The Kassel RegioTram is a
tram-train
A tram-train is a type of light rail vehicle that meets the standards of a light rail system (usually an urban street running tramway), but which also meets national mainline standards permitting operation alongside mainline trains. This all ...
light rail system in
Kassel
Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...
,
Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...
,
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 betwe ...
.
Kassel's tram-train system follows the
Karlsruhe model
The Karlsruhe model is a tram-train system which consists of tram/ light rail trains and commuter/ regional rail trains running on the same set of tracks, generally between or outside of urban areas. It was initially developed and implemented ...
, and has been in full operation since 2007. With special RegioTram tramcars, continuous trips between the
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 ...
heavy rail network and
Kassel's city tram network are easily possible, thus avoiding transfers requiring long walking distances between trains of the
regional rail
Regional rail, also known as local trains and stopping trains, are passenger rail services that operate between towns and cities. These trains operate with more stops over shorter distances than inter-city rail, but fewer stops and faster serv ...
system and
tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
s of the Kassel city system.
The operator of the RegioTram network was, until December 2013, RegioTram mbH, a joint venture between Regionalbahn Kassel (RBK), a subsidiary of the Kasseler Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (KVG), and
DB Regio
DB Regio AG is a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn which operates regional and commuter train services in Germany. DB Regio AG, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main. It is a 100% subsidiary of the Deutsche Bahn Group and there part of the DB Regio bus ...
. Since 9 December 2013, the RegioTram is operated by a consortium of the KVG and
Hessische Landesbahn
Hessische Landesbahn (Hessian State Railway, HLB) is a regional transport company owned by the German state of Hesse, based in Frankfurt am Main. It provides bus and rail passenger transport services and, to a lesser extent, rail freight services i ...
(HLB). The system is integrated in the
Nordhessischer Verkehrsverbund
The Nordhessischer Verkehrsverbund (NVV) is a transport association that organises the cooperation of more than 40 North Hessian transport companies, such as supra-regional public transport and regional rail passenger transport. The ''Verkehrsverbu ...
(NVV).
Concept
The implementation of the RegioTram project includes various interlocking measures to improve local public transport in Kassel. The aim of the project is to link
Kassel's local tram network with the regional rail network so that tram-train vehicles can travel from the city's tram network into the surrounding countryside on regional railroad tracks. The core component of the Kassel RegioTram project is a newly created link between the two rail systems at the
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 ...
. The development of the infrastructure required to allow for a 30-minute headways on all lines will be implemented by 2014 at the earliest.
Operations
Services
Kassel is served by the three services of the RegioTram system,
which operate on of railway lines of which only are newly built lines (mostly to link the regional rail network to Kassel city's tram network).
Rolling stock
RegioTram operates using 28 tramcars from
Alstom RegioCitadis delivered in 2004. There are two versions of these tramcars: 18
dual voltage tram-train
A tram-train is a type of light rail vehicle that meets the standards of a light rail system (usually an urban street running tramway), but which also meets national mainline standards permitting operation alongside mainline trains. This all ...
s for use on the electrified network in and outside of Kassel, and 10
hybrid tram-trains (DC/diesel) for use with a
diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...
outside Kassel on the section around Wolfhagen. Similar vehicles of the same model are also in use on
RandstadRail
RandstadRail () is a light rail network in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area in the west of the Netherlands that is jointly operated by HTM Personenvervoer (HTM) and Rotterdamse Elektrische Tram (RET). It connects the cities of Rotte ...
in the Netherlands.
History
Preliminary operations started on 10 June 2001, initially with six borrowed
Saarbahn
The Saarbahn is a regional Stadtbahn operating on the tram-train principle in the German state of the Saarland. It consists of a core line in Saarbrücken and Riegelsberg operating under tram operating procedures ( BOStrab), connected to two lin ...
tramcars, on the
Warburg–Kassel line. Thus, the previous regional railway timetable was now being served by the new vehicles. RegioTram operation with 30-minute headways was realized. RegioCitadis type vehicles manufactured by
Alstom
Alstom SA is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer operating worldwide in rail transport markets, active in the fields of passenger transportation, signalling, and locomotives, with products including the AGV, TGV, Eurostar, Avelia ...
in
Salzgitter
Salzgitter (; Eastphalian: ''Soltgitter'') is an independent city in southeast Lower Saxony, Germany, located between Hildesheim and Braunschweig. Together with Wolfsburg and Braunschweig, Salzgitter is one of the seven ''Oberzentren'' of Lower ...
were delivered in July 2004, and took over the operation on this line on 8 May 2005; the borrowed Saarbahn tramcars were then returned. This route is now served by RegioTram Line 3 (RT3).
Starting on 29 January 2006, the first RegioTram operations began on the Kassel tram rail network itself. The hybrid RegioTram vehicles joined the tram tracks in the downtown core of Kassel on the Lossetalbahn to
Hessisch Lichtenau
Hessisch Lichtenau ( is a small town in the Werra-Meißner-Kreis in eastern Hesse, Germany. In 2006, the town hosted the 46th Hessentag state festival.
Geography
Location
Hessisch Lichtenau lies in the Werra-Meißner-Kreis 20 km southeast of ...
during peak hours, the terminus of the tram line. The diesel-electric vehicles used a direct route over the
Waldkappel
Waldkappel is a small town in the Werra-Meißner-Kreis district in northern Hesse, Germany.
Geography
Location
Waldkappel is located between Hessisch Lichtenau in the west and Eschwege in the east in the North Hesse Upland between the Meißner-Ka ...
rail line between Ober- and Nieder-
Kaufungen
Kaufungen is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated in the narrow valley of the river Losse, surrounded by the steep, wooded hills of the Kaufunger Wald, approx. 10 kilometres east of Kassel.
Geography
Div ...
which is not electrified. This meant, in contrast to the trams which served all stops, a reduction in journey time. In August 2007, the switch to the continuous use of conventional tramcar vehicles on this line was made. The former tram-train runs over the non-electrified railway through Waldkappel were replaced by tram "express" trips that do not operate at all stops along the route.
Starting 1 June 2006, RegioTram operations from Kassel Hauptbahnhof, through
Baunatal
Baunatal is a town in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is a comparatively young town which arose from fusion of the formerly independent municipalities ''Altenbauna'', ''Altenritte'', ''Großenritte'', ''Guntershausen'', ''Hertingshau ...
,
Guxhagen
Guxhagen is a municipality in Schwalm-Eder district in northern Hesse, Germany.
Geography
Guxhagen lies about 15 km south of Kassel between the Habichtswald Nature Park and the Meißner-Kaufunger Wald Nature Park on the river Fulda. It n ...
and
Körle
Körle is a municipality in the Schwalm-Eder district in Hesse, Germany. It lies about 20 km south of Kassel near the turn-off for Guxhagen on Autobahn A 7.
History
Körle was first mentioned in 1074 in a donation document from the Fulda mon ...
, to
Melsungen
Melsungen () is a small climatic spa town in the Schwalm-Eder district in northern Hesse, Germany. In 1987, the town hosted the 27th ''Hessentag'' state festival.
Geography
Melsungen lies on the river Fulda in the North Hesse Highlands. The stream ...
, began. This RegioTram Line 5 (RT5) runs alternately once and twice every hour.
Operations between Kassel and
Wolfhagen
Wolfhagen () is a town in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 12 km southeast of Bad Arolsen, and 23 km west of Kassel on the German Timber-Frame Road. In 1992, the town hosted the 32nd Hessentag
The Hessenta ...
, through
Ahnatal
Ahnatal is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated roughly 9 km northwest of Kassel, Germany.
Division of the municipality
It consists of three constituent villages, Weimar, Heckershausen, and Kammerb ...
and
Zierenberg
Zierenberg is a town in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 19 km east of Bad Arolsen, and 15 km northwest of Kassel on the German Timber-Frame Road.
Local council
The elections from 06. March 2016 showed the foll ...
, began on 10 December 2006 on RegioTram Line 4 (RT4).
Between 16 September 2007 and the timetable change in December 2007, the RegioTram Line 9 (RT9) operated in advance from Kassel Hauptbahnhof to
Treysa
Treysa, an independent town until 1970, is the biggest ''Stadtteil'' of the German town Schwalmstadt. It was incorporated into Schwalmstadt in December 1970. The location around Treysa and Schwalmstadt is called Schwalm. The historic city lie ...
.
RegioTram routes in Kassel changed 19 August 2007 (RT4), 16 September 2007 (RT3 and RT5) and December 20097 (RT9) from running to the Innenstadtring (Inner Rign Road) in downtown, and instead to Leipziger Straße. The full development of the infrastructure to allow for a 30-minute headways on all lines will be implemented by 2014 at the earliest.
On the lines RT3 and RT4, new stops at Kassel-Jungfernkopf, and Vellmar-Osterberg/EKZ on the Harleshäuser Kurve, were put into operation on 13 December 2008. On 25 April 2009, a new station Kassel-Kirchditmold was also added to the same section. In Melsungen, a new stop at Melsungen-Bartenwetzerbrücke was put into operation on the RT5 on 20 May 2011.
See also
*
Trams in Kassel
The Kassel tramway network is a network of tramways, forming part of the public transport system in Kassel, a city in the north of the federal state of Hesse, Germany. , the Kassel tram network is made up of seven regular tramlines.
Opened in 18 ...
*
Tram-train
A tram-train is a type of light rail vehicle that meets the standards of a light rail system (usually an urban street running tramway), but which also meets national mainline standards permitting operation alongside mainline trains. This all ...
*
List of town tramway systems in Germany
This is a list of town tramway systems in Germany by ''Land''. It includes all tram systems, past and present. Cities with currently operating systems, and those systems themselves, are indicated in bold and blue background colored rows. Those t ...
*
Trams in Germany
Germany has an extensive number of tramway networks (Straßenbahn in German). Some of these networks have been upgraded to light rail standards, called Stadtbahn in German. Straßenbahn and Stadtbahn schemes are usually operated on the legal foun ...
References
Inline references
Bibliography
*
External links
Kasseler Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (KVG) – official site*
{{Urban public transport in Germany
Kassel
Kassel
Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...
Transport in Hesse
North Hesse