“Unfortunately the tender for the construction project was not successful,” said a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn, explaining the delay. Companies applying for the contract did not have the necessary experience and qualifications for the project. “Therefore the tender had to be cancelled,” said the spokesperson. The new tender will be issued shortly.

The situation is different with the renovation of the station. The pedestrian underpass and entrance building were renovated and platforms and station roofs modernised. Three lifts mean there is now barrier-free access to the tracks. The final work is now pending, including to the platform roofs and the heritage-protected station concourse, said the spokeswoman. Here, the bannisters and lighting will be renewed, the mosaic restored and an automatic entrance door installed.

As reported, there were various problems with the renovation of the station. Work was due to begin at the end of 2014 and started in April 2015. According to initial plans, everything was to be completed by the end of 2016. However, the deadline was repeatedly postponed. For a long time, the company did not give any concrete reasons for this, but in July 2018 the talk was of old buildings. The station is also located on a very busy line offering few opportunities for closures.

Barrier-free access was also not available for a long time. The lifts were repeatedly out of order and Deutsche Bahn closed all three in April for safety reasons. The reason was defective emergency call modules. While the lifts to track 1 and the ticket hall were running again after a good two and a half weeks, the lift to track 3 remained out of service. Another cause of criticism was the announcement by the railway company that no toilets would be installed in the Bad Godesberg building despite the renovation work.

Original text: Ayla Jacob. Translation: kc