Brunswick (German: Braunschweig) and Magdeburg had already been connected with a railway line via Wolfenbüttel, Jerxheim and Oschersleben in 1843.

As traffic increased, the MHE sought from the early 1860s to build a direct Berlin-Hanover line.

After Hanover lost the war of 1866, and were annexed by Prussia, the MHE set about building its Berlin-Lehrte line via Stendal.

Since the line passed through relatively undemanding terrain and has no large structures, it was only impassable for a few days during and after World War II.

The allies decided to use this line exclusively for the military transport of the Western powers in Berlin.

East Germany preferred the Lehrte line, to keep transit traffic out of Potsdam and Magdeburg.

Under the German Unity Transport Projects, it was decided to restore as quickly as possible the existing routes and to electrify lines that were intended primarily for freight later.

Since then, the hourly ICE trains between Frankfurt and Berlin run on the line only on the 5 km section between Brunswick and the junction with the Weddel loop.

Intercity passenger trains on the line Leipzig-Magdeburg-Hanover-Cologne/Oldenburg serve the line approximately hourly, provided by the IC 55 Dresden – Leipzig – Magdeburg – Hannover – Dortmund – Cologne and the IC 56 Leipzig – Magdeburg – Hannover – Bremen – Oldenburg, each running every two hours.

It is part of an electrified corridor connecting the Czech Republic and the industrial regions of Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt with the German and Dutch seaports on the North Sea.