Deutsche Bahn will put Stuttgart's future main station and large parts of the new Stuttgart rail hub into operation with digital technology in December 2026: all long-distance trains - with the exception of the Gäubahn - and around half of regional traffic will then run via the new through station. At the same time, the long-distance station at the airport and the stabling station in Untertürkheim will be opened. Furthermore, rail traffic from and in the direction of Tübingen/Reutlingen can be integrated into the future Stuttgart rail hub via the large and small Wendlinger Kurve. The digital control and safety technology in Stuttgart's existing network in the Untertürkheim, Bad Cannstatt, Münster and Hafen areas will then also be available. This was confirmed by the Stuttgart 21 project partners in today's steering committee. Many travelers will thus benefit from new direct connections and shorter travel times from December 2026.

Berthold Huber, Board Member for Infrastructure at Deutsche Bahn AG: "Right from the start, Stuttgart 21 is a benefit for many travelers in the region, in Baden-Württemberg and far beyond. Stuttgart 21 stands for the transport turnaround in the southwest. To achieve this, we have to put our passengers through a few more inconveniences in the course of the highly complex commissioning process. Together with the project partners, however, we have succeeded in keeping these inconveniences to a minimum. I would therefore like to expressly thank our project partners for their great support and for the great patience of our passengers."

The commissioning concept previously planned for the commissioning of the Stuttgart digital node would have required a very large number of partially overlapping line closures in 2026. For this reason, the S21 project partners agreed at the steering committee meeting in May 2025 to jointly review the commissioning concept in order to reduce the disruption to passengers as much as possible.

Old terminus station will finally be decommissioned in mid-2027

As a result of this review, DB has proposed to the project partners that the existing terminus station remain in operation until the opening of the extended S-Bahn main line via Mittnachtstraße station in summer 2027 and that the Gäubahn can still be routed to the terminus station via the Panoramabahn until March 2027. With the integration of the regional tracks from the new Neckar Bridge into the west end of Bad Cannstatt station, which is expected to be completed in November 2027, Stuttgart 21 will be fully operational with the exception of the routing of the Gäubahn via the airport.

The new commissioning concept significantly reduces the restrictions for rail travelers and was welcomed by the S21 project partners.

Travel time reductions on long-distance services from December 2026 (examples)

• Stuttgart Hbf-Ulm Hbf (ICE): 28 minutes instead of 43 minutes today (via the Wendlingen-Ulm high-speed line)
• Mannheim Hbf-Ulm Hbf: 1 hour 8 minutes instead of 1 hour 27 minutes today (via the Wendlingen-Ulm high-speed line)
• Karlsruhe Hbf-Ulm Hbf: 1 hour 7 minutes instead of 1 hour 29 minutes today (via the Wendlingen-Ulm high-speed line)
• Stuttgart Hbf-Munich Hbf: 1 hour 40 minutes instead of 1 hour 58 minutes today (via express line)
• Frankfurt Hbf-Munich Hbf: 3 hours 1 minute instead of today (via Würzburg) 3 hours 12 minutes

Travel time reductions on regional services from December 2026 (examples)

• Stuttgart Hbf-Ulm Hbf (RE): 41 minutes instead of today's 1 hour 4 minutes
• Stuttgart Central Station-Stuttgart Airport: 6 minutes instead of today's 27 minutes
• Ulm main station-Stuttgart airport: 28 minutes instead of today (by bus) 58 minutes (new direct connection)

• Reutlingen main station-Stuttgart airport: 27 minutes instead of 47 minutes today (by bus) (new direct connection)
• Filderstadt-Ulm main station: 1 hour 3 minutes instead of today (by bus) 1 hour 19 minutes
• Friedrichshafen City-Stuttgart Airport: 1 hour 38 minutes instead of today (by bus) 2 hours 24 minutes (new direct connection)
• Nürtingen-Stuttgart main station: 19 minutes instead of today's 30 minutes
• Heilbronn-Stuttgart Airport: 48 minutes instead of today's 1 hour 25 minutes (new direct connection)

All travel times mentioned are subject to the final design of the 2027 timetable. Passengers have already benefited from a reduction in travel time of around 15 minutes on the Stuttgart-Ulm route since the Wendlingen-Ulm high-speed line came into operation in December 2022.

Road closures

Major closures of stations and sections of track will be necessary in both 2026 and 2027 for the commissioning of the reorganized Stuttgart rail junction.

- In summer 2026, in addition to the closure of the S-Bahn main line, there will be restrictions for travelers, especially in the Stuttgart-Untertürkheim and Bad Cannstatt areas.
- In 2027, it will be possible to run many connections via the new through station during the closures thanks to the relocation of closures agreed with the project partners. This will provide an additional range of rail alternatives over and above the planned rail replacement service.
- In spring 2027, the digitized existing lines Stuttgart-Vaihingen-Filderstadt and Stuttgart-Vaihingen-Böblingen will be put into operation. These lines will be closed for four weeks for the necessary construction work.
- In July 2027, the extension of the digitized S-Bahn main line with the new Mittnachtstraße station in and out of Stuttgart Nord, Bad Cannstatt and Hauptbahnhof (deep) will go into operation. The S-Bahn main line between Stuttgart-Vaihingen and the main station will therefore be closed for a total of twelve weeks in spring 2027 for the necessary construction work; this period includes both the Easter and Whitsun vacations. During the main line closure in spring 2027, the old terminus station will still be available for S-Bahn traffic, among other things. In Stuttgart-Vaihingen, in addition to the planned rail replacement service, there is also a rail connection to the S21 main station with a transfer to regional services at the airport.
- In 2027, the S-Bahn and regional train tracks in Bad Cannstatt will be connected to the new rail hub one after the other. To this end, tracks 1 to 4 of the S-Bahn will initially be closed at Bad Cannstatt station in the first half of the year, followed by tracks 5 to 8 of regional services until November 2027. From December 2026, long-distance trains and many regional trains can already be routed via the S21 main station, freeing up capacity that can be used for both the S-Bahn and local services.

Joint task force of the project partners continues to work

Together with all those involved in the task force, which continues to exist, Deutsche Bahn is developing the specific timetable concepts for the line closures required in 2026 and 2027. The rail replacement services will also be supported by buses and streetcars operated by Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG. Initial studies by the Stuttgart Institute of Transport Sciences (VWI), which is supporting the work of the task force, prove the fundamental feasibility of the construction-period traffic concepts. During the construction work, travelers will also be informed about the existing services and alternative offers by passenger guides.