Chemnitz model
Current
Start of construction for the city centre ring road imminent
Information event on 28 January
On 2 February 2026, one of the largest infrastructure projects in Chemnitz's recent history will get underway: construction of the Chemnitz rail ring will begin at Falkeplatz and Mühlenstraße. It is also the first section of the future railway line to Limbach-Oberfrohna (Chemnitz Model Stage 4 - CM 4 for short). The VMS and its partners, Chemnitz City Council and CVAG, are responsible for the construction.
Detailed information on the construction process will be available to all interested parties on 28 January 2026 at the Carlowitz Congress Centre. VMS, the City of Chemnitz and CVAG are inviting you to the big "CM 4 Bahnring citizens' information event" between 5 p.m. and around 7 p.m.
While the first few weeks of February will be used to set up the construction site and carry out preparatory work on Falkeplatz, construction work on Mühlenstraße will start at the beginning of February with a full road closure. Mathias Korda: "The entire construction work will be carried out with the aim of minimising restrictions for road users, residents and businesses."
The first section of the railway ring will be completed by the end of 2027: it is located between the Brücken-/Mühlen-/Theaterstraße junction and the Kaßberg slip road. The construction of Falkeplatz will continue until 2028.
Level 4
Facts and figures
Facts about the CM4
Facts about the CM4
- The costs for the entire railway line to Limbach-Oberfrohna are in the mid three-digit million range.
- 75 per cent is being provided by the federal government, 15 per cent by the Free State of Saxony and 5 per cent each by the City of Chemnitz and the Central Saxony Transport Association (ZVMS).
- It is a coordinated construction project with eins Energie in Sachsen, the waste disposal company of the city of Chemnitz (ESC) and the city of Chemnitz.
- The Chemnitz railway ring with the route to the Ermafa Passage is expected to be completed in 2030.
- Planning for the route via Leipziger Straße to Chemnitz Centre and on to Limbach-Oberfrohna has been underway since the beginning of 2025.
- The railway line (16 kilometres) is scheduled for completion in the mid-2030s.
- The first step will be to close the centre ring around Chemnitz city centre. The railway tracks can be extended to Konkordiapark and six new stops will be built.
Planning permission granted for stage 4 - votes on the decision
On 22 December 2025, the State Directorate of Saxony issued the planning approval decision for planning approval section 1 of the Chemnitz Model Stage 4, Chemnitz <> Limbach-Oberfrohna expansion.
Further information
This means that the expansion in the centre of Chemnitz can now begin and this future-oriented project can be implemented in concrete terms. The Chemnitz model stands for modern and sustainable mobility that directly connects the city and the surrounding area. By linking the tram and railway networks, it is one of the few projects of its kind in Germany and a real flagship for the region. The expansion of the fourth stage is another major step towards strengthening local public transport, creating new connections and making Chemnitz fit for the future.
With the construction, the VMS and its partners, Chemnitz City Council and Chemnitzer Verkehrs-AG, are setting the course for a significant upgrade of public transport in Chemnitz and the region.
First eCitylink arrived
Deployment planned from 2027
The first double-electric Citylink (eCitylink) of the new generation has arrived in Chemnitz. Coupled in a convoy with accompanying vehicles, it rolled into Chemnitz main station on 16 December 2025. The entire series of 19 eCitylinks is being built in Valencia (Spain) at the Stadler plant there. At the beginning of the month, the first train produced was transported from Spain by ship across the English Channel to Antwerp (Belgium), and from there to Chemnitz.
moreConnecting what belongs together - the Chemnitz model
One project of the Verkehrsverbund Mittelsachsen (VMS) has an almost rarity value: the "Chemnitz model", the creation of a transfer-free connection between the regional railway network and the inner-city tram network of Chemnitz.
On the trail of the region
By linking tram and rail tracks, the Chemnitz model offers transfer-free connections between the regional centre of Chemnitz and the surrounding area. It is also a link between bus and rail transport with the aim of bundling traffic flows on the efficient railway line. As the railway cannot stop everywhere, bus stops in the immediate vicinity of the railway stations offer short transfer routes to the regional bus lines.
Central Saxony transport association
The area covered by the Central Saxony Transport Association (VMS) includes the independent city of Chemnitz, the districts of Erzgebirgskreis and Zwickau as well as parts of the district of Central Saxony (former districts of Freiberg and Mittweida).
The common goal is to create a transport association with an integrated local road and rail transport service in the Central Saxony region.
more
Five expansion stages
The pilot project of the Chemnitz model, the Chemnitz - Stollberg route, has been demonstrating since 2002 how the surrounding area can be quickly and conveniently connected to the Chemnitz regional centre. The aim is to create a sustainable transport concept for the entire Chemnitz area. The so-called 2020 target network will consist of 226 kilometres of railway and tram tracks.