The Fils Valley Railway (german: Filstalbahn, historically ''Filsbahn'' or ''Württembergische Ostbahn''—Württemberg Eastern Railway) designates the Württemberg line from
Stuttgart via
Göppingen
Göppingen (Swabian: ''Geppenge'' or ''Gebbenga'') is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the bi ...
to
Ulm
Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...
. It runs from
Plochingen
Plochingen (Swabian: ''Blocheng'' or ''Blochenga'') is a town in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It lies on the river Neckar, on which it has a river port. With about 14,000 inhabitants, it is part of the Stuttg ...
to
Geislingen an der Steige
Geislingen an der Steige is surrounded by the heights of the Swabian Alb and embedded in 5 beautiful valleys. It is a town in the district of Göppingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The name relates to its location "on the climb ...
through the
Fils Valley.
History
Construction
The Fils Valley Railway was built as part of the first railway line in Württemberg connecting the navigable
Neckar in
Heilbronn via
Stuttgart with the navigable
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...
at
Ulm
Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...
, with a further connection from Ulm to
Lake Constance.
The Stuttgart-Esslingen section of the line was built as part of the
Central Railway (''Zentralbahn'') between 1844 and 1846. The line was completed between
Cannstatt
Bad Cannstatt, also called Cannstatt (until July 23, 1933) or Kannstadt (until 1900), is one of the outer stadtbezirke, or city boroughs, of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Bad Cannstatt is the oldest and most populous of Stuttgart's ...
and
Esslingen on 22 October 1845 and the
Rosenstein Tunnel was completed on 4 July 1846, allowing the first train to run into Stuttgart station on 26 September 1846. It was extended to
Plochingen
Plochingen (Swabian: ''Blocheng'' or ''Blochenga'') is a town in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It lies on the river Neckar, on which it has a river port. With about 14,000 inhabitants, it is part of the Stuttg ...
in December 1846 and on 28 June 1850, the first train rolled over the new single-track line of the
Royal Württemberg State Railways
The Royal Württemberg State Railways (''Königlich Württembergische Staats-Eisenbahnen'' or ''K.W.St.E.'') were the state railways of the Kingdom of Württemberg (from 1918 the ''People's State of Württemberg'') between 1843 and 1920. Please ...
(''Königlich Württembergische Staats-Eisenbahnen''). The line is also considered as the first railway to cross a low mountain range in Europe because of the
Geislinger Steige (''Geislingen Ramp''). The upward gradient amounts to 1:44.5 or 2.2%.
Electrification
The line was electrified in 1933. Before that special
helper engine
A bank engine (United Kingdom/Australia) (colloquially a banker), banking engine, helper engine or pusher engine (North America) is a railway locomotive that temporarily assists a train that requires additional power or traction to climb a grad ...
s helped push trains up the
Geislinger Steige. Freight trains are still pushed up the slope by additional
Class 151 locomotives between Geislingen West and
Amstetten.
War damage
The Rosenstein Bridge across the
Neckar in Stuttgart was destroyed in the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. Until its replacement by a temporary bridge, all services ended in
Bad Cannstatt station, and a shuttle service operated between the Rosenstein Tunnel at the Neckar and Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof.
[Kurt Seidel: Die Remsbahn, Stuttgart, 1987, p 134 f ]
Development plans
Due to the high traffic levels on this line, the 1985 federal transport plan contained proposals for sections of new and upgraded track for this route. Planning options ranged from the upgrade of the existing line (which would not have permitted high-speed services) to the building of a completely new line between Plochingen and Günzburg, bypassing Ulm. All options considered would bypass the difficult
Geislinger Steige section. In 2007, as part of the project
Stuttgart 21, the option being pursued is the construction of the
Wendlingen–Ulm high-speed railway
Wendlingen-Ulm high-speed line is a high-speed railway in Germany, entirely within the state of Baden-Württemberg. The line crosses the Swabian Jura mountain range, with trains traveling at speeds up to 250 km/h. It mostly follows the A8 ...
, which would mean that long-distance service would no longer utilize the Fils Valley Railway.
Operations
Schedule and vehicles
All kinds of services run on the Fils Valley Railway. While the Stuttgart-Plochingen section is integrated into the
Stuttgart S-Bahn network, ''
Regionalbahn'' services run on the eastern sections of the line. These run from Plochingen to Geislingen and Geislingen to Ulm, usually once an hour, utilizing
Class 425 or
Class 426 electric multiple units or
Class 110/
Class 143 locomotives hauling
Silberling
Silberling is the colloquial name for the n-coaches of the Deutsche Bundesbahn, a type of regional passenger coach of which more than 5,000 units were built from 1958 to 1981. Nearly all of the coaches have undergone extensive modernisation †...
carriages.
''
RegionalExpress
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 ...
'' (RE) trains run hourly between Stuttgart and
Neu-Ulm
Neu-Ulm (Swabian: ''Nej-Ulm'') is the capital of the Neu-Ulm district and a town in Swabia, Bavaria. Neighbouring towns include Ulm, Senden, Pfaffenhofen an der Roth, Holzheim, Nersingen and Elchingen. The population is 58,978 (31 December ...
(some continuing to
Donauwörth
Donauwörth () is a town and the capital of the Donau-Ries district in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is said to have been founded by two fishermen where the rivers Danube (Donau) and Wörnitz meet. The city is part of the scenic route called "Roman ...
), with additional hourly RE trains between Stuttgart Plochingen and
Tübingen
Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in three ...
. They are operated by
double decker carriages hauled by
Class 146.2 locomotives. Some RE trains from Ulm continue through Stuttgart on the
Franconia Railway
The Franconia Railway (german: Frankenbahn) is a railway line in the north of the German state of Baden-Württemberg and the Bavarian province of Lower Franconia that links Stuttgart and Würzburg. Its name comes from the fact that the majority ...
to
Mosbach-Neckarelz.
''InterRegioExpress'' Sprinter services operate between Stuttgart and
Lindau
Lindau (german: Lindau (Bodensee), ''Lindau am Bodensee''; ; Low Alemannic: ''Lindou'') is a major town and island on the eastern side of Lake Constance (''Bodensee'' in German) in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the county (''Landkreis' ...
, hauled by Class 146.2 locomotives to Ulm, or by two
Class 218 diesel locomotives in order to pass the Geislinger Steige without a substantial loss of speed.
''
ICE
Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaqu ...
''s usually run over the ''Filsbahn'' on an hourly basis, without stopping. ''
IC'' or ''
EC'' trains generally also run hourly, stopping in
Plochingen
Plochingen (Swabian: ''Blocheng'' or ''Blochenga'') is a town in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It lies on the river Neckar, on which it has a river port. With about 14,000 inhabitants, it is part of the Stuttg ...
and
Göppingen
Göppingen (Swabian: ''Geppenge'' or ''Gebbenga'') is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the bi ...
, and occasionally also in
Geislingen an der Steige
Geislingen an der Steige is surrounded by the heights of the Swabian Alb and embedded in 5 beautiful valleys. It is a town in the district of Göppingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The name relates to its location "on the climb ...
. From the winter timetable change of 9 December 2007, EC services will be replaced by French
TGV POS
The TGV POS is a TGV train built by French manufacturer Alstom which is operated by the French national rail company, the SNCF, in France's high-speed rail lines. It was originally ordered by the SNCF for use on the new LGV Est, which was put in ...
services between
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
and
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
.
Several times per hour, sometimes heavy freight trains traverse the Fils Valley Railway, mostly consisting of mixed freight cars. Every so often, single-commodity trains (''Ganzzüge'') utilize the line.
Route
Beginning in
Esslingen am Neckar
Esslingen am Neckar (Swabian: ''Esslenga am Neckor'') is a town in the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany, seat of the District of Esslingen as well as the largest town in the district. Within Baden-Württemberg it is th ...
, the line, running alongside the Neckar, climbs gently but steadily until arriving in
Plochingen
Plochingen (Swabian: ''Blocheng'' or ''Blochenga'') is a town in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It lies on the river Neckar, on which it has a river port. With about 14,000 inhabitants, it is part of the Stuttg ...
; by the time it reaches
Süßen
Süßen (or Süssen) is a town in the district of Göppingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is located on the river Fils 8 km east of Göppingen, near Stuttgart.
History
Süßen was first mentioned with the name of ''Siezun'' ...
(384 metres above sea level) it has climbed 120 metres. From Süßen to Geislingen it climbs continuously another 100 m. Emerging out of the Fils Valley, the route makes a large curve around Geislingen (469 metres above sea level). During the 112 metres climb up the
Geislinger Steige, there is a monument on the left to Michael Knoll, the designer of the entire line between Esslingen and Ulm. The summit is reached at
Amstetten, at 582 m above sea level. The line reaches Ulm after running through the thinly settled
Alb
The alb (from the Latin ''albus'', meaning ''white''), one of the liturgical vestments of the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Reformed and Congregational churches, is an ample white garment coming down to the ank ...
highlands.
Modernisation
Since mid-2004, large parts of the Fils Valley Railway had been undergoing modernization activities. Tracks, points, ballast, and sleepers, which had consisted of oak beams soaked in mineral tar oil, and were over 40 years old, were replaced. Starting in 2005 in Stuttgart, going in the direction of
Göppingen
Göppingen (Swabian: ''Geppenge'' or ''Gebbenga'') is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the bi ...
, the old signals of type Hp were being replaced piece by piece by new Ks-type signals, which were taken into service with the opening of a new automated electronic railway control center in Plochingen.
The larger stations were outfitted with typical DB-style LCD departure information screens, which inform passengers of delays, cancellations, and other information. In Westerstetten, the old platforms by the station, which were located northwest and outside of the town, were replaced by a new halt in the center of the town, which was opened for service in August 2005.
In the Easter holiday of 2006, the old railway control centers at Esslingen, Plochingen, Ebersbach, and Uhingen were closed, and the new automated center in Plochingen was opened. This centralized the electronic train traffic control system between Untertürkheim and Göppingen, as well as on the
Neckar-Alb Railway section from
Wendlingen
Wendlingen is a town in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated on the Neckar and Lauter rivers, 27 km southeast of Stuttgart.
The town grew in size, officially, on 1 April 1940, when three s ...
to
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. ...
, which is where the central railway traffic control center for the southwest of Germany is located. Only one person, located there in case of emergency, remains in Plochingen. With the placement of 480 signals, the modernization of 160 switch operating units, and the earth-moving work necessary to lay the required cabling, the cost of this project was 80 million Euros.
See also
*
History of the railway in Württemberg
References
Footnotes
Sources
*{{cite book, title=Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland , trans-title=German railway atlas , publisher= Schweers + Wall , date = 2017 , isbn= 978-3-89494-146-8, ref={{SfnRef, Railway Atlas, 2017
Railway lines in Baden-Württemberg
Rail transport in Stuttgart
Transport in Ulm
Railway lines opened in 1845
Buildings and structures in Esslingen (district)
Buildings and structures in Göppingen (district)
Buildings and structures in Alb-Donau-Kreis
Buildings and structures in Ulm
Stuttgart S-Bahn
Swabian Jura