The Aachen tramway network (german: Straßenbahnnetz Aachen) was the backbone of

public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th ...

, now in the

federal state A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-gover ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, and the surrounding areas from 1880 to 1974. The

track gauge In rail transport, track gauge (in American English, alternatively track gage) is the distance between the two rails of a railway track. All vehicles on a rail network must have wheelsets that are compatible with the track gauge. Since many ...

was , see

Nordrhein-Westfalen North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhab ...

. At times, the network also extended into

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. At its maximum extent, its route length was and its line length was . In 1914, it was the fourth largest tramway network in

. Also, it was one of the most extensive German

interurban The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 ...

networks. In 1974, the last tramway in the network was closed. The network was operated from 1880 by the '' Aachener und Burtscheider Pferdeeisenbahn-Gesellschaft'' (in English: Aachen and

Burtscheid Burtscheid ( la, Porcetum) is a district of the city of Aachen, part of the Aachen-Mitte Stadtbezirk. It is a health resort. History It was inhabited since ancient times by Celts and Romans, who were attracted by the presence of hot springs. B ...

Horse Railway Company), which in 1894 became the ''Aachener Kleinbahn-Gesellschaft'' (AKG, in English: Aachen Light Railway Company). In 1942 the name was changed to ''Aachener Straßenbahn und Energieversorgungs-AG'' (ASEAG, in English: Aachen Tramway and Power Company). It is now a bus company, but the company name still refers to trams.

References

External links

* {{coord, 50, 46, 31, N, 06, 04, 58, E, region:DE_type:railwaystation_source:enwiki, display=title

History of Aachen 1880 establishments in Germany 1974 disestablishments in Germany

See also

References

External links