Hanover S-Bahn — Map, Lines, Route, Hours, Tickets

The S-Bahn is the metro system in Hannover, Germany, operated by the Greater Hannover Transport Authority (GVH). This metro system was officially launched on 1 June 2000 and consists of 8 lines with 74 stations. The S-Bahn ensures seamless integration with all other GVH rail and bus services, including the Stadtbahn. The underground provides a direct link to Hannover Airport and operates daily from around 4:00am to 1:00am on weekdays. Payment methods for underground services include tickets and cards, with prices starting from €1.5. An additional ticket is required for passengers travelling with dogs. Bicycles are allowed at certain times and all trains are accessible to people with disabilities. Plans have been announced to build a new station at Hildesheimer Strasse in 2020. The S-Bahn provides easy access to local attractions such as the Herrenhausen Gardens.

The Hannover Metro, also known as the S-Bahn, operates in Germany. There are no specific figures for daily passenger numbers. The metro does not operate 24 hours a day and does not use driverless trains. Air conditioning is not available.

Passengers are allowed to walk between platforms and the system does not have platform screen doors. Fares range from €2.60 to €4.30 and the ticketing system is based on the principle of honour.

Metro Map of Hanover

Map of Hanover Metro showing different lines. Click on the map to enlarge it or download the Hanover Metro map in PDF format.

About Hanover, Germany

Hannover is the capital of Lower Saxony, Germany, with a population of around 500,000, making it the most populous city in the region. It is known for being home to some of the country’s top universities, particularly those specialising in medicine. Hannover is also known for its record-breaking number of trade fairs, including the renowned CeBIT computer fair.

The city has an extensive bus network and a light rail system known as the Stadtbahn, which is a combination of trams and some underground lines. Hanover has dedicated cycle lanes on its streets, and bicycles are allowed on buses and trains. The city’s main railway station, known as the Hauptbahnhof, is home to a variety of trains, including the ICE (Intercity Express) and the Hannover Metro, also known as the S-Bahn, which is the focus of this article. The Hannover Metro is part of the GVH, which also operates buses and trams.

A Glimpse into History

Plans to modernise Hannover’s railway system emerged in the 1960s. Trams were introduced to the city in 1965, and plans for a metro were originally scheduled for after the year 2000. However, after Hannover was chosen to host the EXPO 2000 World Fair in 1990, the construction of the metro was rescheduled to be completed in 2000, in time for the fair. On 12 November 1990, an agreement was signed between the city of Hanover and several railway companies to improve rail services.

Construction of the metro began in 1993 with the construction of the Hannover-Karl-Wiechert-Allee station, which opened in 1999. Further underground lines were built in 1994, with stations at Wunstorf and Seelze, which opened to the public in 1997. This was followed by the construction of Hannover-Nordstadt and Hannover-Ledeburg stations, which replaced other stations. In 1995, the metro was extended to Hannover Airport. Shortly before the start of EXPO 2000, the Ahlten and Lehrte stations were opened. For EXPO 2000, the metro was adapted to ensure easy access for people with disabilities. The official opening of the metro coincided with EXPO 2000, on 1 June 2000. After the expo, the metro continued to expand, replacing stations of other rail services such as the Regionalbahn. The latest expansion of the metro took place on 14 December 2008, with the opening of stations in Hildesheim and Celle.

Lines and Stations

The S-Bahn network consists of 8 lines, namely S1, S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7 and S8, and has 74 stations. Hauptbahnhof, located in Zone 1, serves as the central station where all 8 lines intersect. This central station is located between Hannover-Nordstadt in Hannover Bismarckstrasse, before Hannover Kleefeld and before Hannover Karl-Wiechert-Allee. The specific stations served by each line are as follows:

Linie S1: Diese Linie hat 27 Stationen, darunter Minden, Kirchhorsten, Bückenburg, Lindhorst, Stadthagen, Dedensen-Gümmer, Wunstorf, Letter, Seelze, Hannover Nordstadt, Hannover Leinhausen, Hannover-Bismarckstraße, Hannover Hbf, Empelde, Hannover-Bornum, Hannover-Linden/Fischerhof, Weetzen, Ronnenberg, Egestorf, Wennigsen, Lemmie, Kirchdorf, Winninghausen, Bantorf, Bad Nenndorf, Barsinghausen, Haste (Han).
Linie S2: Sie hat 29 Stationen, darunter Nienburg, Hagen (Han), Linsburg, Neustadt am Rübenberge, Eilvese, Dedensen-Gümmer, Roggenhagen, Wunstorf, Hannover-Leinhausen, Letter, Seelze, Hannover Hbf, Empelde, Hannover Bismarckstraße, Hannover-Bornum, Hannover-Linden/Fischerhof, Ronnenberg, Wennigsen, Lemmie, Weetzen, Kirchdorf, Bantorf, Barsinghausen, Egestorf, Bad Nenndorf, Winninghausen, Haste (Han).
Linie S3: Diese Linie bedient 10 Stationen, nämlich Hannover Hauptbahnhof, Ahlten, Lehrte, Hannover Karl-Wiechert-Allee, Harsum, Hannover-Anderten-Misburg, Hannover-Kleefeld, Sehnde, Algermissen, Hildesheim Hauptbahnhof.
Linie S4: Sie bedient 17 Stationen, darunter Bennemühlen, Bissendorf, Langenhagen-Kaltenweide, Mellendorf, Langenhagen Mitte, Rheten, Hannover-Ledeburg, Langenhagen Pferdemarkt, Hannover Hbf, Hannover-Vinnhorst, Sarstedt, Hannover-Nordstadt, Hannover Bismarckstraße, Emmerke, Hannover Messe/Laatzen, Barnten, Hildesheim Hbf.
Linie S5: Sie hat 23 Stationen, nämlich Langenhagen Pferdemarkt, Hannover Flughafen, Hannover Nordstadt, Langenhagen Mitte, Hannover Hauptbahnhof, Weetzen, Hannover-Vinnhorst, Bennigsen, Hannover-Ledeburg, Springe, Hannover Bismarckstraße, Hameln, Hannover-Linden/Fischerhof, Bad Münder, Lügde, Holtensen/Linderte, Steinheim, Völksen/Eldagsen, Schieder, Bad Pyrmont, Emmerthal, Paderborn Hauptbahnhof, Altenbeken.
Linie S6: Sie bedient 7 Stationen, darunter Celle, Aligse, Otze, Hannover Karl-Wiechert-Allee, Burgdorf, Ehlershausen, Hannover Hbf.
Linie S7: Sie bedient 11 Stationen, nämlich Hannover Karl-Wiechert-Allee, Hannover Hbf, Ahlten, Burgdorf, Otze, Lehrte, Ehlershausen, Hannover-Anderten-Misburg, Hannover-Kleefeld, Celle, Aligse.
Linie S8: Diese Linie bedient sechs Stationen, darunter Hannover-Nordstadt, Hannover Flughafen, Hannover Hauptbahnhof, Hannover Bismarckstraße, Hannover Messe/Laatzen, Langenhagen Mitte.

Airport Connectivity

The S-Bahn provides a direct link to the airport. Trains departing from the airport go to the central station, Hauptbahnhof. The metro runs twice an hour from the airport to the main station. The journey costs €3 and takes approximately 18 minutes. Metro services at the airport are available from 4:00am to 1:30am. A two-zone ticket is required to travel from the airport to the city centre. Taxis are available when the metro is not operating.

Schedules, Timetables, and Calendar

The metro operates daily, including holidays. Below are the opening and closing times for each line from Monday to Friday:

S1: Begins operations at Haste station at 4:37 am, and concludes at Minden (Westf) at 1:23 am.
S2: Starts at Hannover Hbf at 4:58 am, and ends at Nienburg (Weser) at 12:46 am.
S3: Commences at Hildesheim Hbf at 4:43 am, and wraps up at Hannover Hbf at 12:24 am.
S4: Opens at Hildesheim Hbf at 12:03 am, and concludes at Hannover Hbf at 11:38 pm.
S5: Begins at Hannover Hbf at 12:35 am, and ends at Hannover Flughafen at 1:23 am.
S6: Starts at Celle at 5:40 am, and closes at Hannover Hbf at 10:15 pm.
S7: Opens at Celle at 4:08 am, and ends at Hannover Hbf at 11:55 pm.
S8: Begins operations at Hannover Flughafen at 4:40 am, and concludes at Hannover Messe/Laatzen at 11:50 pm.

Tickets, Cards, and Pricing

Tickets and cards can be purchased. Prices are zone-specific and are indicated by two colours: red and blue. Red indicates prices for tickets valid for one day, while blue indicates prices for tickets valid for more than one day. Red-priced tickets allow travel in three zones: Hannover (city region), Umland (towns and communities around Hannover) and Region (rural areas). Blue tickets allow travel in four zones: Hannover 1 and Hannover 2 (within the city of Hannover), Umland and Region.

Tickets

Tickets are categorised into: Single Journey, Day Tickets, Combined Tickets and Special Offers.

1) Single Journeys:

1.1) Short Trip Ticket (€1.5): Permits rides for up to three stops.
1.2) Single Ticket: Valid for rides for up to two hours. It costs €2.6 for one zone, €3.4 for two zones, and €4.3 for three zones.
1.3) Single Ticket for Children Aged 6-14 (€1.3): Intended for children between the ages of six and 14 years.
1.4) Carnet Tickets: Bundle of tickets. It costs €14.3 for one zone (bundle of six tickets,) €17.9 for two zones (bundle of six tickets,) and €15.3 for three zones (bundle of four tickets).

2) Day Tickets:

2.1) Day Ticket for One Person: Offers unlimited rides until 5:00 am of the following day. It costs €5.2 for one zone, €6.8 for two zones, and €8.4 for three zones.
2.2) Day Ticket for Groups up to Five People (€10): Accommodates rides for up to five people.
2.3) Day Ticket for Children Aged 6-14 (€2.6): Provides rides to children aged between six and 14 years.
2.4) Day Ticket S: Specially designed for people on welfare, unemployed individuals, and pensioners. It costs €2.6 for one zone, €3.4 for two zones, and €4.2 for three zones.
2.5) Day Ticket S for Children (€1.30): For children between six and 14 years of age from families on welfare.

3) Combined Tickets:

3.1) Combined Ticket: Event tickets such as those for concerts, with the metro’s fare already included. Valid from three hours before the event, until 5:00 am of the following day.
3.2) Car Workshop Ticket: Provides rides to individuals whose cars are under repair. Some car workshops offer it. The repair forms from the workshops should feature the GVH logo to offer this ticket. Valid until your car is repaired, up to four days. The ticket’s fare is incorporated into the repair costs.
3.3) Hotel Ticket: Provides rides to individuals who have checked into hotels. The ticket’s fare is included in the hotel’s costs.

4) Further Offers:

4.1) City Ticket: This is included in the BahnCard. The price of the ticket is included in the BahnCard.
4.2) City Mobile: These are tickets from the Deutsche Bahn train.
4.3) Lower Saxony Ticket: This ticket grants rides to all the cities in the state of Lower Saxony. Prices vary.
4.4) Hannover Card: Available for single customers or groups of people. For single individuals, it costs €9.5 for one day, €15 for two days, and €18 for three days. For groups of people, it costs €20 for one day, €27 for two days, and €35 for three days.
4.5) Weekend Special Ticket: These are Deutsche Bahn tickets that grant rides only on weekends. Prices vary.
4.6) Interconnected Mobility Lower Saxony Tariff: It costs €5.2 for one zone and one person, and €2.6 for children.

Cards:

Cards are divided into several categories catering to different user groups:

1) Adults: These are available to individuals who purchase the GVH-Mobile Card. Options are available for rides on economy class and first class. They include the following cards: GVH Mobile Card (€60.6 to €107.4), GVH Mobile Card First Class (€97 to €171.8), GVH Mobile Card as an Annual Subscription (€51.5 to €91.3), GVH Mobile Card First Class as an Annual Subscription (€82.4 €146.1), GVH Mobile Card as a Six-Month Subscription (€56.1 to €99.3), GVH Mobile Card First Class as a Six-Month Subscription (€89.7 to €159), GVH Mobile Card in the Regional Tariff (€60.6 to €195.4), GVH Mobile Card First Class in the Regional Tariff (€97 to €312.6), GVH Mobile Card in the Regional Tariff as a Subscription (€51.5 to €166.1), GVH Mobile Card First Class in the Regional Tariff as a Subscription (€82.4 to €265.7).
2) Pupils and Youths: Cards designed for students in elementary and secondary school. They include: School Card (free,) Saving Card for Pupils (€28.9 to €51.4,) U 21 Card (€24,) U 21 Annual Card (€163).
3) Apprentices and Students: Cards for college students in Hanover. They include: GVH Mobile Card Education (€45.4 to €78.2,) GVH Weekly Card Education (€12.5 to €22.1,) GVH Mobile Card Education as an Annual Subscription (€38.6 to €66.5,) GVH Mobile Card Education in Regional Tariff (€45.4 to € 143,) GVH Weekly Card Education in Regional Tariff (€12.5 to €39.9,) GVH Mobile Card in Regional Tariff as a Subscription (€38.6 to €121.6,) Semester Card (already included in the semester’s fees).
4) Generation 63 Plus: For individuals aged 63 years and older. They include: GVH Mobile Card 63 Plus (€48 to €77.8,) GVH Mobile Card 63 Plus as an Annual Subscription (€40.8 to €66.1,) GVH Mobile Card 63 Plus in Regional Tariff as an Annual Subscription (€40.8 to €117.9).
5) Major Customers and Companies: For employees of small businesses and corporations. They include: GVH Mobile Card Education as a Corporate Subscription (€11 to €38.4,) GVH Mobile Card as a Corporate Subscription (€14.6 to €51.2,) GVH Mobile Card First Class as a Corporate Subscription (€47.5 to €81.9,) GVH Job Card (€39.1 to €135.1,) GVH Mobile Card as a Multiple Subscription (€45.3 to €84.4,) GVH Mobile Card First Class as a Multiple Subscription (€72.5 to €135.1,) and Congress Card (€9.6 to €24.6).
6) Social Tariff: Cards designed for individuals on welfare. The prices range from €35.1 to €62.3.

Rules

Passengers can take a maximum of three bicycles on the metro. However, bicycles are not allowed on the metro on weekdays before 8.30am or between 3pm and 7pm. At weekends, bicycles can be taken on board at any time.

Bicycles can be parked in metro stations at any time.

Metro customers can park their cars free of charge in one of the more than 5500 car parks in Metro stations. For assistance, each station is equipped with pillars with red emergency buttons and green information buttons. If you are unsure whether you are in an emergency, press the green button. If you witness a fire or are in an urgent situation, press the red emergency button to contact Metro staff.

Trains are equipped with green information buttons to communicate with the driver. Emergency telephones are also available on the Metro. Each train is also equipped with emergency brakes that can bring the train to a complete stop. These should only be used in a real emergency. For safety reasons, the train will only stop at a station to avoid a collision with another train.

You can contact Metro staff for assistance on the following telephone number +49 51127901020. If the metro is more than 20 minutes late, you can apply for compensation in the form of a free ride on another company’s train. A form must be filled in to request this compensation.

Future Expansions

There are plans to build a new station at Hildesheimer Strasse by 2024, which will connect with other modes of transport under the GVH. A new station at Braunschweiger Platz is also planned. Further lines will be built to extend the metro to the town of Laatzen. Other planned stations include Springe Deister, Seelze-Lohnde, Wustorf and Barsinghausen West.

The S4 line will be extended and equipped with electric rails. This extension will allow the construction of a new station at Adelheidsdorf.

Tips in Hanover Metro

Travellers staying in Hannover for just a few days may find the one-day tickets useful. These tickets cost €3.10 for up to 65 kilometres, or €5.70 for the entire city of Hannover.
You will need an extra ticket to take your dog with you. You can use a single ticket for children aged 6-14 (€1.3) for your dog.
Alternatively, you can use a day ticket for groups of up to five people (€10) and replace one person with your dog.
If you buy two single Metro tickets (€2.6 each) from the same zone and validate them at DB Region, you can travel first class on the DB Region train.
Tickets are available from ticket machines and bus drivers. If you get on a RegioBus bus, you can buy any of the metro tickets or cards.
There are 150 GVH service points in Hannover where you can buy any ticket or card, get timetables and maps. In addition, more than 500 shops sell tickets.
Remember to validate your ticket at a stamping machine before you travel. They are blue and easy to find.
Buying tickets with a credit or debit card is cheaper than using cash.

Fun Facts

Of the 74 stations, only 49 are in Hannover.
Most of the Metro’s platforms are at least 200 metres long, with the exception of those at Hannover-Hildesheim (170 metres), Sehnde (140 metres) and Celle (170 metres).
All stations are accessible, so that people with disabilities can board the trains without assistance.
There are lines that only run at peak times.
About 30 trains are named after their home station. All other trains have advertising on their sides.

Nearby Attractions

Many of the tourist attractions are close to the main railway station. However, some attractions are closer to the airport than to the Central Station. Therefore, we will use the Central Station as the reference point for most of the attractions and the airport as the reference point for the rest. To get to these attractions, follow these instructions:

Wilhelm Busch Museum: The journey takes 27 minutes and costs €2.60. From Hannover Central Station (Hauptbahnhof) on track 2, take a six-minute train on line S1 towards Minden, Bahnhof. Get off at Hannover Bahnhof Nordstadt on track 1. Then take bus 121 towards Hannover Haltenhoffstrasse for one minute. Get off at Hannover An der Strangriede. Walk 1.2 kilometres for 19 minutes to Georgengarten, 30167.
Hermann Löns Park: The journey takes 22 minutes and costs €2.60. From the main railway station, take the S1 for 10 minutes in the direction of Celle Bahnhof on track 14. Get off at Hannover Bf K.-Wiechert-Allee on track 2. Then take bus 124 towards Laatzen Uemer Straße for three minutes. Get off at Hannover Annastift. Walk 0.7 kilometres and you will reach the Hermann-Löns-Park in about 9 minutes.
Herrenhausen Gardens: The journey takes 19 minutes and costs €2.60. From Hannover Central Station, take the S1 towards Minden, Bahnhof on track 2 for six minutes. Get off at Hannover Bahnhof Leinhausen on platform 1. Walk 0.8km and you will reach the Herrenhausen Museum, 30419, in 13 minutes.
Lower Saxony State Museum: The journey takes 40 minutes and costs €2.60. From the airport, take the S5 towards Paderborn Hbf for 20 minutes. Get off at Hannover Bahnhof Nordstadt on platform 2. Take tram no. 6 in the direction of Messe/Ost (EXPO Plaza) for 9 minutes. Get off at Hannover/Aegidientorplatz. Walk 0.6 kilometres in the direction of Willy-Brandt-Allee 5, Am Maschpark, D-30169.
Sprengel Museum: The journey takes 45 minutes and costs €3.40. From the airport, take the S5 underground line to Paderborn Hbf for 20 minutes. Get off at Hannover Bahnhof Nordstadt on platform 2. Then take tram 6 in the direction of Messe/Ost (EXPO-Plaza) for 9 minutes. Get off at Hannover/Aegidientorplatz. Walk 0.9 kilometres to Kurt-Schwitters-Platz, 30169.