From the 1960s the station again became an important hub for long-distance services from Western Europe and Scandinavia to Southeastern Europe.
The well-known services of this period were the Vindobona (Berlin–Vienna), the Hungaria (Berlin–Budapest) and the Meridian (Malmö–Bar).

As part of the change in traction, trains hauled by electric locomotives reached Dresden from Freiberg for the first time in September 1966.
A good ten years later–on 24 September 1977–the final steam-hauled service departed the station towards Berlin as the Dresden Express.
Steam-hauled passenger trains were still seen running towards Upper Lusatia until the late 1980s.
Since the headroom in the western part of the station area was insufficient, the Hohe Brücke (bridge) had to be demolished to permit the electrification of the railway lines.

Within the city and the surrounding area, the Dresden S-Bahn has carried the majority of traffic to the station since 1973 and has operated as its central point.
In 1978, the Dresden Hauptbahnhof was heritage-listed.

On the night of 30 September and 1 October 1989, six so-called refugee trains were operated from Prague through Dresden station and the territory of the German Democratic Republic to West Germany.
Two hours before the news spread to the West German media about these trips, a few quick and resolute citizens managed to jump on a train during transit.
More East Germans were queuing in the West German embassy in Prague and so more trains were run.
Therefore, on the following days, more and more disgruntled citizens collected at the station, amounting to about 20,000 people on the night of 4 and 5 October, according to the police.
While the majority of the demonstrators and the security forces confronted each other that night in Lenin-Platz (now Wiener Platz), three of the expected trains from Prague passed on the southern tracks of the Hauptbahnhof but were hardly noticed.
Due to the critical situation in Dresden, five additional special trains were diverted via Vojtanov and Bad Brambach to Plauen.
Most demonstrators were peaceful, but there were also violent clashes between about 3,000 demonstrators and the Volkspolizei and property at the station was damaged.
In the following days, peaceful demonstrations took place in Lenin-Platz and the adjacent Prager Straße, resulting in the beginning of a dialogue on state power at the local level with the establishment of the Group of 20 (Gruppe der 20) on the evening  8 October.

With a combined 156 arrivals and departures of scheduled long-distance trains per day in the station in the summer 1989 timetable, it was the third most important node in the network of Deutsche Reichsbahn, after Berlin and Leipzig.
From the 1960s the station again became an important hub for long-distance services from Western Europe and Scandinavia to Southeastern Europe. The well-known services of this period were the Vindobona (Berlin–Vienna), the Hungaria (Berlin–Budapest) and the Meridian (Malmö–Bar).
As part of the change in traction, trains hauled by electric locomotives reached Dresden from Freiberg for the first time in September 1966. A good ten years later–on 24 September 1977–the final steam-hauled service departed the station towards Berlin as the Dresden Express. Steam-hauled passenger trains were still seen running towards Upper Lusatia until the late 1980s. Since the headroom in the western part of the station area was insufficient, the Hohe Brücke (bridge) had to be demolished to permit the electrification of the railway lines.
Within the city and the surrounding area, the Dresden S-Bahn has carried the majority of traffic to the station since 1973 and has operated as its central point. In 1978, the Dresden Hauptbahnhof was heritage-listed.
On the night of 30 September and 1 October 1989, six so-called refugee trains were operated from Prague through Dresden station and the territory of the German Democratic Republic to West Germany. Two hours before the news spread to the West German media about these trips, a few quick and resolute citizens managed to jump on a train during transit. More East Germans were queuing in the West German embassy in Prague and so more trains were run. Therefore, on the following days, more and more disgruntled citizens collected at the station, amounting to about 20,000 people on the night of 4 and 5 October, according to the police. While the majority of the demonstrators and the security forces confronted each other that night in Lenin-Platz (now Wiener Platz), three of the expected trains from Prague passed on the southern tracks of the Hauptbahnhof but were hardly noticed. Due to the critical situation in Dresden, five additional special trains were diverted via Vojtanov and Bad Brambach to Plauen. Most demonstrators were peaceful, but there were also violent clashes between about 3,000 demonstrators and the Volkspolizei and property at the station was damaged. In the following days, peaceful demonstrations took place in Lenin-Platz and the adjacent Prager Straße, resulting in the beginning of a dialogue on state power at the local level with the establishment of the Group of 20 (Gruppe der 20) on the evening  8 October.
With a combined 156 arrivals and departures of scheduled long-distance trains per day in the station in the summer 1989 timetable, it was the third most important node in the network of Deutsche Reichsbahn, after Berlin and Leipzig.
Dresden Hauptbahnhof