Done: Deutsche Bahn has successfully driven all the tunnels for Stuttgart 21 in the basin of the state capital. In total, the miners have dug around 51 kilometers of tunnel. This marks another important milestone in the Stuttgart-Ulm rail project on the way to commissioning. From December 2025, travel times for long-distance and regional services will be significantly reduced; thanks to the new line to Ulm and the expansion of the Stuttgart rail hub, travelers throughout Germany will benefit from significantly more and more punctual trains. The completion of tunnel driving was celebrated today by high-ranking representatives of Deutsche Bahn, federal and state politicians, the European Commission and the construction industry, together with other guests of honor.

"Exactly 51,093.2 meters of tunneling under difficult logistical conditions in a major city - that is an outstanding achievement. Behind it is a lot of mental work, sweat and courage. For this, the tunnel builders deserve our thanks. The completion of this work in the Stuttgart basin shows once again: Stuttgart 21 is making recognizable progress," said Berthold Huber,
DB Infrastructure Board Member.

"The Stuttgart 21 project and the new Wendlingen-Ulm line will make the region's rail infrastructure fit for the 21st century. We are increasing the performance of the line and thus enabling more mobility with fewer emissions and less noise. Thanks to the significantly shorter travel times, we are creating an attractive offer and thus a strong incentive to choose rail travel," said Michael Theurer, Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Digital Affairs and Transport and Federal Government Commissioner for Rail Transport.

"The completion of the Stuttgart 21 tunnel drive is a new milestone for the trans-European transport network! The linking of local, regional and Europe-wide long-distance connections is moving ever closer. With over one billion euros in support from the European Commission for the overall Stuttgart-Ulm project, Europe is fully behind this project of the century in Baden-Württemberg. I am already looking forward to the new connections, from Brussels to Stuttgart to Munich, from Paris to Vienna, from the North Sea ports to the Black Sea," said Herald Ruijters, Director of Investment, Innovative and Sustainable Transport at the European Commission.

"We are delighted with the progress made in realizing S21 and the upcoming commissioning of the new Wendlingen-Ulm line in December. At the same time, we are working flat out to push ahead with the further improvements to the Stuttgart rail hub jointly agreed by Deutsche Bahn, the state capital Stuttgart, the region and the state in the S21 Steering Committee in July. These include the Pfaffensteig Tunnel as part of the expansion of the Gaeubahn, the implementation of the P option as part of the new northern approach to Stuttgart, and the preservation of the Panoramabahn to downtown Stuttgart. I am also looking forward with great expectation to the year 2025 and the commissioning of the new main station promised by DB," said Berthold Frieß, Ministerial Director in the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Transport.

"The completion of the last tunnel in the basin also means light at the end of the Stuttgart 21 tunnel. Another ray of hope should be the commissioning of the new Wendlingen-Ulm line in a few weeks' time as a very important part of the rail project," said Dr. Frank Nopper, Lord Mayor of the state capital Stuttgart

"Intelligent construction connects people - also in the Stuttgart basin. Once the overall Stuttgart-Ulm project is completed, the high-speed network will connect cities and regions with around 34 million inhabitants and 16 million jobs. We are therefore particularly pleased to have now reached an important milestone: Tunneling in the basin has been completed, and all tunnel tubes at the future main station have been finished. Work on this superlative project is progressing thanks to highly motivated teams," said Karl-Heinz Strauss, CEO of the PORR Group.

The tunnels of Stuttgart 21

As part of the project, seven tunnels were dug in the Stuttgart basin, most of which consist of two tubes:
Tunnel Bad Cannstatt

• Tunnel Feuerbach
• Filder Tunnel
• Tunnel Obertürkheim
• S-Bahn tunnel between Mittnachtstraße stop and Hauptbahnhof S-Bahn station
• Rosenstein urban rail tunnel
• Tunnel Untertürkheimer Curve
  All these tunnels have been driven completely. In addition, the rails are already in place in several tunnels: The symbolic start of construction for the Stuttgart 21 tunnels was on December 4, 2013, in the Obertürkheim tunnel. The tunnels were dug using both a large tunnel boring machine and the so-called conventional construction method, i.e. excavators, blasting and chisels. At times, more than one kilometer of tunnel was driven per month. Tunnel driving work is still ongoing at the airport, where only a few hundred meters of a total of 4.4 kilometers are still missing.