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Massive railway chaos: arson leads to route closure for weeks!
Serious arson on the railway line between Nuremberg and Bamberg leads to route closures and delays for days.
Massive railway chaos: arson leads to route closure for weeks!
In Hirschaid, between Bamberg and Nuremberg, a deliberate act of vandalism is causing massive restrictions on rail traffic. On the night of July 4, 2025, unknown persons set fire to wooden slats and pallets in a pedestrian underpass on Heinrichstrasse. The material damage caused by this amounts to around 25,000 euros, although the subsequent costs for rail transport will undoubtedly be higher. Deutsche Bahn also announced on July 7, 2025 that the section between Forchheim and Bamberg would remain closed until July 10, 2025. This incident inevitably leads to a standstill in regional traffic.
As infranken.de reports, regional trains between Nuremberg Hbf and Bamberg are currently out of service. This also affects the popular S-Bahn line S1, which only runs to Forchheim. However, a replacement bus service has been set up for the route between Forchheim and Bamberg, although fans of public transport should note that there may be further restrictions due to road construction work. Travelers here often have to resort to large taxis, which are provided for intermediate stops.
Significant travel time extensions
Handling the situation is anything but easy. According to nordbayern.de, the disruptions are expected to continue for a few more days. Travelers on the rail route between Nuremberg and Bamberg are advised to take alternative routes via Würzburg Hbf or Bayreuth Hbf. The situation not only affects regional traffic, ICE and IC connections are also severely affected by the disruptions. Travelers on the route between Berlin and Munich also have to expect considerable delays and there are sometimes no stops in Erlangen and Bamberg.
The police have already started an investigation into suspected arson. According to the information, the criminal police classified the fire as intentional because expert reviews revealed massive damage to the underpass. The tracks above the underpass are unusable as a result of the fire damage, leaving the train service unusable for several days and possibly even longer.
Conclusion and outlook
How the situation will develop remains to be seen. The operation of regional trains is severely restricted, and the ICE trains between Nuremberg and Erfurt are also diverted and are delayed by around 90 minutes. Deutsche Bahn is under pressure to repair the routes as quickly as possible. Until then, passengers will have to prepare for long waiting times and detours while those responsible do everything they can to restore the safety of rail connections. There is no end to the inconvenience in sight for the time being, so travelers have to be patient.