Berlin files show transport experts warned against maglev in place of tram line
Internal documents show experts in Berlin's transport department warned against dropping a planned tram network for Spandau, saying the Siemensstadt Square project would be at acute risk.
Symbolic image · Photo: wwwuppertal / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (cropped and resized)
Experts in Berlin's Senate transport department warned against abandoning a roughly 13-kilometre tram network for the districts of Spandau and Reinickendorf, according to internal documents reported by the Berliner Zeitung. Without the tram, the Siemensstadt Square development in particular would be at acute risk, the papers say. A pro-tram alliance obtained them through a freedom-of-information request.
The CDU-led department nevertheless pursued plans for a maglev line using the Transport-System Bögl, with costs estimated at 592 million to 888 million euros. The experts questioned its economic case and noted that the per-kilometre costs were based solely on manufacturer figures, according to the documents. A proposal from state-owned housing company Howoge for a 40-kilometre cable car network was rejected as unhelpful.
The alliance warned the maglev could easily become a billion-euro sinkhole. After September's state election, the transport portfolio is expected to go to a party that opposes the project.