U55 (Berlin U-Bahn)

U55 is an U-Bahn line in the German capital city of Berlin. It connects the new Berlin Hauptbahnhof, or main railway station, to an interchange with the S-Bahn at Brandenburger Tor. Currently, it has only three stations, does not connect to any other U-Bahn line, and is operated as a shuttle line using a single train.

The line is the newest U-Bahn line, and was constructed as part of an extension of the U5 that was subsequently postponed due to financial difficulties. As much of the work on this disconnected section of the extension had been completed, it was decided to complete the section and open it as a separate line. The line was opened in 2009, and work is now under way on the missing section needed to unite it with U5.

The unusual nature of U55 reflects Berlin's troubled finances. When the German government decided to move from Bonn to Berlin under the Chancellor of West Germany Helmut Kohl, who also announced the reunification of Germany on 3 October 1990, it was decided to refurbish the area around the Bundestag into a modern government complex. As part of this effort, there were plans to extend the U5 from its current western terminus at Alexanderplatz through the city centre, past the Brandenburg Gate and the Bundestag, to the new central train station, Berlin Hauptbahnhof. This Kanzlerlinie (Chancellor Line), so nicknamed because it passed through the government quarter, was originally planned since the 200km plan as a diagonal line through central Berlin, continuing to Turmstraße in Moabit, where it would link with the U9, and on to Jungfernheide, where it would connect with the S-Bahn ring and U7. Beyond the S-Bahn ring, the line might continue to Berlin Tegel Airport or—if the airport is closed as planned—to the new neighbourhoods to be built in its place, Scharnweberstraße and Rathaus Reinckendorf. As this was a long-planned route, short tunnels exist at both Jungfernheide and Turmstraße to accommodate the new line. However, these plans were cut back for financial reasons before construction began. For now, the line is only approved to terminate at the Hauptbahnhof, with the route to Jungfernheide and beyond to be built later.

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