Joe Bauer, Annette Ohme-Reinicke "Stuttgart 21 – Aus Gräbern lernen"

The Stuttgart 21 train station project, which has been under construction since 2010, has now become a money pit. The announced construction costs of four billion have officially risen to 14.5—so far. Experts from civil society accused the planners of megalomania very early on and predicted that the project would be unfeasible and cost 20 billion euros. When S 21 will be completed isn’t even written in the stars. Stuttgart 21 is a lucrative real estate project on track bed areas set to be freed up. It sparked one of the broadest and most original protest movements in Germany in recent decades. These protests brought an end to the bleak years of neoliberal conformity. The fact that efforts to stop the construction failed was also due to the successful “strategic communication” of its proponents. The mantra was that it was all about “progress,” “the future,” and the state’s ability to act. We ask what lessons can be learned from the protests and how the hubris and economic madness of those in power can be successfully countered.

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As part of: What Does Our Gas Cost?