Escalator Outages at Berlin DB Station Spark Outrage

As of March 13, 35 of the 52 KONE escalators at Deutsche Bahn’s (DB) Berlin Central Station — one of Europe’s largest and newest interchanges that handles approximately 300,000 passengers daily — have been deemed defective and taken out of service, a situation sparking outrage from passengers, DB and city officials, Euro News is among outlets to report. Berlin Governing Mayor Kai Wegner “expects DB to rectify the problems with the escalators in Berlin as quickly as possible.” A DB spokesperson told the source specialists have been sent in from KONE headquarters in Finland, and spare parts have been ordered worldwide as DB and KONE technicians work to fix the units. The faulty escalators will suddenly stop, causing passengers to fall, one passenger said, adding that “barrier-free access to platforms should be guaranteed by functioning lifts” where escalators are out of order. It is unclear when the station will be back to normal operations.