Passenger record: Hamburg's elevated railway invests 1.3 billion euros!

Passenger record: Hamburg's elevated railway invests 1.3 billion euros!

On June 12, 2025, the Hamburger Hochbahn drew a positive balance for the year 2024. The transport company recorded around 551 million passengers, which means daily increases of around 70,000 passengers. This increase led to fuller vehicles and a 14 percent increase in sales, also due to the newly introduced student ticket. Despite this growth, however, the city's compensation amount for the elevated railway fell from 295 million to 286.6 million euros (by 2.8 percent).

In recent years, the share of revenue from ticket sales has fallen significantly, from 93 percent in 2019 to almost 73 percent in 2024. This development is primarily due to the fact that the 2024 financial year was characterized by increasing compensation payments for the Deutschlandticket. In addition, the Senate's compensation payments for free Germany tickets for students amounted to 16.4 million euros.

Investments and infrastructure projects

Investments in the elevated railway reached a record level of 658.4 million euros in 2024. For 2025, the Hochbahn plans to invest around 1.3 billion euros, especially in new subways and electric buses. The major projects are intended to expand the offering and support the mobility transition. Planned projects include the construction of the U5 to Steilshoop and Bramfeld as well as the extension of the U4 from the Elbbrücken to Grasbrook. Transport Senator Anjes Tjarks announced that the new station would be called Moldauhafen; The planning approval application is expected to be completed in July.

Another focus is on improving the vehicle fleet. The Hochbahn will use fully automated double multiple units of the DT6 generation on the new U5 in order to enable higher frequency of subways. A target 100-second cycle is followed. At the same time, the buses will be more spacious, quieter and emission-free, with the aim of making the entire bus fleet emission-free by 2032. The construction of new workshops and the electrification of existing bus depots are also part of the improvement strategy.

Security measures and traffic planning

Hochbahn also plans to hire 40 additional security guards. From mid-June, replacement traffic will be offered in the Volksdorf area, as six different sections will be closed until November. At the same time, the latest statistics show that buses in the Hamburg transport association have become more punctual, although tens of thousands of passengers still arrive late. However, the subway remains the most reliable part of the transport network.

As part of a climate protection campaign, subway signs in downtown Hamburg are currently hanging upside down. These creative measures underline Hochbahn's commitment to more environmentally friendly public transport.

For the future, Hamburger Hochbahn promises to make local public transport even more attractive through innovative offers such as on-demand shuttles and the ability to view the live position of buses via app. The goal remains high-quality and good public transport for all Hamburg residents, which is to be further promoted through the planned investments and projects.

For more information: NDR and Hamburg business.