Trains in the Kaiserslautern region may be canceled or delayed due to illness rates among employees, German railway operator Deutsche Bahn said. Additionally, one of the busiest regional rail lines, between Frankfurt and Mannheim, is set to close completely for five months. (Uli Planz/Deutsche Bahn)

Kaiserslautern travelers using connections through Mannheim toward Frankfurt Airport and other destinations should plan for significant changes as one of Germany’s busiest railway lines, the 45-mile stretch between Frankfurt and Mannheim, will be closed for five months.

Deutsche Bahn is initiating a comprehensive overhaul of the tracks, stations and infrastructure, aiming to improve the notoriously disruption-prone network, the railway said. The route will remain closed until December 14.

Additionally, Deutsche Bahn has announced reductions in regional train services within the Saarland and parts of Rheinland-Pfalz due to high employee sick rates and the summer vacation period.

From July 15 to Aug. 25, RB 82 (Trier – Perl) will see reduced service with bus replacements, and RB 77 (Dillingen – Niedaltdorf) will be entirely replaced by bus services. Starting July 29, RB 70 (Merzig – Saarbrücken – Homburg – Kaiserslautern) will operate only between Saarbrücken and Kaiserslautern on weekdays, with partial bus replacements.

The busy regional express RE1 (Koblenz – Trier – Saarbrücken – Kaiserslautern – Mannheim) and S-Bahn S1 (Homburg – Kaiserslautern) line may see curtailed trains, making for more cramped passenger cabins, but are expected to remain on schedule, officials said.

Travelers are advised to check updated schedules via electronic platforms such as the DB Navigator app or bahn.de.