The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from
Hochspeyer
Hochspeyer is a municipality in the Kaiserslautern (district), district of Kaiserslautern, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest (Pfälzer Wald), approx. 10 km east of Kaiserslautern.
Hochspeyer was the se ...
via
Winnweiler
Winnweiler is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the upper course of the river Alsenz, approx. north-east of Kaiserslautern. Winnweiler is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collectiv ...
and
Alsenz
Alsenz () is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Alsenz has an area of 12.88 km2 and a population of 1,647 (as of December 31, 2020).
Culture and sights
In the centre of the village is the Re ...
to
Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
. The line closely follows the
Alsenz river from the
Enkenbach
Enkenbach-Alsenborn is a municipality in the district of Kaiserslautern, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the northern edge of the Palatinate forest, approx. 10 km north-east of Kaiserslautern. Enkenbach-Alsenborn is also ...
district and crosses it several times. It was originally built primarily as a long-distance route, but it has lost this function since 1990 and is now exclusively used for local transport.
Route
Between Enkenbach and Bad Münster the line has continuous double track; only the Enkenbach–Hochspeyer section is single track. From Enkenbach the line follows the Alsenz river to Alsenz. Due to the difficult topographical conditions, the line has to cross the Alsenz river several times and has three tunnels. It runs along the edge of the
Palatinate Forest to about Langmeil, where it enters the
North Palatine Uplands
The North Palatine Uplands (german: Nordpfälzer Bergland), sometimes shortened to Palatine Uplands (''Pfälzer Bergland''), is a low mountain range and landscape unit in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate and belongs mainly to the Palat ...
.
From Hochspeyer to the abandoned
Neuhemsbach
Neuhemsbach is a municipality in the district of Kaiserslautern, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany. Known People
* Birthplace of Karl Bischoff
Karl Bischoff (9 August 1897 – 2 October 1950) was a German architect, engineer and SS- ...
station the line is within the
district of Kaiserslautern, from
Münchweiler an der Alsenz
Münchweiler an der Alsenz is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
References
Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate
Donnersbergkreis
{{Donnersbergkreis-geo-stub ...
to the Alsenz municipality it is in
Donnersbergkreis
The Donnersbergkreis is a district (''Kreis'') in the middle of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bad Kreuznach (district), Bad Kreuznach, Alzey-Worms, Bad Dürkheim (district), Bad Dürkheim, Kaiserslautern (district), Kaise ...
and the remaining section is located in the
district of Bad Kreuznach.
History
From 1859 there was a continuous north-south trunk line from the
Rhineland
The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section.
Term
Historically, the Rhinelands ...
via
Rhenish Hesse
Rhenish Hesse or Rhine HesseDickinson, Robert E (1964). ''Germany: A regional and economic geography'' (2nd ed.). London: Methuen, p. 542. . (german: Rheinhessen) is a region and a former government district () in the German state of Rhineland- ...
to
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
in the form of the
West Rhine Railway
The West Rhine railway (German: ''Linke Rheinstrecke'', literally 'left (bank of the) Rhine route') is a famously picturesque, double-track electrified railway line running for 185 km from Cologne via Bonn, Koblenz, and Bingen to Mainz. It i ...
between
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
and
Mainz
Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...
and the
Mainz–Ludwigshafen railway
The Mainz–Worms–Ludwigshafen Railway connects Mainz via Worms to Ludwigshafen in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. From there trains cross the Rhine via Mannheim or run south towards Speyer. It was opened in 1853 and is one of the old ...
. But the lines running via Mainz were indirect, so plans emerged for the building of a shorter line from about
Bingen am Rhein
Bingen am Rhein () is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
The settlement's original name was Bingium, a Celtic word that may have meant "hole in the rock", a description of the shoal behind the ''Mäuseturm'', k ...
south along the Alsenz to the catchment area of the
Donnersberg
The Donnersberg ("thunder mountain") is the highest peak of the Palatinate (german: Pfalz) region of Germany. The mountain lies between the towns of Rockenhausen and Kirchheimbolanden, in the Donnersbergkreis district, which is named after the m ...
via Enkenbach and from there towards
Neustadt. In order to take account of the interests of the city of
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
, a connection curve was created south of Fischbach to Hochspeyer to allow appropriate movements. The Hochspeyer–Winnweiler section was opened on 29 October 1870. The Winnweiler–Bad Munster am Stein section followed on 16 May 1871.
After the
Franco-Prussian War of 1870 and 1871 there was an increased interest in building
strategic railway
A strategic railway is a railway proposed or constructed primarily for military strategic purposes, as opposed to the usual purpose of a railway, which is the transport of civilian passengers or freight. Although the archetypal strategic railwa ...
s in southwest Germany. There were demands for a direct connection between Kaiserslautern and Enkenbach, as the existing route via Hochspeyer was considered too roundabout for this purpose. The city of Kaiserslautern made land available for the proposed line. The
connection between Kaiserslautern and Enkenbach was opened on 15 May 1875.
[ The line included the stations of Kaiserslautern Nord and Eselsfürth.
]
Development up to the Second World War (1875–1945)
Alsenz Valley Railway was operated by the Palatine Northern Railway Company
The Palatine Northern Railways Company (''Gesellschaft der Pfälzischen Nordbahnen'') – abbreviated to Palatine Northern Railway (''Pfälzer Nordbahn'') - was founded on 17 April 1866 as the last of the three major private railway companies ...
(''Gesellschaft der Pfälzischen Nordbahnen'') and functioned as its main line.
The Bad Münster–Enkenbach section was frequented by the 1920s by long-distance trains on the Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
– Bingen– Neustadt–Landau
Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...
–Wissembourg
Wissembourg (; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Weisseburch'' ; German: ''Weißenburg'' ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin Departments of France, department in Grand Est in northeastern France.
It is situated on the li ...
–Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
route. However, after Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
was ceded to France after the First World War, the line lost much of its traffic towards Neustadt. Since the Enkenbach–Eselsfürth–Kaiserslautern route is shorter than the route via Hochspeyer, most trains approach Kaiserslautern via Eselsfürth.
After the Zeller Valley Railway (''Zellertalbahn'') was completed from Langmeil to Monsheim
Monsheim is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Geography
Location
Monsheim lies in the southern Wonne ...
) in 1873 and the Donnersberg Railway (''Donnersbergbahn'') was completed from Alzey
Alzey () is a ''Verband''-free town – one belonging to no ''Verbandsgemeinde'' – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the fifth-largest town in Rhenish Hesse, after Mainz, Worms, Germany, Worms, Ingelheim am Rhein ...
to Marnheim
Marnheim is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe aft ...
in 1874, the section between Kaiserslautern and Langmeil also carried long-distance trains to the Rhine-Main area via Worms Worms may refer to:
*Worm, an invertebrate animal with a tube-like body and no limbs
Places
*Worms, Germany, a city
**Worms (electoral district)
*Worms, Nebraska, U.S.
*Worms im Veltlintal, the German name for Bormio, Italy
Arts and entertainme ...
to Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
or via Alzey to Mainz
Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...
. The Eis Valley Railway
The Eis Valley Railway (german: Eistalbahn) is a branch line in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, that runs through the Palatine Forest. It runs from Grünstadt in a southwesterly direction through the valley of the Eisbach (or "Eis") to ...
(''Eistalbahn'') was opened in 1876 from Grünstadt
Grünstadt ( pfl, Grinnschdadt) is a town in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with roughly 13,200 inhabitants. It does not belong to any ''Verbandsgemeinde'' – a kind of collective municipality – but is nonetheless th ...
to Eisenberg and connected to Enkenbach in 1932. Some of its services connected with Kaiserslautern.
In 1942, during the Second World War, a major accident occurred on the line: in the morning a military train and a freight train collided with each other in Enkenbach. The incident killed two people and wounded many others. A greater tragedy was avoided because the first two carriages of the military train were only lightly occupied.[
]
Deutsche Bundesbahn and Deutsche Bahn (since 1945)
After the Second World War, several intermediate stops (Neuhemsbach, Dielkirchen
Dielkirchen is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe ...
, Bayerfeld-Colln, Mannweiler, Ebernburg) were abandoned due to low patronage. After all the connecting lines, the Eis Valley Railway, the Zeller Valley Railway and the Donnersberg Railway, had been closed for passenger services between 1983 and 1994, the Alsenz Valley Railway was the only line that was in full operation in the Donnersbergkreis. The narrow-gauge railway to Obermoschel had already been closed in the 1930s.
In 1970, the Hochstein tunnel, also called the Eisenschmelz tunnel, located at kilometre 19, was converted into a cutting. Until 1990 the line was also served by a Schnellzug
A ''Schnellzug'' is an express train in German-speaking countries, where it refers to trains that do not stop at all stations along a line. The term is used both generically and also as a specific train type. In Germany and Austria it is also ref ...
(express) on the Paris Est–Metz–Saarbrücken–Kaiserslautern–Bad Kreuznach–Mainz–Frankfurt am Main route, which was operated until the mid-1970s with SNCF
The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (; abbreviated as SNCF ; French for "National society of French railroads") is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffi ...
DEV Inox cars and then by Corail cars. Between 1988 and 1990 they were partially replaced by express services from Pirmasens
Pirmasens (; pfl, Bärmesens (also ''Bermesens'' or ''Bärmasens'')) is an independent town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. It was famous for the manufacture of shoes. The surrounding rural district was called ''Lan ...
via Kaiserslautern and Bingen to Cologne. Since then, these trains have been abandoned and the Alsenz Valley Railway has lost all long-distance services.
In 1999, a new station was set up in Münchweiler an der Alsenz between Langmeil and the abandoned station of Neuhemsbach. Consequently, the Langmeil station, which had previously been used by Münchweiler's population, lost its importance, which led to it being abandoned in late 2006. Even with the recommencement of services on Sundays and public holidays in 2001 on the now reactivated Zeller Valley Railway, trains no longer serve this once important junction station.
As part of the expanded Rhineland-Palatinate integrated regular-interval timetable being introduced from 2015, new Regional-Express
In Germany, Luxembourg and Austria, the Regional-Express (RE, or in Austria: REX) is a type of regional train. It is similar to a semi-fast train, with average speed at about 70–90 km/h (top speed often 160 km/h) as it calls at f ...
services will be introduced on the Koblenz–Bingen–Bad Kreuznach–Kaiserslautern route (from December 2016) and the Mainz–Bad Kreuznach–Kaiserslautern route (from December 2014). They will both run on the Alsenz Valley Railway and be operated by Netinera
Netinera (formerly Arriva Deutschland) is a railway company operating in Germany.
It was founded as a subsidiary of British Arriva plc in 2003 and initially headquartered in Hamburg. After the acquisition of Regentalbahn in 2004, the company's se ...
.
Operations
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 ...
operates hourly services on the line. It is listed in the Deutsche Bahn timetable (KBS) as line 672. Until the timetable change in December 2008, the services continued over the Biebermühl Railway
The Biebermühl Railway (german: Biebermühlbahn)—sometimes called the Moosalbbahn (Moosalb Railway)—is a 35.9 km long railway line from Kaiserslautern to Pirmasens in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, which was built between 1 ...
to Pirmasens; since then only Regionalbahn services have run between Kaiserslautern and Bingen.
From Kaiserslautern to Alsenz, the line runs within the area of the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar
The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (VRN) is a transport association covering parts of the German states of Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse in south-west Germany. Founded in 1989, it initially served the Rhein Neckar Area, but ha ...
(Rhine-Neckar Transport Association, VRN) and from Hochstätten to Bad Münster it is within the area of the ''Rhein-Nahe Nahverkehrsverbund'' (Rhine-Nahe Transport Association, RNN).
On Sundays and public holidays in the summer, the ''Rheintalexpress'' runs on the Bingen–Enkenbach section to Karlsruhe and the ''Weinstraßen-Express'' runs to Wissembourg, each stopping in Enkenbach, Rockhausen
Rockhausen is a village and a former municipality in the district Ilm-Kreis, in Thuringia, Germany. Since December 2019, it is part of the municipality Amt Wachsenburg
Amt Wachsenburg is a municipality in the district Ilm-Kreis, in Thuringia, Ger ...
, Bad Münster and Bad Kreuznach and each consisting of push–pull train
Push–pull is a configuration for locomotive-hauled trains, allowing them to be driven from either end of the train, whether having a locomotive at each end or not.
A push–pull train has a locomotive at one end of the train, connected via ...
s hauled by class 218 locomotives or class 628 diesel multiple units. Furthermore, the Langmeil–Hochspeyer section is served in the summer on Sundays and public holidays by daily services on the Zeller Valley Railway route.
Rolling stock
In 2000, 628 diesel multiple units were replaced by modern Talent railcars of class 643. Since the timetable change in December 2008, Desiro
The Siemens Desiro (, , ) is a family of diesel or electric multiple unit passenger trains developed by Siemens Mobility, a division of the German Siemens AG conglomerate. The main variants are the Desiro Classic, Desiro ML, Desiro UK and the l ...
trains of class 642 also operate. Previously, local services were mostly operated with Silberling
Silberling is the colloquial name for the n-coaches of the Deutsche Bundesbahn, a type of regional Passenger car (rail), passenger coach of which more than 5,000 units were built from 1958 to 1981. Nearly all of the coaches have undergone exten ...
carriages. These were hauled diesel locomotives of class 218; in the winter coupled French locomotives were also sometimes used.
Future
There are plans to electrify and upgrade the line along with the Palatine Maximilian Railway
A palatine or palatinus (in Latin; plural ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman times. to relieve the Rhine Valley lines between Bingen and Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...
of freight trains. The state of Rhineland-Palatinate has recommended the project for the 2015 Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan (''Bundesverkehrswegeplan'').
Notes
External links
*
* {{cite web, url=http://eisenbahntunnel-info.de/lb/inhalt/tunnelportale/3320.html , title= Photographs of tunnel portals, line 3320 , publisher=Tunnelportale , author=Lothar Brill , accessdate=11 May 2013 , language=German
Railway lines in Rhineland-Palatinate
North Palatinate
Railway lines opened in 1870
1870 establishments in Germany