Germany's Cologne Central Station to close to train traffic

Cologne will be almost completely cut off from rail traffic on Friday night due to construction work, the network operator Deutsche Bahn said on Friday.

Cologne's main railway station and the Köln-Messe/Deutz station will be closed to all trains from 9 pm (1900 GMT) on Friday evening until 5 am the following morning.

S-Bahn local trains will also be affected, the operator said. Extensive replacement bus services will be organized.

"We advise against non-urgent journeys to and from Cologne that night," Deutsche Bahn said.

The reason for the closure is construction work for new electronic signal boxes. As a result, travellers have since Monday had to put up with restrictions on long-distance services, which are expected to last until Sunday.

Many high-speed InterCity Express (ICE) trains will not stop at Cologne Central Station. ICE trains from northern Germany, for example, will mostly terminate in Dusseldorf. ICE trains to or from Brussels will stop in Cologne-Ehrenfeld.