Our project diary

Amina Karam, General Project Director S4: "On Monday morning, I had the pleasure of celebrating two major milestones together with my team, our Hamburg Transport Senator Anjes Tjarks and our DB Representative Ute Plambeck. Not only are we currently building the first tracks on our construction site in the heart of Hamburg, we are also making progress in terms of noise protection! In the first construction phase alone, around 10,000 people will benefit from our new noise protection walls as well as from the soled railway sleepers on the new tracks and will soon be protected not only from train but also from construction noise. I would like to sincerely thank all those involved for the successful event and look forward to the further milestones, of which we will achieve several more this year. I would also like to thank you, dear residents, for your constant understanding and the constructive and trusting exchange."

Anjes Tjarks, Senator for Traffic and Mobility Shift: "The first 1.2 kilometres of S-Bahn tracks have been laid and the first noise barriers have been erected. By the end of the year, 1.5 kilometres are to be provided with noise protection. So today we can say: a new S-Bahn has been born, because it is now also becoming more and more visible as one. The S4 will help to significantly improve the quality of life of the people living in its neighbourhood: Through four new stations on Hamburg territory, comfortable and climate-friendly mobility for potentially 250,000 people in the east of Hamburg and the surrounding area, a fast connection to the city centre of Hamburg, as well as a significant relief of the roads and thus the city climate."

DB-Representative Ute Plambeck: "Today we are looking at the first tracks for a central railway connection in the north. Trains have been rolling along the line between Hamburg and Lübeck since 1865. With the new S4, we are now connecting over a quarter of a million people to the S-Bahn and U-Bahn network and relieving the burden on Hamburg's main station."

Extensive noise protection package for the S4
In future, 45 kilometres of noise barriers will relieve residents along the 35.9-kilometre-long railway line between Hamburg-Altona and Bad Oldesloe. In the first 3.1-kilometre-long construction section, DB is already installing 1.5 kilometres of noise protection by the end of the year. The six-metre-high walls on the track sides and a four-metre-high central wall have a high protective effect and are designed in three different shades of green. Some areas will initially remain open for construction site vehicles and material deliveries. In addition to the walls and noise protection windows, DB relies on technologies such as the "specially monitored track". With this, experts will monitor the track position in a certain area and grind the rails if necessary. Under ballast mats are to be used on bridges to significantly reduce noise.

Many media reported on the milestones in the S4, including the NDR, the WELT, the Süddeutsche, the Hamburger Abendblatt and RTL.