Munich (dpa / lby) – The foreseeable explosion in costs for the second Munich S-Bahn trunk line caused a heated argument and heated debates in the state parliament on Thursday. Several opposition speakers threatened Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) and the state government directly or indirectly with a committee of inquiry. In particular, they criticized the fact that, according to media reports, the State Chancellery already knew about the drastic cost increases in 2020, but did nothing and did not inform the public.
The state government and the CSU rejected the criticism and made the railways responsible: They now have to provide reliable figures, said Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter (CSU). “The facts must finally be on the table. We need clarity and transparency.”
Most recently, the news caused a stir that the Bavarian Ministry of Transport assumes that the costs for the construction of the second S-Bahn tube in Munich will increase from 3.85 to up to 7.2 billion euros. In addition, the opening of the central route through the city center could be delayed from 2028 to 2037. For its part, the railway has not yet published any new figures or details. According to Bernreiter, this could last until the Deutsche Bahn supervisory board meeting in mid-September.
The debate was marked by many mutual heckling. At the beginning, the SPD had tried to have Söder summoned to the plenary session by means of a procedural motion – which the coalition rejected with its majority. The heated debate between the coalition and the opposition had to be briefly interrupted for the Council of Elders to deliberate.
