20, the route reaches up to five trains per hour to and from the main station and Südkreuz.
RE20: a direct connection to southern Brandenburg
The new RE20 service connects the main station to Lübbenau from 4:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. (50 minutes from BER), with some extended runs to Cottbus, Brandenburg's second-largest city.
S85: New S-Bahn line between north-east Berlin and the airport
The new S85 connects BER with the northeastern ring of the S-Bahn every 20 minutes, reaching Pankow on weekends (53 minutes) and Frohnau on weekdays (1h 08). The S9 continues to connect BER with Spandau (1h 19).
Direct connections to East Berlin twice an hour
The regional lines RB24 and RB32 allow direct access to the airport from the eastern quadrant of the city:
- Hohenschönhausen: 33 minutes
- Lichtenberg: 24 minutes
- Ostkreuz: 19 minutes
The RB32, initially limited to Lichtenberg, will extend the service to Oranienburg from 9 February 2026.
Return of direct connections to Dresden, Chemnitz and Rostock
The Intercity between Chemnitz/Dresden and Rostock is back on the road via BER.
- From Dresden: up to 7 connections per day, 1h 30.
- From Chemnitz: 2 connections per day.
- From Rostock: about 2h 30.
Reduced travel times from central and northern Germany
The activation of the new services reduces the distance to several German centers:
- From Leipzig: new travel time 1h 29 (reduction: –29 min).
- From Erfurt: new travel time 1h 59 (reduction: –26 min).
- From Hanover: new travel time 2h 07 (reduction: –37 min).
- From Hamburg*: new travel time 2h 26 (reduction: –29 min).
*After completion of the Hamburg-Berlin long-distance line.
