Ahlen (Westfalen) station—abbreviated to Ahlen (Westf)—serves the town of Ahlen in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is situated on the electrified, four-track

Hamm–Minden railway The Hamm–Minden Railway is an important and historically significant railway in Germany. It is completely quadruple track. It is a major axis for long distance passenger and freight trains between the Ruhr and the north and east of Germany. I ...

, which connects the

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

region to Hanover. It was originally part of the network of the former

Cologne-Minden Railway Company The Cologne-Minden Railway Company (German, old spelling: ''Cöln-Mindener Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft'', ''CME'') was along with the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company and the Rhenish Railway Company one of the railway companies that in the mid-19th ...

and is now part of the

Deutsche Bahn The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder. describes itself as the se ...

network.

History

The station was opened on 15 Ahlen October 1847 during the construction of the trunk line of the Cologne-Minden Railway Company (german: Cöln-Mindener Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft). The first station building, built in 1848, was demolished during the First World War, because at this point the line, which had previously run at ground level, was placed on an embankment. The new station building, which is still in use, opened in 1916.

Current significance

The station is a classed as a category 4 station. It is connected by services every half-hour to Bielefeld, Hamm (Westf) and Gütersloh, which each provide further connections under North Rhine-Westphalia’s integrated timetable. The station has a travel centre, which since 2007 has been operated by a private travel agency. There is also a bookstore with a kiosk operation and a bakery. For the purchase of tickets outside of business hours ticket machines are available at the travel centre for long-distance and local services. The stairways to the platforms are equipped on one side with

stairlift A stair lift is a mechanical device for lifting people, typically those with disabilities, up and down stairs. For sufficiently wide stairs, a rail is mounted to the treads of the stairs. A chair or lifting platform is attached to the rail. A per ...

s for wheelchair access.

Links from the station

Next to the station is the town’s central bus station. From here city bus lines run to the urban area of Ahlen. Regional bus services run to neighbouring cities. The city buses are operated by Regionalverkehr Münsterland (Regional transport of Münsterland) and the city of Ahlen.

Park and Ride

Behind the station building is a parking area with parking spaces for park-and-ride and “park-and-rail” (for longer journeys than commuting). At the central bus station there are bicycle stands.

Notes

References

* * {{cite web, url= http://www.deutschebahn.com/site/bahn/de/geschaefte/infrastruktur__schiene/netz/netzzugang/dokumente/Bahnhof/SNB/E/EAHL__NBS.pdf , title= Station track plan , publisher=

, format= PDF, 191.51 kB , accessdate=18 August 2011 , language=German Railway stations in North Rhine-Westphalia Railway stations in Germany opened in 1847 1847 establishments in Prussia Buildings and structures in Warendorf (district)