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Berlin's 2026 Infrastructure Push: What Siemensbahn, A100 and New ICE Depot Mean for Local Residents
From a revived rail line in Spandau to a major highway extension in Neukölln, several long-awaited projects are reshaping how Berliners move across the city and beyond.
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After more than 40 years of disuse, the Siemensbahn is finally being reactivated in 2026 as a modern transport link between Jungfernheide and Gartenfeld. The project, part of the wider i2030 initiative, will restore a direct rail connection to a fast-growing part of Spandau that has relied almost entirely on buses and cars for decades. For residents of Siemensstadt and Gartenfeld, the reopening means a journey that once took 30 minutes by bus could be cut to under 10 minutes by train.
A New Rail Spine for Northern Berlin
The Siemensbahn is not the only rail project advancing this year. A new €46 million, eight-track ICE stabling and servicing depot is set to open in 2026 on the former Berlin-Schönholz freight yard site in the north of the city. The facility will allow long-distance trains to be cleaned, maintained and parked overnight closer to Berlin's main stations, reducing empty running and improving reliability for passengers. Meanwhile, the Northern Berlin rail expansion schemes-including the complete rebuild of the North Rail line and the Heidekraut railway-have secured a €6 million financing agreement for detailed planning. These projects are likely to be completed by 2030, according to infrastructure planners. For residents of Reinickendorf and Pankow, the upgrades promise more frequent and faster connections to the city centre and beyond.
Road and Energy Grid Upgrades
On the roads, the A100 highway extension is adding a 3.2-kilometre, six-lane stretch from Neukölln to Treptower Park. More than €610 million has been invested in this section, which will improve access to Berlin Brandenburg Airport and the Adlershof technology and science park. For commuters and businesses in the south-east, the new link is expected to ease chronic congestion on the inner-city ring road. The project also ties into the Berlin Diagonal Power Link, a section of Project 87-a broader effort to upgrade extra high voltage lines across a total length of roughly 75 kilometres in Berlin and Brandenburg. This grid reinforcement is designed to handle increasing electricity demand from electric vehicles, heat pumps and new housing, while also integrating more renewable energy from wind farms in Brandenburg.
Practical Impact on Daily Life
For local residents, the combined effect of these projects is a city that is better connected by rail, road and energy infrastructure. The Siemensbahn reactivation alone will unlock several thousand new homes planned in Gartenfeld and along the Siemensstadt corridor. The Schönholz ICE depot means fewer cancelled long-distance trains due to maintenance bottlenecks. And the A100 extension, controversial among some neighbourhood groups, promises faster airport access for residents of Neukölln, Treptow and Köpenick. The energy grid work, though less visible, underpins Berlin's ability to decarbonise its transport and heating systems.
What happens next depends on continued funding and political will. The Northern Berlin rail schemes still face detailed planning before construction can begin. But with the Siemensbahn opening this year and the A100 extension advancing, 2026 marks a turning point for a city that has long struggled to deliver large infrastructure projects on time and on budget. For the hundreds of thousands of Berliners who commute across the city every day, the concrete benefits are finally becoming visible.