Better mobile. — Timetable change in Potsdam as of April 9, 2022

In the drafting process, we took into account the relocation of school locations, the expansion of scientific institutions and the construction of new residential areas. By orienting the bus network more strongly towards train stations and tram lines, we are also avoiding parallel connections. In addition, Potsdam’s public transport system will be prepared for future planning, for example for the expected increase in importance of Pirschheide station due to Potsdam’s new regional rail connection to BER Airport.”

Bus concept Northwest: New routes, travel time reductions and fewer transfers

ViP Managing Director Uwe Loeschmann adds: “Bus travel will now be even easier and faster and passengers will have to change trains less. In doing so, we have responded to the diverse needs of the growing university and science city of Potsdam. We have reorganized important public transport routes in the northwest of Potsdam and offer a new fast connection between Bornstedt/Bornim and Potsdam-West. This eliminates the previously necessary detour through the city center.”

The new bus concept was developed with the involvement of the residents, the local advisory councils and representatives of the science locations. In the case of extensive citizen information, opinions, comments and criticisms were recorded in advance, their feasibility was examined and integrated into the concept.

The changes affect bus lines 605 (additional 606), 612, 692, 695, 697, 698, X5 and X15. In some cases, new direct connections are planned. Line 605 will run every ten minutes from Golm to Luisenplatz in the future. In the future, bus passengers will be able to get from Kirschallee to Sanssouci station in just eleven minutes. In relation to the bus lines in the Potsdam Northwest area, there is a five percent increase in service. New stops will be built at two locations, others will be reactivated. The “gap closure” – a tangential connection along Amundsenstraße – eliminates the need for various connections to travel via the city centre. This saves up to 20 minutes of travel time and reduces the number of transfers.

The bus routes at a glance

Bus line 605 between Science Park West and S Hauptbahnhof will receive a frequency increase in the Golm/Eiche area due to increased demand and improved connections to the RE1 at Park Sanssouci station. Bus 605 runs every ten minutes between Science Park West and Sanssouci station as well as Luisenplatz with connections to the regional train or tram.

Bus line 695 between Alt-Golm and S Hauptbahnhof offers new connections from Golm/Eiche to the northern city centre. The new route combines routes of the current lines 606 and 695 and is a new direct connection, e.g. between the university locations of Golm and Orangerie.

Bus line 612 will have a new route as a direct connection between Golm/Eiche and Bornim/Bornstedt (including the university and the university of applied sciences). The bus runs from Neu Töplitz via Science Park/University to the University of Applied Sciences campus. There is a new stop Katharinenholzstraße in Amundsenstraße. The centre of Golm will be accessed via the Kirche Golm and Weinmeisterstraße stops. There is an alignment of the line with the Inselschule Töplitz as well as the secondary schools in Potsdam.

During lecture periods, additional buses will continue to be used as line X5. It connects the university campuses Neues Palais and Golm with each other and offers a connection to and from the S main station. The line is used at times of demand peaks. Due to a denser bus service on lines 605 and 695, fewer additional trips will be used than before.

The X15 bus line as a tourist service between Sanssouci Palace, the city centre and S main station will now run via Platz der Einheit/West, replacing line 695 there.

Bus line 697, line 697, will be extended to Pirschheide station and will run as a new tangential connection between Bornstedt/Bornim and Potsdam West in the future and will connect the Bornstedt/Bornim area to rail traffic at Sanssouci station. It runs via the new Katharinenholzstrasse stop and via Campus Jungfernsee to Berlin-Kladow. The line will run between Kirschallee and Pirschheide station every 20 minutes.

In the future, bus line 692 between the clinic and the Jungfernsee campus will have a branch at the Abzweig stop to Nedlitz. It runs to the Jungfernsee campus once an hour, and to the Institute of Agricultural Engineering stop twice an hour (every 20-40 minutes). The line will thus be geared to demand peaks from/to the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy. In addition, there are additional journeys from Weißer See via the Institute of Agricultural Engineering in the direction of the clinic for commuter and school transport.

Bus line 698 between Geiselberg and Kirschallee will receive a new route in Bornim via Hügelweg, Mitschurinstraße, Golmer Chaussee. This needs-based detailed indexing is carried out with midibuses. At ten meters long, these are slightly smaller than solo buses. The line connects to the regional train in Golm for Bornim and Bornstedt

But there are also changes in tram traffic

At the timetable change, after several years of construction, the new turning loop for the tram at the main station will be put into operation. This is an opportunity to further strengthen the connections in the north to the main station. The periods during which tram line 92 runs every ten minutes to/from Kirschallee will be significantly extended – both on school days and during the holidays. Tram line 99 will be extended and will now run again between S Hauptbahnhof and Fontanestr. All trams terminating at the main station use the newly built S Hauptbahnhof/Friedrich-Engels-Str. stop (exit only).

In detail, the following changes will come into force in tram traffic from 09.04.2022

Tram 92 will now run continuously every ten minutes between Kirschallee and S Hauptbahnhof during the day. During rush hours, the line will continue to run as before to Bisamkiez and Marie-Juchacz-Str. The ten-minute interval during peak hours will also be extended to other holiday periods. In late traffic from about 8 p.m. and on weekend mornings, the line will run again to/from S main station.

Tram 93 between Glienicke Bridge, Central Station and Rehbrücke station will run again to S Hauptbahnhof on weekend mornings, as it did before construction began at the Leipzig Triangle.

Tram 94 between Fontanestr, Schloss Charlottenhof (<> Pirschheide station) will have new departure times in daytime traffic and will run three minutes later in both directions. This will improve the connections in Babelsberg, especially from/to the S-Bahn.

Tram 99 from Fontanestrasse will be extended to S Hauptbahnhof. So far, it has only driven to Fontanestrasse and Platz der Einheit. Analogous to tram line 94, tram line 99 will also run about three minutes later in both directions, resulting in improved connections to/from the S-Bahn.

All information is also available online at vip-potsdam.de/buskonzept, in the ViP customer center WilhelmGalerie and in the mobiagentur Potsdam.

ViP employees will also be on site with an information booth on April 9 from 1 to 4 p.m. in Volkspark Potsdam for the event “Potsdam for Ukraine” and provide information on the timetable change.

Pressemitteilung:
Landeshauptstadt Potsdam
Der Oberbürgermeister
Bereich Presse und Kommunikation
komm. Bereichsleiter: Jan Brunzlow
E-Mail: Presse@Rathaus.Potsdam.de
www.potsdam.de/presse

Further information on the topic:

PNN-Artikel vom 7. April 2022
Fahrplanwechsel beim VIP — Ab Samstag mehr Busse im Potsdamer Norden
How residents in Bornstedter Feld, Bornim, Golm and Potsdam-West benefit from the timetable change.