This weekend sees a return of the Blockupy demonstrators to Frankfurt and as a result there will be changes to public transport services in the city centre.

From Thursday, 30th May 2am until Sunday, 2nd June, at 4am, the U-Bahn station “Willy-Brandt-Platz” will be closed.  The lines U1 to U5 and U8 will travel through without stopping.  The U5 will be running later into the night to ease changes at other stops.

Trams will not be running through the Altstadt.  Lines 11 and 12 will not run between Börneplatz and Hauptbahnhof.  The Ebbelwei-Expreß will not be running on Fronleichnam or on Saturday, and on Sunday will travel in both directions via Sachsenhausen. (more…)

Last Sunday was a day that I had been looking forward to for a long time.  I first discovered the “Zentralwerkstatt” – the central maintenance depot – in Frankfurt some years ago by chance.

I was curious as to where the lines went past the end of the last U-Bahn station, as they followed the road and suddenly disappeared behind a set of iron gates. Google Maps provided the answer – behind those gates lies the depot where the trams and the U-Bahn trains go in Frankfurt when they need servicing or repairing.  There is even a 800m long running track to test them on.

So when I read about an open day I grabbed the chance to visit the site and take a look around.

The end of the U5-50 train over a maintenance pit

On what was one of the hottest days of the summer so far, the grounds had been turned into a mixture of trains and their components to see and a childrens’ playground with refreshments. (more…)

Now that summer has finally arrived in Frankfurt, here are some ideas of things to do on a sunny day:

1. Visit the zoo.  The U-Bahn lines U6 and U7, tram line 14 and bus nr. 31 all stop there.

2. Take a ride on an open-top bus around the city centre.

3. Visit the Palm Garden and see the tropical and sub-tropical plants or take a ride on the Palmen-Express.

4. Spend a day at the Museumsuferfest (Museum Embankment Festival), 24th-26th August 2012. (more…)