Haan-Gruiten station (Gruiten until 9 December 2017) is one of the two stations of the Bergian city of Haan in the German state of

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

. It is described in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

as a ''Berührungsbahnhof'' (contact station), as the Düsseldorf–Elberfeld and the Gruiten–Köln-Deutz lines both pass through the station, but their operations are separate. East of the station, they join to form a common route at Linden junction, which is the actual beginning of the Gruiten–Köln-Deutz line. West of the platforms the lines separate to run to the west and the south.

History

The railway station on the Düsseldorf-Elberfeld line was opened on 3 September 1841 under the name of ''Haan (Gruiten)'' and for many years it was the only Haan station. The line to Cologne was opened in 1867 and the current Haan station was opened in 1907, allowing the station in the then independent town of Gruiten to be renamed Gruiten station. In 1909 the existing station building was built. As part of the establishment of

S-Bahn The S-Bahn is the name of hybrid urban- suburban rail systems serving a metropolitan region in German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit systems, while smaller ones often resemble co ...

services on the Düsseldorf–Wuppertal line in 1988, Gruiten station was significantly rebuilt. The platform on track 1 and the ramps for loading

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

were demolished. This allowed a large park and ride lot to be built. Tracks 2 and 3 were moved and now serve as the S-Bahn station. Track 4 is used as a platform for overtaking trains on the route to and from Cologne. The normal platform for trains to and from Cologne is served by tracks 5 and 6. Track 7 is used by freight trains.

Current operations

The station is served by Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn lines, the S 8 every 20 minutes, several S 68 services in the peak hour and every half hour by the

Rhein-Wupper-Bahn The Rhein-Wupper-Bahn is a Regionalbahn service in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It connects the cities of Wuppertal, Solingen, Leverkusen, Cologne and Bonn and it is operated by National Express. Route The line runs mainly over th ...

(RB 48). The station building was thoroughly renovated in the 1990s. Today the building contains a restaurant and the Gruiten municipal library. On the forecourt of the station there is a taxi rank and bus stop, served by buses towards Mettmann, Haan and

Wülfrath Wülfrath is a town in the district of Mettmann (district), in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography The town is situated on the mountain spurs of the Bergische Land, between the Rhine, Ruhr and Wupper rivers. It is located in the central p ...

References

External links

*{{cite web , url=http://www.historisches-dorf-gruiten.de/04_Gruiten_Station/Station_Bahnhof.htm , title=Historical photographs of Gruiten station , accessdate=2 September 2011 , language=German Railway stations in North Rhine-Westphalia Railway stations in Germany opened in 1841 1841 establishments in Prussia Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn stations S8 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn) Buildings and structures in Mettmann (district)