Cultural Train Runs for the Last Time Between Berlin and Breslau - Berlin-Wrocław *Kulturzug* makes its final journey after a decade of cultural travel
After a decade of operation, the Kulturzug—a unique train linking Berlin and Wrocław—will make its final trips this weekend. The service, known for blending travel with live performances, is ending due to falling passenger numbers and rising costs. The train first launched in 2014, offering more than just transport. Passengers enjoyed theatre shows, concerts, and workshops during the journey. In its early days, it carried an average of 830 travellers each weekend. But by the first nine months of this year, that figure had dropped to just 330. The route included stops at Legnica, Chojnów, Bolesławiec, Węgliniec, Weißwasser, Cottbus, and Lichtenberg/Ostkreuz. Yet despite its cultural appeal, the service struggled financially. High maintenance costs per kilometre added to the pressure. Funding from Berlin and Brandenburg has now ended, and DB Regio will no longer run the train as an IRE line after the December 2023 timetable change. The last outbound trip from Berlin to Wrocław departs on Saturday, with the final return journey on Sunday. With the Kulturzug discontinued, travellers will rely on other long-distance options between the two cities. The decision follows years of declining demand and the withdrawal of dedicated German funding. The train’s final journeys mark the end of a distinctive cross-border service.
Read also:
- American teenagers taking up farming roles previously filled by immigrants, a concept revisited from 1965's labor market shift.
- Weekly affairs in the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag)
- Landslide claims seven lives, injures six individuals while they work to restore a water channel in the northern region of Pakistan
- Escalating conflict in Sudan has prompted the United Nations to announce a critical gender crisis, highlighting the disproportionate impact of the ongoing violence on women and girls.
