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Berlin Transit System

I grew up in Chicago so I'm familiar with large transit systems.

I've been studying the Berlin transit system. The trip planner on bvg.de and vbb.de appear to be very helpful.

I know what Trams and Buses are but what I'm not clear on is the difference between U-Bahn and S-Bahn. Are they both underground subway systems? Also what is a red diamond symbol with the word Bahn inside the diamond? AND, sometimes this symbol has a red rectangle directly under it with the word FLEX inside it.

So far I have not found a legend that explains the symbols. Any help in understanding the differences would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Tom

Posted by
3950 posts

Think of S for surface and U for underground as that is the way they usually function. The Flex I know is a type of ticket, 8 rides within 30 days with a duration of 24h per activation of each ticket.

Posted by
2302 posts

The Blue designates U-Bahn Stations - U-Bahn routes travel mostly underground

The Green designates S-Bahn Stations - S-Bahn routes travel mostly above ground

The Red designates DB Regional train routes
.
A purchased ticket is good for riding on all 3 components in ALL three Zones shown on this system map

https://sbahn.berlin/fileadmin/user_upload/Liniennetz/S_U-Bahn-Liniennetz.pdf

Remember to ALWAYS validate your individual ride tickets before boarding - fines are steep, if caught.

Zone A tickets are for Zone A only
Zone A B tickets are good for both zones
Zone A B C tickets are good for all three zones
.
Did you mean FEX, as in Flughafen-Express (Airport Express)?

Posted by
19092 posts

I think of the U-Bahn as being like the subway system in NYC, and the S-Bahn as being like the Long Island Railroad. Both are underground in the city, but the S-Bahn goes above ground outside the central area and goes far out into the suburbs.

Another think=g, the S-Bahn is run by the Bahn (German Rail) and is in the same class as other regional trains. The U-Bahn are run by local metro rail companies.

German Rail passes include the S-Bahn but not the U-Bahn.

Posted by
6498 posts

As suggested above, the S-Bahn makes fewer stops in the central part of Berlin but goes farther out. If you'll be there several days, you might consider a multi-day pass. My 7-day pass got me everywhere.

One thing I liked about the Berlin system is no turnstiles. Buy your ticket from a machine and just get on. You may encounter an inspector who checks everyone for tickets when the train is underway. Not having one equals a big fine.

Posted by
14507 posts

You could think of the two systems as one of them going laterally, ie from west to east, ie to eastern most districts of Berlin, eg, to Karlshorst or Ahrensfelde from Charlottenburg.