“Railway work is a team sport”
In Cottbus, Deutsche Bahn and the university are jointly training specialists in rail infrastructure – a prime example of collaboration in the face of structural change.
Representatives of Deutsche Bahn, BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg and the Federal Railway Authority met at the DB Stage to present their new cooperation in educating rail infrastructure professionals. Photo: Messe Berlin
For decades, the Lusatia region in eastern Germany relied on coal mining and coal-fired power stations. Now the region is facing a massive structural transformation: following the German government’s decision that Germany should phase out lignite by 2038, Lusatia is receiving billions in funding to help it reinvent itself as an economic region.
The ambitions are grand: Lusatia has set itself the goal of becoming Europe’s first ‘Net Zero Valley’ – a model region for environmentally friendly technologies.
This represents not only a technological 180-degree turnaround from a fossil fuel hub to a hotbed of innovation. The sparsely populated and economically disadvantaged region must also attract many specialised skilled workers – including for the rail infrastructure. This is because rail transport is regarded as a crucial factor in this structural transformation.
Dual study programme with teachers from the field
There was therefore great excitement at InnoTrans 2026 when it was announced on Deutsche Bahn’s forum stage that the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg (BTU) was expanding its civil engineering degree programme to include a new specialisation: from now on, students there can specialise in rail infrastructure as part of a dual study programme.
The university is developing the course content in collaboration with Deutsche Bahn and the Federal Railway Authority (EBA). To begin with, four compulsory-elective modules are available, for which Deutsche Bahn is also providing lecturers with practical industry experience.
It is remarkable that the university, the railway company, politicians and the administration have jointly reached this agreement, and that both Deutsche Bahn and other companies are providing so many lecturers, said Prof. Dr Gesine Grande, President of BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, the only technical university in the state of Brandenburg.
In the negotiations between academia and industry, she explained, two worlds had come together; over the course of two years, they had drawn closer with patience and respect and learnt a great deal from one another. The result, she said, was “an absolute win-win situation”.
Minister-President Woidke: Learning from Cottbus how to pick up the pace
“Cottbus is a very good example of how we can make faster progress with rail projects in future,” said Brandenburg’s Minister-President Dietmar Woidke.
Even the new Halle 2 rail maintenance depot took just 600 days from the start of the project to the first maintenance of an ICE. These projects demonstrate that high-quality schemes can be implemented quickly – on one condition: “You can only achieve this if you work together.”
In Brandenburg, “we did it through a task force”, characterised by an open approach, a shared focus on objectives and problem-solving. In February 2027, the railway’s largest maintenance depot in Germany – Halls 2 and 1 – is set to become operational in Cottbus. Up to 1,200 jobs are expected to be created there.
“Railways are a team sport,” said Martin Seiler, Member of the Executive Board for Human Resources and Legal Affairs at Deutsche Bahn AG. Cottbus has a railway tradition that is now being revived. At the same time, the BTU has a very international profile, which brings Deutsche Bahn into contact with young people “whom we can integrate and develop well here”.
Cottbus is therefore a prime example for other sectors and regions as well.
Martin Seiler (right), Chief Human Resources and Legal Officer at Deutsche Bahn AG, in conversation with Brandenburg’s Minister-President Dietmar Woidke (left) at InnoTrans. Photo: Messe Berlin
Representatives from the rail sector, academia and public administration discussed the education of future rail infrastructure professionals at the DB Stage. Photo: Messe Berlin