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The Hanover–Würzburg high-speed railway was the first of several
high-speed railway line This article provides a list of operated high-speed rail networks, listed by country or region. The International Union of Railways defines high-speed rail as public transport by rail at speeds of at least for upgraded tracks and or faster f ...
s for InterCityExpress traffic that were built in Germany. While technically starting in the village of Rethen and ending at
Würzburg Hauptbahnhof Würzburg Hauptbahnhof is a railway station for the city of Würzburg in the German state of Bavaria. It was opened in 1864 to the north of the inner city as a replacement for the former ''Ludwigsbahnhof'' (Ludwig's station) in the city centre, ...
, it is a de facto link between Hanover and
Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg ...
, with stops at Göttingen, Kassel, and Fulda. Early construction started in 1973, the line opening fully in 1991. At in length, it is the longest newly built rail line in Germany, and its construction costs are estimated to be about DM 40 million (€20.45 million) per kilometre.


History

The Deutsche Bundesbahn began construction of the line in 1973. Since it was designed for fast passenger trains as well as for express freight trains, its maximum incline is a mere 1.25%. Combined with the hilly terrain, this made the construction of 61 tunnels and 10 large bridges necessary. Of the 327 km of total length, 120 km are in tunnels, the two longest being the
Landrücken Tunnel The Landrücken Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the Hanover-Würzburg high-speed rail line. With a length of it is the longest tunnel in Germany. Geography The tunnel is in east Hessen between the stations of Fulda and Würzburg. Between the n ...
(10,779 m) south of Fulda, the second longest being the Münden Tunnel (10,525 m) south of Hann. Münden. The highest bridge is the Rombach Valley Bridge near Schlitz at 95 metres. Notwithstanding 10,700 complaints and 360 lawsuits, the line was opened fully in 1991, though the
Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg ...
Fulda part was used by
InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to regional, local, or commuter trains) generally call at m ...
trains as early as 1988. The standard speed on the line is 250 km/h (155 mph); 280 km/h may be reached by trains running late. On 1 May 1988 the
InterCityExperimental The Intercity Experimental, later renamed ICE V, was an experimental train developed by the Deutsche Bundesbahn for research into high-speed rail in Germany. It is the predecessor of all Intercity Express trains of the Deutsche Bahn. Design The ...
set a new
land speed record for railed vehicles The world record for a conventional wheeled passenger train is held by France's TGV (''Train à Grande Vitesse''), set in 2007 when it reached on a section of track. Japan's experimental maglev train L0 Series achieved on a 42.8 km ma ...
at 406.9 km/h (252.8 mph) between Fulda and
Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg ...
. On 26 April 2008, trainset 11, travelling as ICE 885, collided with a flock of sheep near Fulda. Both power cars and ten of the 12 non-powered cars derailed. The train came to a stop 1300 meters into the
Landrücken Tunnel The Landrücken Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the Hanover-Würzburg high-speed rail line. With a length of it is the longest tunnel in Germany. Geography The tunnel is in east Hessen between the stations of Fulda and Würzburg. Between the n ...
. 19 of the 130 passengers suffered mostly minor injuries; four of them had to be treated in hospitals.


Safety

Deutsche Bahn AG keeps special trains for accident assistance ready, when passenger trains are on the line; from midnight to early morning these trains are out of service when the line is used for cargo transport. The trains are hauled by two specially rebuilt Class 714 locomotives and are designed to get firefighters and rescue workers to accident scenes in tunnels and on difficult-to-access sections of track. Both engines are equipped with infrared cameras and remote controls, so that the driver can steer the train into a tunnel from the first (air-tight) car of the train without endangering themselves. The trains are stationed at Hildesheim Hauptbahnhof,
Kassel Hauptbahnhof Kassel Hauptbahnhof is a Deutsche Bahn railway station in the city of Kassel, in the German state of Hesse. Situated in the central borough of Mitte, it is the city's second important railway station after the opening of Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe ...
, Fulda and
Würzburg Hauptbahnhof Würzburg Hauptbahnhof is a railway station for the city of Würzburg in the German state of Bavaria. It was opened in 1864 to the north of the inner city as a replacement for the former ''Ludwigsbahnhof'' (Ludwig's station) in the city centre, ...
. They initially were painted in a bright reddish-orange livery akin to
fire engine A fire engine (also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry) is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to an ...
s, but since the late 1990s they have been painted standard DB livery red, apparently to make them less obvious to concerned passengers.


See also

* High-speed rail in Germany


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hanover-Wurzburg high-speed railway High-speed railway lines in Germany Railway lines in Lower Saxony Railway lines in Hesse Railway lines in Bavaria Transport in Hanover Buildings and structures in Göttingen (district) Würzburg