Overview
- Police staff representatives and the police union published photos and claims Wednesday alleging moth infestations, dead rats, crumbling walls and exposed wiring at the Friedrichstraße station that serves Kreuzberg hotspot areas.
- Union officials said work hazards surfaced during construction, including cables taped to walls and dangerous minerals uncovered, and they argued the building should be closed for health reasons.
- Operational problems they listed include a nine-month wait for a safety-certified pane that keeps guard rooms closed, a key escape route that was allegedly bricked over, and too few parking spaces for patrol cars.
- The agency replied that the site is in an evaluated pilot refurbishment on its “last meters,” said safety checks have been followed and some cables are not live, and criticized the public release as a skandalization.
- Officers were told to paint walls themselves after contractors could not be found, a step made easier by a 2025 change that let local stations handle small repairs with limited funds, while the union links the dispute to a wider €2.5 billion maintenance backlog with no outside inspection or closure announced.