The Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway (german: Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn) is a railway in the German states of
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
,
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
and the
Saarland
The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...
that runs through
Ludwigshafen am Rhein
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
,
Neustadt an der Weinstraße
Neustadt an der Weinstraße (, formerly known as ; lb, Neustadt op der Wäistrooss ; pfl, Naischdadt) is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With 53,300 inhabitants , it is the largest town called ''Neustadt''.
Geography
Location
T ...
,
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
,
Homburg and
St. Ingbert. It is the most important railway line that runs through the
Palatinate. It serves both passenger and freight transport and carries international traffic.
The route was largely opened from 1847 to 1849 as the ''Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn'' (Palatine Ludwig Railway) between Ludwigshafen and
Bexbach
Bexbach () is a town in the Saarpfalz district, in Saarland, Germany. It is situated on the river Blies, approximatively 6 km east of Neunkirchen, and 25 km northeast of Saarbrücken. The Saarländisches Bergbaumuseum (Saarland Mining ...
. The line is identical with the Ludwig Railway between Ludwigshafen and Homburg and it therefore often referred to as the ''Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn''. The remaining sections went into operation between 1867 and 1904. The line was electrified from 1960 to 1964. In its present form, the line has existed since 1969, when
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB (German Federal Railway) was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) on 7 September 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG). The DB remained ...
moved the
Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof is a railway station at Ludwigshafen am Rhein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. A combination of a wedge-shaped station and a two-level interchange, the station is at the junction on the lines from Mai ...
to its current location.
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 ...
operates the route under timetable number 670. Some sections of the line are cleared for speeds of 200 kilometres per hour for the
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 opaq ...
and
TGV
The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
services between
Paris
Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, Kaiserslautern, Mannheim and
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
. The Mannheim–Homburg section was integrated in the network of the
Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn
The Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn ''(S-Bahn RheinNeckar)'' forms the backbone of the urban rail transport network of the Rhine Neckar Area, including the cities of Mannheim, Heidelberg and Ludwigshafen.
The S-Bahn operates over 437 km of route in the ...
in two stages in 2003 and 2006.
History
Historically, the trunk line from Mannheim to Saarbrücken is a combination of different lines, due to the former
Bavarian-
Prussian
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
national border and the interests of the towns along the
Blies
The Blies () is a right tributary of the Saar in southwestern Germany (Saarland) and northeastern France (Moselle). The Blies flows from three springs in the Hunsrück near Selbach, Germany. It is roughly 100 km long, ending in the French c ...
and the
Würzbach
Würzbach is a river of Saarland, Germany. It flows into the Blies in Blieskastel.
See also
*List of rivers of Saarland
A list of rivers of Saarland, Germany:
B
*Bickenalb
* Bist
* Blies
* Bos
E
* Ellbach
*Erbach
F
* Franzenbach
G
* Gailb ...
in the shortest possible connection between Homburg and Saarbrücken. The
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
, which formed the land border between
Baden
Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine.
History
The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
and Bavaria, had to be crossed between Ludwigshafen and Mannheim. For these reasons the line was completed in its present form only in 1904, with the exception of the relocation of the
Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof is a railway station at Ludwigshafen am Rhein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. A combination of a wedge-shaped station and a two-level interchange, the station is at the junction on the lines from Mai ...
in 1969. This is reflected in the
chainage
The chain is a unit of length equal to 66 feet (22 yards). It is subdivided into 100 links (PDF) or 4 rods. There are 10 chains in a furlong, and 80 chains in one statute mile. In metric terms, it is 20.1168 m long. By extension, chainage (run ...
.
The initial line was gradually opened from 1847 to 1849 as the Palatine Ludwig Railway (''Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn'') between Ludwigshafen and Bexbach. With the exception of the western Homburg–Bexbach section, it is now part of the Mannheim–Saarbrücken main line.
Ludwigshafen–Homburg
The initial planning of a railway line in the north–south direction within the
Palatinate, which had belonged to Bavaria since 1816, was set aside for an east–west line, which was mainly promoted by Palatine entrepreneurs as facilitating the transport of Saar coal to the Rhine. The planners revised their initial considerations of
St. Ingbert as the western terminus, under pressure from Prussia, which wanted to have the long-term connection to Saarbrücken passing as far as possible over its own territory. That is why the planners considered Bexbach, with an extension via Neunkirchen and the Sulzbach valley. A suggestion that the railway line run via
Zweibrücken
Zweibrücken (; french: Deux-Ponts, ; Palatinate German: ''Zweebrigge'', ; literally translated as "Two Bridges") is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach river.
Name
The name ''Zweibrücken'' means 'two bridges'; olde ...
and from there along the
Schwarzbach via
Rodalben
Rodalben () is a municipality in the Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest, approx. 5 km northeast of Pirmasens.
Rodalben is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective munic ...
,
Annweiler
Annweiler am Trifels (), or Annweiler is a town in the Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Queich, 12 km west of Landau. Annweiler am Trifels station is on the Landau–Saarbrücken ...
and
Langenkandel on the Rhine, did not proceed. The eastern terminus was disputed between
Speyer
Speyer (, older spelling ''Speier'', French: ''Spire,'' historical English: ''Spires''; pfl, Schbaija) is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the river Rhine, Speyer li ...
, the capital of the Palatinate and the emerging port and trading centre of Rheinschanze. A memorandum supporting the interests of Speyer argued that it was an old trading town, whereas Rheinschanze was just a military base that would merely serve the transfer of goods. These endeavours were unsuccessful, as the part of the up-and-coming Rhine-Neckar Region to the east of the Rhine, especially
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
, was the focus of attention and the export of coal to the area beyond the Rhine was considered more important. Proposals for a line along the
Dürkheim Valley also failed, since its side valleys were too low and, above all, the ''Frankensteiner Steige'' (
Frankenstein
''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ex ...
climb) would have had too steep. This route would have required stationary steam engines and rope haulage to overcome the differences in altitude. For this reason it was decided to proceed with a route along the valley through Neustadt.
On 30 March 1838, some businessmen founded the "Bavarian railway company of the Palatine-Rheinschanze-Bexbach Railway" (''Bayerische Eisenbahngesellschaft der Pfalz-Rheinschanz-Bexbacher Bahn'') to develop the project. In May 1844, the company was renamed the
Palatine Ludwig Railway Company (''Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn-Gesellschaft''). From March 1845, construction began under the leadership of
Paul Denis. Coal from the Bexbach area would reach the industrial centres in the south of Germany and
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
via Rheinschanze. The line was named after the Bavarian
King Ludwig I and the town of Ludwigshafen am Rhein, which was then developing from Rheinschanze. The opening of the Ludwigshafenn–Neustadt section took place on 11 June 1847, the Homburg–Kaiserslautern section followed on 2 July 1848 and the Kaiserslautern–Frankenstein section was completed on 2 December of that year. On 6 June of the following year, the Ludwig Railway reached Bexbach in the west. From August 1849, trains could run over the line from Ludwigshafen via Neustadt, Kaiserslautern and Homburg to Bexbach. The main line was completed to
Neunkirchen in 1850 and two years later to
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is S ...
.
Mannheim – Ludwigshafen
Because of the rapid increase in traffic on both sides of the Rhine, there were calls for the construction of a line between Ludwigshafen and Mannheim in Baden from the end of the 1850s. In addition, there were plans for a
Baden Odenwald Railway between
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
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 is ...
, which was completed in 1866. In combination with this, a rail link across the Rhine would connect the Ludwig Railway with Bavarian
Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia (german: Unterfranken) is one of seven districts of Bavaria, Germany. The districts of Lower, Middle and Upper Franconia make up the region of Franconia.
History
After the founding of the Kingdom of Bavaria the state was totally r ...
without crossing
Württemberg
Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart.
Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...
. Added to this was the fact that the upgrading of the Mainz pontoon bridge and the extension of the
Appenweier–Kehl railway to Strasbourg in 1861 threatened to reduce the competitiveness of the Ludwig Railway.
![Eröffnungszugmalu1867](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Er%C3%B6ffnungszugmalu1867.jpg)
In a treaty concluded at the beginning of 1862, the two countries agreed that Baden would take over the construction of the pylons and abutments. Bavaria was given responsibility for the superstructure including tracks and flooring. In July of that year, Baden and Bavarian representatives reached an agreement on the location of the bridge. This required the closure of the original Mannheim station, which was opened in 1840 at the current Tattersall tram stop north of the current Hauptbahnhof as the western terminus of the
Baden main line
The Baden main line (german: Badische Hauptbahn) is a German railway line that was built between 1840 and 1863. It runs through Baden, from Mannheim via Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Offenburg, Freiburg, Basle, Waldshut, Schaffhausen and Singen to Cons ...
. There was no consensus on this approach, so that further planning could only proceed at the beginning of 1864. The
Ludwigshafen–Mannheim train ferry provided a provisional service from 1863. The ferry service quickly reached its limits, so there was strong support in both cities for a bridge. Construction began in February 1865 and the work went well. The masonry material was sourced from the quarries along the
Haardt
The Haardt () is a range of wooded, sandstone hills in the state of Rhineland Palatinate in southwestern Germany. The range is some long and lies within the Palatinate Forest (''Pfälzerwald''). Its highest point is the Kalmit, near Maikammer
...
; The railway carried about 24.000 cubic metres of
ashlar
Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...
. The iron superstructure was installed in July 1866. This was followed by load testing of the bridge on 21 and 22 January 1867 and the first train crossed the Rhine bridge on 25 February. However, there were no festivities. The Rhine bridge was initially single track until the second track opened on 10 August 1867. The railway ran along the southern side of the bridge and the road along the northern side. Mannheim received
a new station with the new line in 1876.
St. Ingbert – Saarbrücken
As early as the end of the 1860s, local committees were involved in the establishment of a connection from St. Ingbert to Saarbrücken. St. Ingbert had been connected to the railway network since 1867 by the
Würzbach Railway (''Würzbachbahn'') which began in
Schwarzenacker. In 1869, both the Bavarian and Prussian governments were approached by committees with related plans. Due to financial stringencies, Bavaria rejected direct intervention, but the Saarbrücken Committee agreed to take over the costs on condition that the line was linked to the
Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway
The Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway (also known in German language, German as the Obere Saartalbahn, Upper Saar Valley Railway) is a two-track main line railway, running from Saarbrücken Central Station, Saarbrücken in the German state of th ...
. The
Franco-Prussian War, however, prevented the conclusion of a treaty.
After the end of the war, the construction of a main railway from
Bruchsal
Bruchsal (; orig. Bruohselle, Bruaselle, historically known in English as Bruxhall; South Franconian: ''Brusel'') is a city at the western edge of the Kraichgau, approximately 20 km northeast of Karlsruhe in the state of Baden-Württemberg, ...
via
Germersheim
Germersheim () is a town in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, of around 20,000 inhabitants. It is also the seat of the Germersheim (district), Germersheim district. The neighboring towns and cities are Speyer, Landau, Philippsburg, Karlsru ...
,
Landau
Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...
and
Zweibrücken
Zweibrücken (; french: Deux-Ponts, ; Palatinate German: ''Zweebrigge'', ; literally translated as "Two Bridges") is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach river.
Name
The name ''Zweibrücken'' means 'two bridges'; olde ...
to
St. Ingbert was planned, which was finally built in the period from 1872 to 1877. The
Palatinate Railway
The Palatine Railways (german: Pfälzische Eisenbahnen), often abbreviated to Palatinate Railway (''Pfalzbahn'') was the name of the railway division and administration responsible for all private railway companies in the Bavarian Palatinate fro ...
(''Pfälzische Eisenbahnen''), which the Palatine Ludwig Railway Company had been part of since 1870, benefitted from the adoption of an interest rate guarantee law on 28 April 1872. Nevertheless, the talks with Saarbrücken were difficult as the approach to the very busy
St. Johann-Saarbrücken station and the allocation of railway operations caused problems. In 1877, a treaty that guaranteed the construction of the line was concluded. This meant that
St. Ingbert station
Sankt Ingbert station (german: Bahnhof Sankt Ingbert) is a railway station in St. Ingbert, in the federal state of Saarland in Germany. The station was opened in 1867, with the concourse in its current form opening in 1879. It is located on the edg ...
had to be completely rebuilt. It received a new entrance building and its tracks were raised one metre higher. Land was acquired in the winter of that year and the construction began in March of the following year. The connection was 12.568 kilometres long. The tracks were built partly over rocks, but major earth moving was necessary.
The connection was opened on 15 October 1879. It amounted to an extension of the Würzbach Railway (Schwarzenacker–St. Ingbert), which had been completed in 1866 and 1867 and branched off the
Homburg–Zweibrücken railway. Its main purpose was to provide a connection for coal trains from the Saarbrücken area to the
South Palatinate Railway (''Südpfalzstrecke'';
Landau
Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...
–
Zweibrücken
Zweibrücken (; french: Deux-Ponts, ; Palatinate German: ''Zweebrigge'', ; literally translated as "Two Bridges") is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach river.
Name
The name ''Zweibrücken'' means 'two bridges'; olde ...
), which opened in 1875, to avoid the detour via Neunkirchen and Bexbach and a reversal in
Homburg station. In this way the route used for transport of coal was shortened and the costs were reduced. The same thing applied to products from industrial towns such as
Dillingen and
Saarlouis
Saarlouis (; french: link=no, Sarrelouis, ; formerly Sarre-Libre and Saarlautern) is a town in Saarland, Germany, capital of the district of Saarlouis. In 2020, the town had a population of 34,409. Saarlouis, as the name implies, is located on t ...
, as well as from neighbouring
Lorraine
Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...
(then German ''Lothringen''). In addition, this resulted in a shorter connection between Homburg and Saarbrücken than the previous route via Bexbach and Neunkirchen.
Homburg – St. Ingbert
The
Hasseler Tunnel
Hasseler Tunnel was a 507-metre tunnel in Saarland, 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 ...
on the Würzbach Railway east of St. Ingbert became increasingly an operational problem due to its geological instability. The first option was a new lining for the existing tunnel, the second a new tunnel and the third a completely new route to
Rohrbach Rohrbach or Röhrbach may refer to:
Places Municipalities in Switzerland
*Rohrbach, Switzerland, in the canton of Bern
Municipalities in Germany
*Rohrbach, Bavaria, in the district of Pfaffenhofen, Bavaria
*Rohrbach, Birkenfeld, in the district o ...
that would not need a tunnel. Due to the
strategic importance of the line, the
Imperial Government
The name imperial government (german: Reichsregiment) denotes two organs, created in 1500 and 1521, in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation to enable a unified political leadership, with input from the Princes. Both were composed of the em ...
intervened in the matter and chose the third option. Since the Palatinate Railway was not able to finance it fully, the Imperial Government subsidised the project. An approximately 5.7 kilometre long loop was built between Würzbach and St. Ingbert through Rohrbach and put in operation on 7 September 1895. The closing and dismantling of the direct connection from Würzbach to St. Ingbert followed and all trains ran on the new line between Hassel and Rohrbach.
Already during the planning of the Würzbach Railway both Homburg and St. Ingbert had originally promoted a connection by the shortest route, which was, however, opposed by the communities along the Blies and the Würzbach. For strategic reasons, the decision was made to build a direct link from Homburg via Limbach and Kirkel to Rohrbach. This line opened on 1 January 1904; at the same time a second track was built between Scheidt and Rohrbach. The line was initially designated as part of the
Glan Valley Railway
The Glan Valley Railway (german: Glantalbahn) is a non-electrified line along the Glan river, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It consists of the Glan-Münchweiler–Altenglan section, which was built as part of the Landstuhl–Kuse ...
(''Glantalbahn''), which was opened on 1 May of the same year and was also built as a strategic railway.
Further development (1904–1919)
A connecting curve in the Saarbrücken district of Halberg from the Scheidt direction towards Brebach on the
line to Saargemünd (the official name of Sarreguemines at the time) was commissioned on 29 July 1905. A
flying junction
A flying junction or flyover is a railway junction at which one or more diverging or converging tracks in a multiple-track route cross other tracks on the route by bridge to avoid conflict with other train movements. A more technical term is "gr ...
was opened in 1907 on the Schifferstadt – Ludwigshafen section of the line between the stations of
Mutterstadt
Mutterstadt is a municipality in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Though classified as rural the municipality does contain urbanized areas.
It is situated approximately 7 km southwest of the city center of Ludwigshafe ...
and
Schifferstadt
Schifferstadt ( pfl, Schiwwerschdadd, ''Schiffaschdad'', or ''Schiwwerschdadt'') is a town in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. If not including Ludwigshafen (the district free city that is the capital of Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis), ...
, which had been rebuilt with four tracks, starting in 1899. This avoided the delays that trains had previously experienced in Schifferstadt.
Railway telephones were installed on the Kaiserslautern–Homburg and St. Ingbert–Saarbrücken sections at this time. The Ludwigshafen–St. Ingbert section of line, together with the other railways within the Palatinate, were absorbed into the
Royal Bavarian State Railways
The Royal Bavarian State Railways (''Königliche Bayerische Staats-Eisenbahnen'' or ''K.Bay.Sts.B.'') was the state railway company for the Kingdom of Bavaria. It was founded in 1844. The organisation grew into the second largest of the German ...
(''Königlich Bayerische Staatseisenbahnen'') on 1 January 1909.
![Bahnhof Einsiedlerhof 1914](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Bahnhof_Einsiedlerhof_1914.jpg)
In 1914, there were plans to upgrade the whole main line. The outbreak of the First World War prevented this. At the beginning of the war, numerous military trains ran over the line from 9 to 16 August. 40 trains ran from Mannheim on a daily basis, 20 of them continued to Saarbrücken and the rest ran onto the Maximilian Railway in Neustadt. Between Kaiserslautern and Saarbrücken, 20 trains per day came from
Worms Worms may refer to:
*Worm, an invertebrate animal with a tube-like body and no limbs
Places
*Worms, Germany, a city
**Worms (electoral district)
*Worms, Nebraska, U.S.
*Worms im Veltlintal, the German name for Bormio, Italy
Arts and entertainme ...
. Some trains also reached Saarbrücken from the Glan Valley. 40 trains a day starting in
Germersheim
Germersheim () is a town in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, of around 20,000 inhabitants. It is also the seat of the Germersheim (district), Germersheim district. The neighboring towns and cities are Speyer, Landau, Philippsburg, Karlsru ...
, ran on the Rohrbach–Saarbrücken section. Scheduled passenger services had to be temporarily withdrawn, especially in the Saarbrücken area. Passenger services only recommenced after the operation of military trains had declined. The further course of the war affected the line and some of its structures.
After Germany had lost the war and the French military had invaded the Palatinate, the section of the line west of Hauptstuhl was closed to passenger traffic on 1 December 1918; three days later, however, it was reopened to passenger traffic. Rail operations across the Rhine to Mannheim was blockaded from 6 December. Freight traffic to Baden was permitted again from May of the following year and passenger trains ran again between Mannheim and Ludwigshafen from 10 August.
Between the First and Second World Wars (1920–1945)
![Zollbahnhof Altstadt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Zollbahnhof_Altstadt.png)
The Homburg–Saarbrücken section became part of the newly created
Territory of the Saar Basin
The Territory of the Saar Basin (german: Saarbeckengebiet, ; french: Territoire du bassin de la Sarre) was a region of Germany occupied and governed by the United Kingdom and France from 1920 to 1935 under a League of Nations mandate. It had its ...
(''Saarbeckengebiet'') on 10 March 1920, which was founded at the initiative of the victorious powers under the
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
with a duration of 15 years under
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
control. During this period it was within the French customs territory. Consequently, the Sarr Railway (''Saareisenbahn'') was administered by the Territory, which consisted of the former Prussian ''Eisenbahndirektion'' (
railway division) of Saarbrücken. In this context, the
Homburg (Saar) West customs station
Homburg or Hombourg may refer to
Places In Germany
* Homburg, Saarland, capital of the Saarpfalz district of Saarland
* Bad Homburg vor der Höhe, town and spa in Hesse
* Homburg Forest, (''Homburgwald'') a hill range in Lower Saxony
* Homburg, a ...
(''Zollbahnhof Homburg (Saar) West''), which handled freight traffic, was built. Customs controls for passenger traffic were handled in the stations of Homburg and Eichelscheid. The newly founded
Deutsche Reichsbahn
The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'', also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the regiona ...
(DR) managed the remaining part of the line and integrated it into the newly founded Reichsbahn division (''Reichsbahndirektion'') of Ludwigshafen two years later. As early as 1920, DR put into operation the
Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard, which replaced Kaiserslautern yard. The two main railway tracks immediately west of Kaiserslautern were rerouted directly north of the marshalling yard because of the limited space available.
On 7 March 1923, the so-called ''Regiebetrieb'' (military operation) commenced, which meant that the railway was operated by the French military until the beginning of 1924. In this context, operations were blockaded from 30 May to 7 June. In 1926, a two-track freight railway was established between Kaiserslautern and the Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard. It included several halts, which were predominantly used for operational purposes. It was clear that the Rhine Bridge was no longer able to cope with the heavier locomotives. For this reason, a new railway bridge was built immediately adjacent to the 1867 bridge; it was opened in 1932. From 1933, the
Communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
resistance to Nazism used the Homburg (Saar) West customs station in particular for their purposes.
With the reabsorption of the Saar area into the
German Reich
German ''Reich'' (lit. German Realm, German Empire, from german: Deutsches Reich, ) was the constitutional name for the German nation state that existed from 1871 to 1945. The ''Reich'' became understood as deriving its authority and sovereignty ...
in 1935, the Reichsbahn was responsible for the whole route and the customs controls were removed. The ''Saareisenbahn'' was renamed as the ''Reichsbahndirektion Saarbrücken''. This led to the gradual dissolution of the railway division of Ludwigshafen over the next two years. The Saarbrücken–Hochspeyer section came under the control of the railway division of Saarbrücken in 1936, the rest with effect from April 1937 came under the control of the railway division of Mainz.
After the outbreak of
World War II
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 opposin ...
on 1 September 1939, the line was again used by numerous military transports; as early as 1938 deportations to
Dachau
,
, commandant = List of commandants
, known for =
, location = Upper Bavaria, Southern Germany
, built by = Germany
, operated by = ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS)
, original use = Political prison
, construction ...
had taken place in Kaiserslautern and Ludwigshafen.
From 1943 onwards the line was regularly exposed to bombardment, initially the railway lines in Saarbrücken and Ludwigshafen were affected. This was followed by the bombing of Kaiserslautern and Homburg in 1944 and St. Ingbert towards the end of the year. As a result, railway installations were considerably affected. The entrance building of
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof is a through-station in the German city of Kaiserslautern and one of seven stations in the city. It is a stop on the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn and Deutsche Bahn’s Intercity-Express network and a hub for all the regional tra ...
was, for example, almost completely destroyed on 28 September and 18 December. The same was true for
Hauptbahnhof Homburg.
Lambrecht (Pfalz) station was destroyed by fire in March 1945 during combat operations.
On 20 March 1945, the
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
destroyed the bridge over the Rhine to slow the Allied advance. After the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to:
Military frontiers
*Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany
*Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany
*Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
reached the Palatinate in March 1945, the US Army resumed operations on the section of the line to the west of the Rhine to procure supplies. The first trains reached Ludwigshafen from
Pirmasens
Pirmasens (; pfl, Bärmesens (also ''Bermesens'' or ''Bärmasens'')) is an independent town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. It was famous for the manufacture of shoes. The surrounding rural district was called ''Lan ...
via
Landau
Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...
and
Neustadt on 25 March. From the end of March onwards, a single-track
pile bridge
A pile bridge is a structure that uses foundations consisting of long poles (referred to as piles), which are made of wood, concrete or steel and which are hammered into the soft soils beneath the bridge until the end of the pile reaches a hard ...
was built for railway traffic between Mannheim and Ludwigshafen and was put into operation by the
Seventh United States Army
The Seventh Army was a United States army created during World War II that evolved into the United States Army Europe (USAREUR) during the 1950s and 1960s. It served in North Africa and Italy in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations and Fran ...
at the end of April. From June, the bridge of 1867 had temporarily taken into railway operations again. The flying junction between Schifferstadt and Limburgerhof, which had been affected by the combat operations, was taken out of service and the line now consisted of only two tracks in this area.
The Halberg–Brebach connecting curve, which was opened in 1905 to the east of Saarbrücken, was closed and then dismantled.
Post-war period, electrification and reconstruction in Ludwigshafen (1945–1971)
In August 1945, the route was released for passenger traffic. The section of the line to the west of the Rhine came to under the control of the ''Vereinigung der Südwestdeutschen Eisenbahnen'' (Union of south-west German railways) from 1947 to 1949 during the French occupation. The Homburg–Saarbrücken section once again became part of the territory of
Saarland
The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...
, the rail network of which had its own administration from 1947, initially called the ''Saarländische Eisenbahnen'' (Saarland railways, SEB) and, from 1951, the ''Eisenbahnen des Saarlandes'' (Railways of the Saarland, EdS). Homburg became a customs station again. From 1949,
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB (German Federal Railway) was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) on 7 September 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG). The DB remained ...
(DB) administered the section east of Homburg and integrated it into the Bundesbahn division of Mainz, which was assigned all railway lines within the newly created state of
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
.
![LU Hbf Februar 1958](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/LU_Hbf_Februar_1958.jpg)
At the turn of the year in 1954/1955, the DB restored the Rhine crossing to its condition in 1932. With the integration of Saarland into the
Federal Republic of 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 between ...
, it became responsible for the whole line; the Bundesbahn division of Saarbrücken replaced the EdS. The
Germersheim Rhine Bridge, which was rebuilt in March 1945, contributed to the fact that through traffic increasingly concentrated on the main line from Mannheim to Saarbrücken. In May 1959, the Bundesbahn established a connection between Mundenheim and Mannheim to bypass Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof.
Because of its great importance for long-distance traffic, the electrification of the line began in 1960. Corresponding plans already existed immediately after the war on the French side for the Saarland section, in order to link it more closely to France. Electric locomotives could operate over the Saarbrücken–Homburg section from 8 March 1960 and on the Homburg–Kaiserslautern section from 18 May 1961. The electrification of the remaining section had been delayed mainly because of the numerous tunnels between Kaiserslautern and Neustadt that had to be enlarged. For this reason, this section was temporary only accessible on a single-track basis; the trains were allowed to run at 40 kilometres per hour at most. Due to the restricted capacity, several freight trains ran over the
Landau–Rohrbach and
Langmeil–Monsheim railways towards Worms from 20 March 1960. The line could be operated electrically along its whole length from 12 March 1964. The flying junction that had existed since 1907 north of Schifferstadt was demolished with the electrification.
The tracks between Limburgerhof and Ludwigshafen that had been used exclusively for through freight traffic since 1899 had already been abandoned and were used for the storage of freight wagons.
Ludwigshafener Hauptbahnhof was an operational obstacle because of its construction as a terminus. In the early 1960s, construction work for a through station started at a new location. DB took it into operation in May 1969 and it was officially opened on 1 June. Its predecessor was then demolished along with the associated railway tracks. With the dissolution of the railway division of Mainz on 1 June 1971, the Ludwigshafen–Frankenstein section was transferred to the responsibility of the railway division of Karlsruhe.
From 1 August of that year, the railway division of Saarbrücken was responsible for the entire section of the line from immediately west of Frankenstein.
Expansion plans in the 1970s and 1990s
The development program for the network of Deutsche Bundesbahn presented in 1970 contained a newly built railway (''Neubaustrecke'') between
Hochspeyer
Hochspeyer is a municipality in the Kaiserslautern (district), district of Kaiserslautern, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest (Pfälzer Wald), approx. 10 km east of Kaiserslautern.
Hochspeyer was the se ...
and Ludwigshafen on a straightened route by 1985. It would be ten kilometres shorter than the existing line. In the
Frankenthal
Frankenthal (Pfalz) ( pfl, Frongedahl) is a town in southwestern Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
History
Frankenthal was first mentioned in 772. In 1119 an Augustinian monastery was built here, the ruins of which — known, aft ...
area there would be a link with the
Mainz–Ludwigshafen railway
The Mainz–Worms–Ludwigshafen Railway connects Mainz via Worms to Ludwigshafen in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. From there trains cross the Rhine via Mannheim or run south towards Speyer. It was opened in 1853 and is one of the old ...
. In the planning of mid-1971, the project for a new railway, which was to be built by 1985, was assigned the second highest priority. The Federal Transport Plan (''Bundesverkehrswegeplan'') of 1973 also contained plans for a new line between Kaiserslautern and Ludwigshafen. It was never built.
In 1985 and 1986, a Franco-German working group developed six options for the route of the
LGV Est
The Ligne à Grande Vitesse Est européenne (East European High Speed Line), typically shortened to LGV Est, is a French high-speed rail line that connects Vaires-sur-Marne (near Paris) and Vendenheim (near Strasbourg). The line halved the trav ...
and the connecting routes from Germany. It examined various options for new and upgraded lines between Saarbrücken and Ludwigshafen. The only option involving an upgrade of the existing line, estimated to cost 415 million
Deutsche Mark
The Deutsche Mark (; English: ''German mark''), abbreviated "DM" or "D-Mark" (), was the official currency of West Germany from 1948 until 1990 and later the unified Germany from 1990 until the adoption of the euro in 2002. In English, it was ...
s, would have enabled a travel time reduction of 21 minutes. A second option provided an additional section of new line through the
Palatinate Forest with several tunnels; it would have reduced travel time by another seven minutes at an estimated additional cost of 865 million D-Marks. A third option with a new line between Saarbrücken and Hochspeyer largely parallel to
Bundesautobahn 6
, also known as Via Carolina (between Nuremberg and the Czech border continuing to Prague - by czech motorway D5) is a 477 km (296.4 mi) long German autobahn. It starts at the French border near Saarbrücken in the west and ends at t ...
with an estimated cost of 1.8 billion D-Marks would have provided a travel time reduction of 18 minutes.
These plans were not implemented. The Mannheim–Weidenthal section of the line was integrated in the
Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar
The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (VRN) is a transport association covering parts of the German states of Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse in south-west Germany. Founded in 1989, it initially served the Rhein Neckar Area, but ha ...
(Rhien-Neckar transport association, VRN), founded in 1989.
From 12 to 18 September 1990, the
Operation Steel Box
Operation Steel Box, also known as Operation Golden Python (German name for the transport in Germany: Aktion Lindwurm), was a 1990 joint U.S.-West German operation which moved over 100,000 U.S. chemical weapons from Germany to Johnston Atoll.
Ba ...
took place between Hauptstuhl and Ludwigshafen.
The transport ministers of Germany and France agreed on 22 May 1992 to build the ''Paris–Ostfrankreich–Süddeutschland'' (Paris–East France–South Germany, POS) high-speed railway,
including the Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway. Subsequently, there was a limited upgrade. In the middle of 1993, an expert report was commissioned by the State of Rhineland-Palatinate and the Federal Ministry of Transport, which presented four different options for new and upgraded lines on the Hochspeyer–Neustadt section. The travel time improvements to be achieved were estimated to be between 1.43 minutes for selective improvements with an estimated cost of 10 million D-Marks and up to eight minutes with the construction of a new line at a cost of 1.39 billion D-Marks.
Developments since the railway reform
During the German rail reform, the line became the property of
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 ...
on 1 January 1994. From 1995 onwards, ''Neustadt (Weinstr) Böbig'' halt, which is located in the eastern area of
Neustadt Hauptbahnhof, could be served by trains on the Ludwigshafen–Neustadt line, although previously it had only been served by trains on the Palatine Northern Railway. In 1996, VRN tickets could be used as far as Kaiserslautern.
From 1993 to 1999, the number of passengers on the Weidenthal–Neustadt section rose from 1500 to 3270 per day. Neidenfels station went into operation between Lambrecht and Weidenthal in 1998. In May of the same year, the Federal Government and Deutsche Bahn signed a financing agreement worth 351.4 million DM to upgrade the line between Mannheim and Saarbrücken. This work was expected to be completed by 2004.
The first stage saw an upgrade for
tilting trains with a top speed of 160 km/h. The tracks on the
St. Ingbert–
Kirkel
Kirkel is a municipality in the Saarpfalz district in Saarland, Germany. It is situated approximatively 8 km southeast of Neunkirchen, and 20 km east/northeast of Saarbrücken.
Overview
A rather well-preserved castle ruin
Ruins ...
and
Neustadt an der Weinstraße
Neustadt an der Weinstraße (, formerly known as ; lb, Neustadt op der Wäistrooss ; pfl, Naischdadt) is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With 53,300 inhabitants , it is the largest town called ''Neustadt''.
Geography
Location
T ...
–
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
sections are now ready for a line speed of 200 kilometres per hour.
A bypass was built, which has allowed long-distance passenger and freight trains to bypass Schifferstadt since 2003.
![Neustadtsbahn](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Neustadtsbahn.JPG)
In 2000 the Bruchmühlbach-Miesau–Frankenstein section became part of the newly founded ''Westpfalz-Verkehrsverbund'' (Western Palatinate transport association, WVV). This became part of the VRN in 2006. The connecting curve at
Kirkel
Kirkel is a municipality in the Saarpfalz district in Saarland, Germany. It is situated approximatively 8 km southeast of Neunkirchen, and 20 km east/northeast of Saarbrücken.
Overview
A rather well-preserved castle ruin
Ruins ...
to Geistkircher Hof had been closed by 2002. In December 2003, the
Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn
The Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn ''(S-Bahn RheinNeckar)'' forms the backbone of the urban rail transport network of the Rhine Neckar Area, including the cities of Mannheim, Heidelberg and Ludwigshafen.
The S-Bahn operates over 437 km of route in the ...
went into operation and the Mannheim–Kaiserslautern section of the line was integrated into it. Construction of a second two-track Rhine bridge between Mannheim and Ludwigshafen began in 1997. In 2006, the S-Bahn reached Homburg, which since then has formed the western terminus of the VRN. The introduction of the S-Bahn operation resulted in the modernisation of the stations along the line; The platforms have since been raised to a height of 76 centimetres to enable level access to the trains. The platforms between Ludwigshafen and Kaiserslautern are on average 210 metres-long, from Kaiserslautern they are 140 metres-long.
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Mitte station was built between the stations of Mannheim and
Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof is a railway station at Ludwigshafen am Rhein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. A combination of a wedge-shaped station and a two-level interchange, the station is at the junction on the lines from Mai ...
to overcome the great distance of the Hauptbahnhof from the city centre as a result of its relocation of in 1969.
Weidenthal station
Weidenthal station is the station of the town of Weidenthal in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It lies on the Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway, which essentially consists of the ''Pfälzischen Ludwigsbahn'' (Palatine Ludwig Railway), whi ...
was rebuilt with two new platforms about 800 metres closer to Frankenstein.
On 14 May 2004, DB and the then French infrastructure operator
RFF signed a declaration of intent on the development of the infrastructure of the Paris – Saarbrücken – Ludwigshafen corridor (later extended to Frankfurt) with ERTMS and ETCS.
Clearing for speeds above 160 km/h required train protection with
ETCS
The European Train Control System (ETCS) is the signalling and control component of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS). It is a replacement for legacy train protection systems and designed to replace the many incompatible s ...
Level 2 and should have been implemented by the end of 2008, but was later postponed. The then plans proposed the remote control of the route from the Deutsche Bahn operations centre in Karlsruhe. The contract for equipping the line with ETCS was awarded to Ansaldo in December 2007.
Around €50 million was spent on the upgrade in 2007. The route through the
Palatinate Forest with its numerous tunnels between Neustadt an der Weinstraße and Kaiserslautern remained structurally unchanged contrary to the original plans. The ''Saarländischer Verkehrsverbund'' (Saarländ Transport Association, SaarVV) was founded in 2005; it is responsible for the Homburg–Saarbrücken section. Starting from mid-2010, the section between Ludwigshafen and Limburgerhof received a third track, which went into operation at the end of 2014. The freight track that have existed since 1900 were rebuilt.
The equipping of lines with ETCS Level 2 has been reserved for the German Unity Transport Project No. 8 (''Verkehrsprojekt Deutsche Einheit Nr. 8'', the rail corridor between
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
and
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
) and freight corridor A (
Duisburg
Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in Nor ...
–
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
). The planning is being revised (as of 2014).
Some upgrading work is ongoing on the line and more sections of the line are being upgraded in order to have their maximum speed increased from 100 km/h or 160 km/h to 200 km/h. The forecasted completion date is end of 2019.
Operations
Passenger services
During the development of the route
Since the Ludwig Railway was not opened continually from east to west,
stage coaches
A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
, were used to take over the traffic between the two parts of the line. From 1850, the trains operated in the west to Neunkirchen and two years later to Saarbrücken. After the completion of the
Mainz–Ludwigshafen railway
The Mainz–Worms–Ludwigshafen Railway connects Mainz via Worms to Ludwigshafen in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. From there trains cross the Rhine via Mannheim or run south towards Speyer. It was opened in 1853 and is one of the old ...
in 1853, three passenger trains per day travelled between Homburg and Ludwigshafen on the Mainz–
Paris
Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
route until Prussia opened the
Nahe Valley Railway
The Nahe Valley Railway (german: Nahetalbahn) is a two-track, partially electrified main line railway in the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, which runs for almost 100 kilometres along the Nahe (Rhine), Nahe. It was built by the ...
in 1860. After that the trains of the Ludwig Railway ended in Neunkirchen. Long-distance services on the east–west route were not possible in the following years since fast trains on the Ludwigshafen–Neunkirchen route stopped at almost all the stations on the line.
Express trains ran between Ludwigshafen and Neustadt on the
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
–
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
route for the first time in 1860. At the outbreak of the
Franco-Prussian War, train traffic came to a standstill on 23 July 1870. On 19 August, services on the Palatine railways resumed with restrictions; express trains were allowed to run only if no military trains occupied the line. Local services had to operate at intervals that allowed military services to run freely.
![Fahrplan1884](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Fahrplan1884.jpg)
From mid-1872 onwards, some express trains between Cologne and Basel ran over the Neustadt–Hochspeyer section of the line and over the
Alsenz Valley Railway
The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from Hochspeyer via Winnweiler and Alsenz to Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The line closely follows the Alsenz river from the Enkenbac ...
, which had been completed the year before. In 1875, an express train operated on the Ludwigshafe–Neustadt–Metz–Paris route. Since the Ludwigshafen–Mannheim section opened in 1867, primarily for freight traffic, there were only shuttle services between the two stations. The opening of the line from St. Ingbert to Saarbrücken via Schwarzenacker and Bierbach in 1879, created a shorter connection to Saarbrücken, which was used by services on the Ludwigshafen–Saarbrücken route. Nevertheless, there were connections to Neunkirchen over the old Ludwig Railway.
Most of the express trains were limited to the Mainz–Ludwigshafen–Homburg–Neunkirchen route. In later years, long-distance trains running on the Munich–Oostende route using the
Landau–Rohrbach railway
The Landau–Rohrbach railway (sometimes called the Südpfalzbahn—"South Palatinate Railway"—or the Queichtalbahn—"Queich Valley Railway") is a major line running from Landau in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate to Rohrbach in the Saa ...
, opened in 1875, ran between Saarbrücken and St. Ingbert. In 1884, local services on the Neunkirchen–Worms route ran between Homburg and Ludwigshafen.
After the completion of the line
After completion of the shortest possible route from Homburg to Saarbrücken via Limbach and Kirkel, the new route was used by through traffic. The number of passenger trains rose significantly. Trains from Neunkirchen only ran as far as Kaiserslautern. Fast trains on the Saarbrücken–St. Ingbert–Rohrbach section ran to Landau and beyond. The
railway to Wörth, which branched off in Schifferstadt, including
its extension to Strasbourg, was double-track from 1906. Most of the express trains to Strasbourg, which previously ran to Neustadt and, after a reversal, continued over the Maximilian Railway to Alsace, now ran from Schifferstadt via Speyer, Germersheim, Wörth and
Lauterburg
Lauterbourg ( or ; ) (historically in English: Lauterburgh) is a commune and Bas-Rhin department in the Grand Est administrative region in north-eastern France. Situated on the German border and not far from the German city of Karlsruhe, it is ...
. Passenger trains on the
line to Kusel, which branched from Landstuhl, usually operated from/to Kaiserslautern. During the First World War, the passenger services were significantly reduced due to the prevailing priorities. For example, there was no continuous passenger train from Ludwigshafen to Saarbrücken. Local services were largely restricted to the Homburg–Kaiserslautern and Kaiserslautern–Neustadt sections, with some continuing to Ludwigshafen. Between Homburg and Saarbrücken, regional trains operated both via the route through Limbach and Kirkel that had existed since 1904 and over the older Schwarzenacker–
Bierbach route.
In 1920, some trains running between Saarbrücken and Homburg continued over the
Glan Valley Railway
The Glan Valley Railway (german: Glantalbahn) is a non-electrified line along the Glan river, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It consists of the Glan-Münchweiler–Altenglan section, which was built as part of the Landstuhl–Kuse ...
to
Bad Münster am Stein
Bad or BAD may refer to:
Common meanings
*Evil, the opposite of moral good
* Erroneous, inaccurate or incorrect
*Unhealthy, or counter to well-being
*Antagonist, the threat or obstacle of moral good
Acronyms
* BAD-2, a Soviet armored trolley ...
or
Kusel
Kusel (; written ''Cusel'' until 1865) is a town in the Kusel (district), Kusel Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the Kusel-Altenglan ''Verbandsgemeinde'' and is also the district seat.
The well-kno ...
. The annexation of the Saar area by Germany in 1935 caused an upsurge in local traffic, since the train trips no longer had to be broken in Homburg.
From the 1930s onwards, trains once again ran on the Berlin–Neunkirchen route in the east–west direction. The outbreak of the Second World War initially had no effect on passenger services. In 1941, an express train ran from Berlin via Paris to Madrid. In 1944, there were services for soldiers on leave using the main line from Mannheim to Saarbrücken on the Stuttgart–Saarbrücken, Frankfurt–Paris, Stuttgart–Calais and Vienna–Metz routes.
In the Second World War, with few exceptions, there were no direct local services from Ludwigshafen to Saarbrücken. Shuttle services operated between Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof and Einsiedlerhof, to which the Reichsbahn assigned the timetable number of 279d.
Post-war period and Deutsche Bundesbahn
With the renewed separation of the area now called Saarland, in which the Eichelscheid–Saarbrücken section is found, only a few trains crossed over the border between Bruchmühlbach and Eichelscheid. They served only the workers employed in the Saarland. Regional services between Homburg and Saarbrücken ran both via Limbach and Kirkel and via Schwarzenacker and Bierbach, as in the First World War. At the beginning of the 1950s, a so-called ''Städteschnellzug'' ("city express", a supplement-free express train) ran on the Kusel–Heidelberg route between Landstuhl and Mannheim. In 1954, it was downgraded to a semi-fast train (''Eilzug''). It was discontinued in 1979. The ''Bundenthaler'', which had started in Neustadt before the Second World War, was reactivated in 1951 and now departed from
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
and ran to Neustadt, where it reversed and ran to Landau over the
Neustadt–Wissembourg railway and then used the
Landau–Rohrbach railway
The Landau–Rohrbach railway (sometimes called the Südpfalzbahn—"South Palatinate Railway"—or the Queichtalbahn—"Queich Valley Railway") is a major line running from Landau in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate to Rohrbach in the Saa ...
to
Hinterweidenthal
Hinterweidenthal is a municipality in Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in E ...
. Between Ludwigshafen and Neustadt, it stopped at all stations. This service ran until 1976. From the end of the 1950s, DB operated an express train service to Paris over the
Alsenz Valley Railway
The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from Hochspeyer via Winnweiler and Alsenz to Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The line closely follows the Alsenz river from the Enkenbac ...
east of Kaiserslautern. At the same time, through cars ran through to Rome. A fast train also ran from Heidelberg to Saarbrücken.
At first, there was still no regular interval timetable. The line between Mannheim and Kaiserslautern was used by an express service on the Würzburg–Pirmasens route. Between 1970 and 1975, the line was used by the
TEE
A tee is a stand used in sport to support and elevate a stationary ball prior to striking with a foot, club or bat. Tees are used extensively in golf, tee-ball, baseball, American football, and rugby.
Etymology
The word tee is derived from the ...
50/51 service (
Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...
). There was a clear improvement in long-distance services from May 1985 onwards. With the introduction of the Saar-Palatinate regular interval timetable (''Saar-Pfalz-Takt'') there were hourly operations between Mannheim and Saarbrücken with
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 ...
(IC),
D-Züg and
Eilzug An Eilzug (pl: ''Eilzüge'', cs, spěšný vlak, sk, zrýchlený vlak, English: ''Regional fast train'') is a type of passenger train in German-speaking countries which roughly equates to a British 'fast-stopping train' or 'semi-fast train'. The t ...
services. In 1989, a framework agreement was signed between the Saarland and DB for new local services, including a ''CityBahn'' service on the Saarbrücken–Kaiserslautern route with reduced stops and a Citybahn service on the Saarbrücken–Homburg route with stops at all stations.
From 1991 onwards the IR 27
InterRegio service ran on the Saarbrücken–Stuttgart route, continuing to
Lindau
Lindau (german: Lindau (Bodensee), ''Lindau am Bodensee''; ; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Lindou'') is a major Town#Germany, town and Lindau (island), island on the eastern side of Lake Constance (''Bodensee'' in German) in Bavaria, Ge ...
and
Bregenz
Bregenz (; gsw, label= Vorarlbergian, Breagaz ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switze ...
at two-hour intervals. At the same time, there were the first IC services on the Saarbrücken–Dresden route and
EuroCity
EuroCity, abbreviated as EC, is a cross-border train category within the European inter-city rail network. In contrast to trains allocated to the lower-level "IC" (InterCity) category, EC trains are international services that meet 20 criteri ...
services between Paris and Frankfurt. Both long-haul routes also operated at two-hour intervals. One year later, IC trains replaced all D-Züg services.
Deutsche Bahn (since 1994)
The Mannheim–Homburg section has been used since the beginning by part of lines S1 (
Homburg –
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
–
Neustadt –
Schifferstadt
Schifferstadt ( pfl, Schiwwerschdadd, ''Schiffaschdad'', or ''Schiwwerschdadt'') is a town in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. If not including Ludwigshafen (the district free city that is the capital of Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis), ...
–
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
–
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
–
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
–
Neckargemünd
Neckargemünd ( pfl, Neggergmin) is a town in Germany, in the district of Rhein-Neckar-Kreis, state of Baden-Württemberg. It lies on the Neckar, 10 km upriver from Heidelberg at the confluence with the river Elsenz. This confluence of the t ...
–
Eberbach –
Mosbach
Mosbach (; South Franconian: ''Mossbach'') is a town in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the seat of the Neckar-Odenwald district and has a population of approximately 25,000 distributed in six boroughs: Mosbach Town, Lohrbach, N ...
–
Osterburken
Osterburken () is a town in the Neckar-Odenwald district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 28 km southwest of Tauberbischofsheim, 50 km northeast of Heilbronn, 90 km east of Heidelberg, 60 km southwest of Würzb ...
) and S2 (same route, but only from Kaiserslautern and only to Mosbach) of the
Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn
The Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn ''(S-Bahn RheinNeckar)'' forms the backbone of the urban rail transport network of the Rhine Neckar Area, including the cities of Mannheim, Heidelberg and Ludwigshafen.
The S-Bahn operates over 437 km of route in the ...
. Between Mannheim and Kaiserslautern this results in services every half hour. Hourly
Regional-Express
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 f ...
services run between Kaiserslautern and Saarbrücken and hourly
Regionalbahn services run between Homburg and Saarbrücken and over the
Saar Railway
The Saarbrücken–Trier railway, known in German as the ''Saarstrecke'' (literally the "Saar line") in the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. It connects Saarbrücken and Trier. It was opened in 1858 and 1860 and is one o ...
to
Merzig
Merzig (, french: Mercy, ''Moselle Franconian:'' ''Meerzisch''/''Miërzësch'') is a town in Saarland, Germany. It is the capital of the district Merzig-Wadern, with about 30,000 inhabitants in 17 municipalities on 108 km². It is situated o ...
and
Trier
Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...
. Regionalbahn services from Kusel to Kaiserslautern are added in Landstuhl. In the peak hour, two pairs of RE services run on the Mannheim–Saarbrücken route, which stop at the IC stations and in Landstuhl and St. Ingbert.
As of November 2000, the Intercity-Express services were operated with tilting trains. At the timetable change in May 2001, the hourly service was thinned out by DB and only operated hourly in the main traffic direction during the peak (in the morning to Mannheim, in the evening to Saarbrücken). Some IR services were replaced by RE services. IC services replaced the last IR services from 14 December 2002 and long-distance services were further reduced. An upgrade of the route took place from June 2007 with ICE trains running on the
Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
–
Paris
Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
route. The stops in Neustadt and Homburg dropped. Due to the low traveling speed (only about 100 km/h between Mannheim and Saarbrücken), it is not certain that these high-speed trains will continue to run over this route in the long term. A route via
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
and
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. ...
will be considered as soon as the
TGV
The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
line between
Metz
Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...
and Strasbourg is completed.
Currently ICE and
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 ...
services run on the route from Saarbrücken to
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
,
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
,
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
and
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the ...
, stopping at Homburg, Landstuhl, Kaiserslautern and Neustadt (not all IC and ICE services stop at all the mentioned stations). Since 9 December 2007,
ICE 3
ICE 3, or Intercity-Express 3, is a family of high-speed electric multiple unit trains operated by Deutsche Bahn. It includes classes 403, 406, 407 and 408, which are known as ICE 3, ICE 3M, New ICE 3 and ICE 3neo respectively. Three multisystem ...
services have alternated with TGV services from Frankfurt to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, which stop between Mannheim and Saarbrücken only in Kaiserslautern; as a result Neustadt and Homburg has fewer stops by long-distance trains. The route was temporarily the only one within the Palatinate with long-distance services. The ICE trains run on the Frankfurt–Saarbrücken–Paris route; some ICE and IC services run to Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Munich.
Freight
In the first decades, the Ludwig Railway primarily served as an export route for coal from the Saar basin.
Afterwards, the line became a major route for freight traffic between France and Germany. The line from Mannheim to Saarbrücken is one of the busiest freight traffic routes in Germany. Trains carrying
combined transport
Combined transport is a form of intermodal transport, which is the movement of goods in one and the same loading unit or road vehicle, using successively two or more modes of transport without handling the goods themselves in changing modes. Comb ...
within the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
are dominated by
containers
A container is any receptacle or enclosure for holding a product used in storage, packaging, and transportation, including shipping.
Things kept inside of a container are protected on several sides by being inside of its structure. The term ...
,
swap bodies
A swap body, swop body, exchangeable container or interchangeable unit, is one of the types of standard freight intermodal container, containers for road and rail transport.
Based on and very similar to the more widespread Intermodal container, ...
, semi-trailers and other goods at high freight rates. Freight trains run between Mannheim and Homburg, continuing to Neunkirchen or along the whole route of the historic Ludwig Railway.
While trains used to transport coal from the Saar basin to the Rhine, the freight flow is now in the opposite direction. There are more than 120 freight trains every day on the line.
The regional freight traffic along the line declined after the Second World War. Already in the 1980s,
Übergabegüterzug
An ''Übergabegüterzug'' (abbreviated to: ''Üg'' or ''Übergabe'', literally goods exchange train) is a goods train that moves individual goods wagons on the first or last stage of their journey i.e. from the start to the first railway hub or f ...
("goods exchange train") traffic dominated the operations. Until the early 1990s, the stations between Ludwigshafen and Neustadt, as well as between Landstuhl and Bruchmühlbach-Miesau, were of great importance for the transport of turnips. In 1990, the decline in freight traffic led to the dismantling of the Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard. Other marshalling yards, which were the starting point for
Nahgüterzug
A ''Nahgüterzug'' (abbreviation: Ng) is the name given to a category of local goods train in German-speaking countries, sometimes translated as a 'pick up' train or pick-up goods train.Ernst, Dr.-Ing. Richard (1989). ''Wörterbuch der Industriel ...
("local goods train") traffic, were located in Saarbrücken, Homburg, Neustadt and Ludwigshafen. There are large freight yards in Neustadt an der Weinstrasse, Kaiserslautern (mainly for the
Opel
Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA Grou ...
plant), Homburg (Saar) and at the terminus in Saarbrücken. In the meantime, all freight sheds have been closed. Along the Ludwigshafen–Schifferstadt section, additional freight trains run from
BASF
BASF Societas Europaea, SE () is a German multinational corporation, multinational chemical company and the List of largest chemical producers, largest chemical producer in the world. Its headquarters is located in Ludwigshafen, Germany.
The ...
to Speyer or Germersheim.
Between Weidenthal and Neidenfels, there is a siding called ''Glatz II'', which supplies the Neidenfels paper factory of the same name. To the east of Neidenfels, there used to be another siding called ''Glatz I''.
The Homburg–Saarbrücken section has little freight traffic. Goods exchange trains run to St. Ingbert, which has freight facilities.
Isolated freight traffic also run over the line to the
Kaiserslautern Military Community
Kaiserslautern Military Community is a community of Americans living in and around Kaiserslautern, Germany, supporting United States Armed Forces and NATO installations, such as the Ramstein Air Base, Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Kapaun Ai ...
.
Incidents
* On 28 October 1863, a passenger train ran into a moving freight train in
Frankenstein
''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ex ...
. A van packed with 50 workers was attached at its rear. The accident claimed seven lives.
*
![Eisenbahnunfallweidenthal1912](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Eisenbahnunfallweidenthal1912.jpg)
In 1912, a railway accident occurred in Weidenthal. One person died and there were several injured.
* Near
Homburg (Saar)
Homburg (; french: Hombourg, pfl, Humborch) is a town in Saarland, Germany and the administrative seat of the Saarpfalz district. With a population of 43,029 inhabitants (2022), it is the third largest town in the state. The city offers over 3 ...
, the D 32 derailed during an air raid on 9 February 1917.
* Near
Bruchmühlbach, a holiday train ran into a freight train in dense snow on 7 January 1918. The data on the number of victims vary. Some sources give 33 deaths and 121 injuries, others 12 deaths and 87 injuries.
* In 1968, shortly before midnight, the Frankfurt – Paris express ran into the connecting track to the Miesau Army Depot (US Army) in Hauptstuhl because of wrongly set points. It derailed there due to its speed being too high for the siding. One person was killed and four injured.
* On 28 June 1988, a railway accident occurred in the
Heiligenberg Tunnel. One passenger was killed on the D 2754 express (Heidelberg – Saarbrücken). 10 people had major and 28 had minor injuries. After a violent storm, part of the retaining wall east of the Heiligenberg Tunnel fell onto the tracks towards Mannheim. A freight train loaded with bulk goods from Saarbrücken ran into the rubble and partly derailed; the locomotive and three wagons were forced onto the track. The express train immediately ran straight into the damaged vehicles.
* On 17 August 2010 near
Lambrecht in the Palatinate, set 4681 as ICE 9556 Frankfurt/Main–Paris bounced off a garbage truck which had just fallen onto the track. Two cars of the ICE derailed and sustained damage with the leading car was cut open along its whole length.
Of the 320 passengers, 15 were injured; the driver of the garbage truck had been able to escape the full impact on his vehicle, despite serious injuries.
As a result of the accident, major disturbances to operations and diversions of long-distance passenger services and freight operations occurred.
Rolling stock
Steam locomotives
The respective railway administrators always operated powerful locomotives on this line. In the early days, the workshops, later locomotive depots (
Bahnbetriebswerk
A ''Bahnbetriebswerk'' is the equivalent of a locomotive depot (or motive power depot) on the German and Austrian railways. It is an installation that carries out the maintenance, minor repairs, refuelling and cleaning of locomotives and other ...
e), were located in
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
,
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
and
Neustadt.
Others were located in
Homburg,
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
and
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is S ...
. In the first years after the opening of the former Ludwig Railway, locomotives of the
Maschinenfabrik Emil Keßler and Maffei were acquired, respectively numbered Palatine No. 1 to 8 and 21 and Palatine No. 9 to 20. They bore names like Haardt, Vogesus, Denis and Alwens.
Crampton locomotive
A Crampton locomotive is a type of steam locomotive designed by Thomas Russell Crampton and built by various firms from 1846. The main British builders were Tulk and Ley and Robert Stephenson and Company.
Notable features were a low boiler and l ...
s with the numbers Palatine No. 26 to 63 were acquired in the 1850s. Locomotives of classes Palatine G 1.I and Palatine G 2.II, among others, were acquired for freight operations. Palatine T 1 locomotives were used for local and freight operations.
![Bflambrecht1910](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Bflambrecht1910.jpg)
At the beginning of the 20th century, locomotives of classes P 2.I,
P 2.II,
P 3, P 4 and
P 5 were used to haul long-distance trains, some of them also local trains. Local traffic was especially hauled by locomotives of P 1.I, P 1.II, P 1.III and T 1 classes. Freight traffic was hauled by G 2.I, G 2.II, G 4.I,
G 4.II and G 5 class locomotives. Class T 3 locomotives hauled traffic between Mannheim and Ludwigshafen.
In the
Deutsche Reichsbahn
The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'', also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the regiona ...
period, the steam depots of the old Palatine Railway continued to be used. Locomotives of classes
01,
03,
44 and
64 were added. In addition, locomotives of classes
58.0,
75.0 and
75.4 were operated. These steam locomotives operated between Mannheim and Saarbrücken after the Second World War. In the 1950s, class 01 locomotives hauled fast trains from Trier and class 03 locomotives hauled fast trains from Ludwigshafen and Kaiserslautern. Operations of local traffic was dominated by locomotives of classes
23,
38,
71 and
78 and the operations of goods traffic were hauled by class 44 and
50 locomotives. Among others, classes
93.5-12 and
94.5 were used for shunting.
Electric rolling stock
Following the electrification of the line, which resulted in the closure of the locomotive depots in Neustadt and Homburg, DB's new locomotive classes were used. For decades, freight operations, were dominated by
class E 40 locomotives, local traffic by electric locomotives of
class E 41 hauling the then new
Silberling
Silberling is the colloquial name for the n-coaches of the Deutsche Bundesbahn, a type of regional Passenger car (rail), passenger coach of which more than 5,000 units were built from 1958 to 1981. Nearly all of the coaches have undergone exten ...
coaches. Express trains were mostly hauled by locomotives of
class E 10/110. The two-system prototypes of class E 310/181.0 were based in the Saarbrücken locomotive depot from 1966, mostly for hauling express trains to France.
Class 103 locomotives were used from 1971 onwards.
![Lok 101 012 vor IC in Saarbrücken Hbf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Lok_101_012_vor_IC_in_Saarbr%C3%BCcken_Hbf.jpg)
With the commissioning of the two-system locomotives of class 181.2 from 1974, they hauled almost all the expresses and semi-fast trains between Metz,
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is S ...
,
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
,
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
and
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
. They lost their importance after the introduction of ICE operations on the Frankfurt–Saarbrücken–
Paris
Paris () is the capital and 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), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
route.
Class 101 locomotives and some
Austrian
Austrian may refer to:
* Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent
** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law
* Austrian German dialect
* Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
locomotives of class 1016/1116 haul the IC traffic, the domestic ICE traffic is operated with tilting trains of
class 411/415 and international services are operated with multi-system ICE sets of
class 406. French
TGV
The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
trains are often used as a substitute for ICEs between Mannheim and Saarbrücken. Sets of
classes 425 and 426 are used in local and regional operations.
In freight operations,
DB Cargo
DB Cargo (previously known as Railion and DB Schenker Rail) is an international transport and logistics company. It is responsible for all of the rail freight transport activities of the German railway company Deutsche Bahn (the DB Group) both ...
prefers to use dual-system technology with electric locomotives of
class 185. These now haul freight trains from Mannheim to Metz, some to the gates of
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
and Paris. The former stops in Saarbrücken marshalling yard and
Forbach
Forbach ( , , ; gsw, Fuerboch) is a commune in the French department of Moselle, northeastern French region of Grand Est.
It is located on the German border approximately 15 minutes from the center of Saarbrücken, Germany, with which it const ...
have been omitted.
SBB generally operates
class Re 4/4 locomotives in freight transport on this route, mainly along with
class Re 482 locomotives. Locomotives of classes E 40,
155
Year 155 ( CLV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 908 ''Ab urbe condita'' ...
and
Siemens ES64F are used for freight traffic to the Opel factory in Kaiserslautern and operate traffic to Saarbrücken, Homburg, Einsiedlerhof, Neustadt and Mannheim.
Other rolling stock
![VT 611KL Hbf 1996](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/VT_611KL_Hbf_1996.jpg)
From 1897,
accumulator railcars of classes MC and MBCC were operated between Ludwigshafen and Neustadt. Wittfeld accumulator railcars, which were stationed in Kaiserslautern, operated from 1926 to about 1952, mainly between Kaiserslautern and Landstuhl.
High-speed trains diesel-hydraulic multiple units of classes VT 08 and
VT 12.5 were operated in the 1950s and 1960s.
Class 515 accumulator railcars occasionally operated on the line from 1956 to 1989.
Class VT 24 diesel multiple units operated some local services from 1964 to 1980. DB Class 628, Class 628 DMUs operated school transport around noon from the 1980s onwards. DB Class V 200, Class 220 diesel-hydraulic locomotives hauled services between the Neustadt and Hochspeyer from 1967 to 1973. Some of the freight trains, which in the past ran between Ludwigshafen and Schifferstadt and between Neustadt and Hochspeyer were hauled by class DB Class V 100, 212 and DB Class 218, 218 diesel locomotives. Diesel locomotives of classes DB Class V 60, V 60 and DB Class V 90, V 90 are used for the operation of the sidings that are not electrified.
A private works locomotive is used for the shunting in Neidelfels. In St. Ingbert, a private company operates a diesel locomotive imported from the Czech Republic.
Route
Geography of the line
Mannheim – Neustadt
The line starts at Mannheim Hauptbahnhof and runs for several kilometres as four tracks. At the Hauptbahnhof it runs past Mannheim Palace, where it branches off from the Western Entrance to the Riedbahn, western approach to the Riedbahn, then rounds a sharp curve to the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
and thus the state border between
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
and
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
. In Walzmühle, it passes
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Mitte station, which has existed since 2003, and then reaches
Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof is a railway station at Ludwigshafen am Rhein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. A combination of a wedge-shaped station and a two-level interchange, the station is at the junction on the lines from Mai ...
, where the Mainz–Ludwigshafen railway, line from Mainz connects from the north. After crossing
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
, the line turns to the southwest and runs straight to Schifferstadt.
The bypass of Schifferstadt, opened in 2003, branches off in Limburgerhof and runs parallel to the local tracks. South of Limburgerhof, however, it cuts the curve past Schifferstadt. After Schifferstadt station, where the Schifferstadt–Wörth railway, line to Wörth branches off to the left, the line turns westwards. Shortly before Böhl-Iggelheim station, the new line reconnects with the old line. The latter runs over a long straight to just before Neustadt (Weinstraße) Hauptbahnhof#Neustadt (Weinstr) Böbig halt, Neustadt (Weinstr) Böbig station. There the Palatine Northern Railway (''Pfälzische Nordbahn'') connects from Monsheim and, before
Neustadt Hauptbahnhof, it is joined by the Neustadt–Wissembourg railway, Maximilian Railway, which comes from Wissembourg to the south. After Neustadt the line runs into the Palatine Forest (''Pfälzerwald'') and thus leaves the Upper Rhine Plain (''Oberrheinische Tiefebene'').
Neustadt – Kaiserslautern
![Weidenthal 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/Weidenthal_02.jpg)
Within the Palatine Forest, the number of curves along the line increases significantly. The line runs parallel to the Bundesstraße 39, federal highway 39 through the middle range, which it repeatedly crosses on bridges in this region. On the 33.5 kilometre-long section between
Neustadt an der Weinstraße
Neustadt an der Weinstraße (, formerly known as ; lb, Neustadt op der Wäistrooss ; pfl, Naischdadt) is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With 53,300 inhabitants , it is the largest town called ''Neustadt''.
Geography
Location
T ...
and
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
, the line climbs through a height difference of 109 metres and passes through a total of twelve tunnels. Along this section, the line passes next to several sandstone cliffs. West of Neustadt, the line passes through the Wolfsberg Tunnel. The line runs along the Speyerbach to Lambrecht, where the Little Cuckoo Railway (''Kuckucksbähnel''), operated as a heritage railway since 1984, branches off.
West of Lambrecht, the line follows the valley of the Hochspeyerbach through several gorges, the meanders of which have been shortened by several tunnels: Lichtensteiner-Kopf, Retschbach, Schönberg-Langeck, Mainzer Berg, Gipp, Köpfle, Eisenkehl and Kehre. In this area, the railway runs over several bridges over the river or federal highway 39. At Neidenfels it passes Neidenfels Castle (''Burg Neidenfels'') and Lichtenstein Castle (''Burg Lichtenstein''). The Neidenfels crossover remains as a remnant of a construction site.
Schlossberg Tunnel under Frankenstein Castle, Palatinate, Frankenstein Castle ends shortly before Frankenstein. West of Frankenstein, the line changes direction from northwest to west and the valley is wider in this area. The Franzosenwoog Tunnel is located there. Between Frankenstein and Hochspeyer, the
Alsenz Valley Railway
The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from Hochspeyer via Winnweiler and Alsenz to Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The line closely follows the Alsenz river from the Enkenbac ...
branches off to the north. Bundesstraße 48, Federal highway 48 crosses the line on a bridge to the west of Hochspeyer station and, a few kilometres later, the line crosses the watershed between the Speyerbach and the Lauter (Glan), Lauter, often seen as part of the Palatine Watershed, in the
Heiligenberg Tunnel, the longest railway tunnel in the
Palatinate. The Kaiserslautern–Enkenbach railway, line from Enkenbach joins shortly before Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof.
Kaiserslautern – Saarbrücken
Immediately west of Kaiserslautern the Lauter Valley Railway branches to the north and the Biebermühl Railway to the south. The line is straight in this area and passes the Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard. There it leaves the Palatinate Forest and runs through the ''Westpfälzische Moorniederung'' (West Palatine lowland swamp) and Landstuhl. Shortly before Hauptstuhl, it runs through a wet meadow (''Nasswiese''), which is a protected environment. Bundesautobahn 6, Autobahn 6 runs parallel and north of the line. After passing through Bruchmühlbach-Miesau station as well as the now dismantled Vogelbach crossover, it crosses the border between Rhineland-Palatinate and the
Saarland
The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...
.
![20120117Ostbahnhof Saarbruecken3](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/20120117Ostbahnhof_Saarbruecken3.jpg)
To the west of the former Eichelscheid station, which is now unoccupied, was the temporary Bruchhof crossover, which was also built for a construction project.
After Homburg, the Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway separates from the historic Palatine Ludwig Railway (''Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn''), which turns right and continues through Homburg–Neunkirchen railway, Bexbach to Neunkirchen. The
Homburg–Zweibrücken railway, which has now been closed, branched off to the south. The line continues to Saarbrücken past the disused
Homburg (Saar) West customs station
Homburg or Hombourg may refer to
Places In Germany
* Homburg, Saarland, capital of the Saarpfalz district of Saarland
* Bad Homburg vor der Höhe, town and spa in Hesse
* Homburg Forest, (''Homburgwald'') a hill range in Lower Saxony
* Homburg, a ...
and crosses the
Blies
The Blies () is a right tributary of the Saar in southwestern Germany (Saarland) and northeastern France (Moselle). The Blies flows from three springs in the Hunsrück near Selbach, Germany. It is roughly 100 km long, ending in the French c ...
. In this area it runs along the northern edge of the ''Sankt Ingbert-Kirkeler Waldgebiet'' (forest area). It then runs through Limbach (Kirkel), Limbach and
Kirkel
Kirkel is a municipality in the Saarpfalz district in Saarland, Germany. It is situated approximatively 8 km southeast of Neunkirchen, and 20 km east/northeast of Saarbrücken.
Overview
A rather well-preserved castle ruin
Ruins ...
to Rohrbach (Saar) station, Rohrbach station. In Rohrbach, it meets the Landau–Rohrbach railway, line from Landau, which comes from the southeast; shortly earlier the railway crosses the autobahn, which then continues parallel to the south. The railway passes through the towns of St. Ingbert, Rentrisch and Scheidt, which are located in the densely populated valley along the Rohrbach (Saar), Rohrbach, which it crosses three times. At Halberg, it connects with the
Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway
The Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway (also known in German language, German as the Obere Saartalbahn, Upper Saar Valley Railway) is a two-track main line railway, running from Saarbrücken Central Station, Saarbrücken in the German state of th ...
and reaches its terminus at Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof.
Height profile
The line falls to the last set of points at Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof (208 Metres above sea level, m a.s.l.) shortly after the part of the station that is designated as "So" to Saarbrücken Ost station at a grade of 0.65%, reaching its steepest gradient in the last third of the platform area at 1.09%. The section to Scheidt (Saar) runs almost level, but from the eastern end of St. Ingbert station it rises more steeply with a maximum climb of 1.05% until it reaches its first crest of about 272 m a.s.l. in a deep cutting between Rohrbach (Saar) station, Rohrbach (Saar) and
Kirkel
Kirkel is a municipality in the Saarpfalz district in Saarland, Germany. It is situated approximatively 8 km southeast of Neunkirchen, and 20 km east/northeast of Saarbrücken.
Overview
A rather well-preserved castle ruin
Ruins ...
(both at ca. 258 m a.s.l.). Its subsequent gradient is up to 1.05% shortly before Limbach (b. Homburg/Saar) (233 m a.s.l.), where it is level. It then climbs at up to 0.85% to Homburg (Saar) Hauptbahnhof (243 m a.s.l.). The height profile between Homburg (Saar) and Kaiserslautern is characterised by a slight fall to Bruchmühlbach-Miesau (235 m a.s.l.), a slight climb up to Hauptstuhl, a slight rise to Kindsbach (247 m a.s.l.) and a largely level route to
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof is a through-station in the German city of Kaiserslautern and one of seven stations in the city. It is a stop on the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn and Deutsche Bahn’s Intercity-Express network and a hub for all the regional tra ...
(250 m a.s.l.).
Between Kaiserslautern and the second crest of ca. 278 m a.s.l., which is located shortly after
Heiligenberg Tunnel and is also the highest point of the line, there is a maximum climb of 0.43%. Following a short level section, the longest down grade begins. Between the second crest and Neustadt (Weinstraße) Hauptbahnhof (142 m a.s.l.) there are grades of up to 0.8% in the Palatine Forest. On the Neustadt (Weinstr)–Mannheim section there is a slightly falling gradient overall. The long-distance railway on the Schifferstädter bypass climbs at a maximum gradient on the newly built section of 0.8% and then falls at first at over 0.7% and then runs almost level parallel with the S-Bahn (Schifferstadt lies at 103 m a.s.l.). A sharp rise in Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof (94 m a.s.l.) is followed by the ramp up to the Konrad Adenauer Bridge, Rhine Bridge to Mannheim Hauptbahnhof, which involves a climb of about seven metres with a gradient of between 2.0% and 0.25%.
Chainage
Due to the fact that the Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway is a conglomerate of several railway sections, it does not have a single sequence of marked kilometre points (Chain (unit)#Contemporary use, chainage). This can be seen in Homburg (Saar) Hauptbahnhof, Homburg Hauptbahnhof, where there is a jump from 31.1 to 8.3. The zero point of the chainage from Homburg is located on the former national border between Kingdom of Bavaria, Bavaria and Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia to the west of Bexbach on the Homburg–Neunkirchen railway.
Maximum speeds
Saarbrücken – Kaiserslautern
In Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof, the speed is generally limited to 60 km/h. In the following Saarbrücken–Schafbrücke and Rentrisch–St. Ingbert sections the maximum permissible speed is 90 km/h. Between Schafbrücke and Rentrisch it is 100 km/h and from Scheidt (Saar) it is 110 km/h. Shortly after St. Ingbert station the maximum permissible speed is gradually increased to 120 km/h, 140 km/h and 160 km/h. The maximum permissible speed shortly after Limbach is 150 km/h, but, due to a narrow Minimum railway curve radius, curve radius before Homburg (Saar) Hauptbahnhof, it is reduced to 110 km/h (120 km/h in the opposite direction). After this curve, the maximum allowed speed is restored to 160 km/h but in Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard it is reduced to 140 km/h again. From the entrance signal to Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof it is reduced to 100 km/h (90 km/h in the opposite direction) but the maximum speed is returned at the next curve to 140 km/h and raised to 150 km/h outside the station.
Kaiserslautern – Mannheim
The Kaiserslautern–Hochspeyer section is passable from the end of Heiligenberg Tunnel at up to 150 km/h. The maximum speed is then reduced to 130 km/h and then 100 km/h. The section between Hochspeyer and Neustadt is largely passable at 90–100 km/h, with the exception of a section near Frankenstein (Pfalz) that has a maximum speed of 80 km/h.
In Neustadt Hauptbahnhof, the maximum permissible speed of 100 km/h (90 km/h in the opposite direction) is raised via 130 km/h to 140 km/h and after a subsequent right curve is restored to 160 km/h. This maximum speed continues to Ludwigshafen-Mundenheim, where the top speed is reduced from 130 km/h to 80 km/h and then 60 km/h. On the Ludwigshafen–Mannheim section, the selected path determines the permissible maximum speed. 20, 30, 40, 60, 70 or 80 km/h might be permitted. The signalling basically consists of the speed indicators of the signals.
Signalling and safety systems
Due to the modernisation of numerous interlockings with electronic interlockings from the end of the 1990s and the subsequent upgrade of the line, the majority of Railway semaphore signal, semaphore signals and H/V signals (''Haupt-/Vorsignal''—main/distant signal; a system of signalling introduced in 1924 as semaphores, but now mainly consisting of Railway signal#colour-light signals, colour-light signals) have disappeared. The Saarbrücken–Kaiserslautern and Hochspeyer–Ludwigshafen sections are almost completely equipped with new Ks signals (''Kombinationssignal''—combination signals). Exceptions to this are, in addition to the Kaiserslautern–Hochspeyer and Ludwigshafen–Mannheim sections, Landstuhl and Schifferstadt stations. These still use H/V signals in standard and compact forms.
The Ks signals is controlled from the Karlsruhe signalling control centre through the four subcentres of Saarbrücken, Homburg, Einsiedlerhof and Neustadt. The exceptions are the stations of Landstuhl and Hochspeyer, which are connected to the subcentres of Einsiedlerhof or Neustadt via a matching system. Apart from the Ludwigshafen–Mannheim section, the only stations that are still locally controlled are Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof and Schifferstadt.
Landstuhl station, which is currently under reconstruction, is to receive electronic signalling by 2019. In this case, the existing signals are to be replaced by Ks signals. No replacement of the rest of the Interlocking#Entrance-Exit Interlocking (NX), push-button relay interlocking-controlled signals by electronic interlockings is currently scheduled.
The whole route is equipped with the Punktförmige Zugbeeinflussung intermittent cab signalling system and the Saarbrücken–Kaiserslautern section is also equipped with the ZUB 262 (Geschwindigkeitsüberwachung Neigetechnik—speed control for tilting technology) system and the Kaiserslautern–Neustadt section is equipped with the ZUB 122 system (an older speed control system for tilting technology).
Operating points
Mannheim Hauptbahnhof
![Gleisfeld Mannheim HBF](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Gleisfeld_Mannheim_HBF.JPG)
''Mannheim Hauptbahnhof'' (main station), located in the western part of the city of
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
is the only station on the line in
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
. It was built in 1876, nine years after the connecting line was built to
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
. It replaced the original terminus at the Tattersall tram stop. Other railway lines connecting to the station are the Mannheim–Karlsruhe–Basel railway, Rhine Valley Railway to
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
, the Rhine Railway (Baden), Rhine Railway to Rastatt, the Mannheim–Frankfurt railway, Riedbahn to
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
along with its Western Entrance to the Riedbahn, western approach opened in 1985, and the Mannheim–Stuttgart high-speed railway. The entrance building was renovated in 2001.
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Mitte
The ''Haltepunkt'' ("halt point", which essentially indicates that it has no Railroad switch, set of points) of ''Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Mitte'' (middle) was built by DB for the opening of the
Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn
The Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn ''(S-Bahn RheinNeckar)'' forms the backbone of the urban rail transport network of the Rhine Neckar Area, including the cities of Mannheim, Heidelberg and Ludwigshafen.
The S-Bahn operates over 437 km of route in the ...
. It is located immediately west of the Konrad Adenauer Bridge and near Berliner Platz. Its purpose is to compensate for the absence of a central station since 1969. It has four tracks and a futuristic platform roof.
Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof
![L-hafen train station0005](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/L-hafen_train_station0005.jpg)
At the time of the opening of the Ludwig Railway the then ''Ludwigshafen'' station was a terminus in the town centre not far from the Rhine. There, the coal, for which the line was built in the first place, was transferred to ships for onward transport. With the opening of the Mainz–Ludwigshafen railway, line to Mainz in 1853 and the connection to Mannheim 1867, it became a railway junction. Later it was given the designation of ''Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof'' in response to the integration of surrounding localities that had also received railway connections. The fact that it was a terminal station increasingly proved to be a handicap. For this reason, there were already plans to move it to another location as early as the beginning of the 20th century.
The construction work began in 1962 and the station has been in its present form since 1969. Since then, it has been a junction station. The demolition of the tracks and the railway buildings at the old terminus were completed in 1971. However, as a result of the relocation, the station lost its importance. Because of its short distance to Mannheim Hauptbahnhof, most trains pass through without stopping. It lost further significance with the commissioning of the Ludwigshafen (Rhein) Mitte station and since then most
Regional-Express
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 f ...
services also no longer stop at Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof, while they all stop at Mitte station.
Ludwigshafen-Mundenheim
![Bahnhof Mundenheim](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Bahnhof_Mundenheim.jpg)
''Ludwigshafen-Mundenheim'' station Is located in the south-west of the Ludwigshafen district of Mundenheim. It originated in 1886 and was originally just called ''Mundenheim''. From 1890, a Ludwigshafen–Meckenheim railway, narrow-gauge railway ran to Dannstadt and was extended in 1911 to Meckenheim. It received a new entrance building in connection with the quadruplication of the main railway between Schifferstadt and Ludwigshafen. Due to the incorporation of Mundenheim into Ludwigshafen, it was renamed ''Ludwigshafen-Mundenheim''. The closure of the narrow-gauge railway to Meckenheim followed in 1955. Since the commissioning of the new Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof in 1969, the station has been administered as a part of that station.
From it branches off a stretch of freight line that winds to the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
and connects to the
BASF
BASF Societas Europaea, SE () is a German multinational corporation, multinational chemical company and the List of largest chemical producers, largest chemical producer in the world. Its headquarters is located in Ludwigshafen, Germany.
The ...
plant.
Ludwigshafen-Rheingönheim
![Rheingoenheim Bahnhof retuschiert](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Rheingoenheim_Bahnhof_retuschiert.jpg)
''Ludwigshafen-Rheingönheim'' station lies in the west of the Ludwigshafen district of Rheingönheim and was built around 1870. Originally it was called ''Rheingönheim''. It received a new entrance building in connection with the quadruplication of the main railway between Schifferstadt and Ludwigshafen. Deutsche Reichsbahn renamed it ''Ludwigshafen-Rheingönheim'' after the incorporation of the town into Ludwigshafen on 15 May 1939. Since the commissioning of the new Ludwigshafen Hauptbahnhof in 1969, the station has administered as a part of that station. The handling of freight at the station was at one time carried out with the help of an WF trac, MB-Trac, which also had wheels for running on rail tracks. A siding opened at the end of 2010 connects to the premises of a local company. This was the first new connection to be built for decades to the Mannheim–Saarbrücken line.
Limburgerhof
![Bahnhof Limburgerhof 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Bahnhof_Limburgerhof_01.JPG)
The former ''Bahnhof'' (station) and current ''Haltepunkt'' (halt) of ''Limburgerhof'' is located in the middle of the residential area of Limburgerhof. It was originally called ''Mutterstadt'', but that community lies a few kilometres to the west. Since Mutterstadt received a connection to the narrow gauge Ludwigshafen–Meckenheim railway, Ludwigshafen–Dannstadt railway from 1890, it was unofficially often referred to as ''Mutterstadt Hauptbahnhof''. With the quadruplication of the main line, it received a new entrance building for passenger traffic on the western side of the railway tracks, while its heritage-listed predecessor was now exclusively used for freight traffic.
The entrance building was demolished during the electrification of the line and replaced by a new building. The station got its present name around 1930, when the settlement of Limburgerhof, which had been created in its immediate vicinity, became an independent municipality.
Schifferstadt
![Bf Schifferstadt NO](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Bf_Schifferstadt_NO.jpg)
''Schifferstadt'' station is located on the northwestern outskirts of Schifferstadt and it is classified as a German railway station categories, category 3 station. It was opened on 11 June 1847 as part of the Ludwigshafen–Neustadt section of the Ludwig Railway. At the same time the Schifferstadt–Wörth railway, branch line to Speyer was opened. Schifferstadt became the first railway junction within the Palatinate. The branch line to Speyer was extended to
Germersheim
Germersheim () is a town in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, of around 20,000 inhabitants. It is also the seat of the Germersheim (district), Germersheim district. The neighboring towns and cities are Speyer, Landau, Philippsburg, Karlsru ...
in 1864 and to Wörth (Rhein) station, Wörth in 1876. The station's track layout had to be rebuilt during the duplication of that line at the beginning of the 20th century. The station gained a locomotive depot, which was administered as part of the Neustadt/Weinstrasse Railway Museum, Neustadt locomotive depot (
Bahnbetriebswerk
A ''Bahnbetriebswerk'' is the equivalent of a locomotive depot (or motive power depot) on the German and Austrian railways. It is an installation that carries out the maintenance, minor repairs, refuelling and cleaning of locomotives and other ...
). The original entrance building was demolished in 1964 and replaced by a new one. Parts of the platform canopy from the original station building are protected as a historical monument.
Böhl-Iggelheim
![Bahnhof-Iggelheim](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Bahnhof-Iggelheim.JPG)
A former railway station and now classified as a halt, ''Böhl-Iggelheim'' is located on the south-eastern edge of Böhl; A kilometre away is Iggelheim. In the first years of its existence it was called Böhl. Its entrance building is a protected monument.
Haßloch (Pfalz)
''Haßloch (Pfalz)'' station is located on the northern outskirts of Haßloch. Since the original entrance building had been damaged in the Second World War, it was replaced in 1961 by a new one.
Neustadt (Weinstr) Böbig
The stop is located in the north-east of the town centre of Neustadt an der Weinstraße and mainly serves the school centre of Böbig. It is a "station part" (''Bahnhofsteil'') of Neustadt Hauptbahnhof. It is at the junction of the line to Mannheim and the Palatine Northern Railway, Northern Railway to Monsheim. The first plans for its construction were completed in 1965. It was opened in 1974 to enable the transfer of some of the transport for students from buses to rail. The driving force for its emergence was the then teacher and later VRN official, Werner Schreiner.
Neustadt (Weinstr) Hauptbahnhof
![Neustadt hbf-2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Neustadt_hbf-2.JPG)
The station was opened in 1847 as the terminus of the first section of the Ludwig Railway, from which the present Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway later developed. It was originally called ''Neustadt (Haardt)''. With the opening of the Maximilian Railway, it became the third railway junction in the Palatinate, after Schifferstadt (1847) and Ludwigshafen (1853). Later, the Palatine Northern Railway (''Pfälzische Nordbahn'') was added, which ended at Bad Dürkheim station, Bad Dürkheim and was extended to Monsheim in 1873. The track layout had to be expanded, which required the demolition of the original entrance building. Its successor building is under monument protection.
After the completion of the Alsenz Valley Railway, the station developed into a major intercity hub. After the First World War, north–south traffic lost importance, with the remaining long-distance traffic running in the east–west direction. The station has been electrified since 12 March 1964. It was modernised with its integration into the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn in 2003.
Schöntal
The ''Schönental'' loading point (''Verladestelle'') was located in the Schöntal area, which is part of the city of Neustadt, and was only used by freight traffic. As early as 1869 there was a freight yard at the location. Subsequently, demands were made to expand these into a fully-fledged station, but they were rejected by the
Palatinate Railway
The Palatine Railways (german: Pfälzische Eisenbahnen), often abbreviated to Palatinate Railway (''Pfalzbahn'') was the name of the railway division and administration responsible for all private railway companies in the Bavarian Palatinate fro ...
because of the short distance to Neustadt station. The Bavarian State Railways upgraded it to a freight station (''Güterbahnhof''). Later, the freight yard was officially a Siding (rail), refuge loop (''Ausweichanschlussstelle''). From it, a connecting track branched off to Achatmühle, which circumnavigated the Wolfsberg. The track has been dismantled for decades and the loading point was abandoned in 2005.
Lindenberg-Knöckel
This siding was on the southern outskirts of Lindenberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Lindenberg (Pfalz) and served the ''Knöckel, Schmidt & Cie'' paper factory. It could only be accessed by using the eastbound track for trains running to Neustadt but running to the west. The company main traffic was the supply of coal before it became insolvent in 2005. The points that connected to the siding were dismantled in 2011.
Lambrecht (Pfalz)
![Lambrecht 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Lambrecht_02.JPG)
''Lambrecht (Pfalz)'' station is located on the northern outskirts of Lambrecht (Pfalz). Since 1909, the Little Cuckoo Railway has branched off there; since 1984 it has been a heritage railway. The original entrance building was built in the architectural style of the Palatinate used in the second half of the 19th century, especially for railway stations. It was burnt down in the Second World War during military action. The current station building dates from 1957, but it is no longer used for railway operations. The station has been electrified since 12 March 1964.
The previous freight shed, which had most recently served as a private residence, was demolished in 1999 to build a parking area. With the commissioning of the electronic interlocking in Neustadt on 16 May of the same year, the station lost its last staffed position. In addition, Deutsche Bundesbahn dismantled several tracks, so that the station has only had three platform tracks since then.
Neidenfels
The halt of ''Neidenfels'' is located on the southern outskirts of Neidenfels on an S-curve and is classified as a German railway station categories, category 6 station. It was commissioned on 31 January 1998. Already in the 19th century there were calls for a station there, but the railway administration pointed out that the gradient of the line in this area made the braking of trains there too difficult.
Just a few years after the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn was opened, trains had to run with three sets coupled together due to the high demand between Neustadt and Kaiserslautern. Due to the short platform length, they were initially unable to stop in Neidenfels. For this reason, the platform was extended to the north to a total length of 210 metres over a period of five months in 2010. The opening took place in November of the year. There are some nearby Walking routes in the Palatine Forest, hiking trails.
Weidenthal
![Weidenthal 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Weidenthal_01.jpg)
The three-track ''Weidenthal'' station is located in the south of the district of Weidenthal and is classified as a category 5 station. The station's platform used to be located in the southern part of the station, where the former entrance building is located. In the course of the construction work for the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn, new platforms were built around 800 metres further north.
The station has three railway tracks, the middle one of which is a crossing loop. It is one of three places where trains can overtake between Neustadt and Kaiserslautern.
The local stone quarry was an important freight customer with its own connecting tracks. There, grindstones and millstones were produced and loaded in the first decades.
The connecting track from Weidenthal station is currently used by the ''Feinpapierfabrik Glatz'' paper factory in nearby Neidenfels.
Frankenstein (Pfalz)
![20110505Bahnhof Frankenstein Pfalz](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/20110505Bahnhof_Frankenstein_Pfalz.jpg)
The interests of Paul Camille von Denis, Paul Camille Denis, the builder of the Ludwig Railway, played an important role in the origin of the earlier ''Frankenstein (Pfalz)'' station. He settled down temporarily in the village, acquired Diemerstein Castle and built a villa, the so-called ''Villa Denis'', in the immediate vicinity. From 2 December 1848 until 25 August 1949, the station was the eastern terminus of the western section of the Ludwig Railway, coming from Bexbach. It is located on the west side of
Frankenstein
''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ex ...
. Immediately to the east is the Schlossberg Tunnel, which is built through the Schlossberg ("palace mountain") on which Diemerstein Castle is built. North of the station is the village of Diemerstein.
The heritage-listed entrance building was architecturally very sophisticated for a locality the size of Frankenstein; this was also due to the influence of Denis. It is built in the style of a ''Schloss'' (palace).
Hochspeyer Ost
The ''Hochspeyer Ost'' (east) operating point (abbreviated SHY O) is administered as part of Hochspeyer station and is located in the east of the municipality of
Hochspeyer
Hochspeyer is a municipality in the Kaiserslautern (district), district of Kaiserslautern, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest (Pfälzer Wald), approx. 10 km east of Kaiserslautern.
Hochspeyer was the se ...
.
From it the connecting curve branches off to the
Alsenz Valley Railway
The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from Hochspeyer via Winnweiler and Alsenz to Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The line closely follows the Alsenz river from the Enkenbac ...
, used by the long-distance trains on the Bingerbrück – Neustadt –
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
route. It is currently rarely used.
Hochspeyer
![20110622Bahnhof Hochspeyer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/20110622Bahnhof_Hochspeyer.jpg)
''Hochspeyer'' station, which is located in the east of the built-up area, was built with the
Alsenz Valley Railway
The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from Hochspeyer via Winnweiler and Alsenz to Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The line closely follows the Alsenz river from the Enkenbac ...
, which branches off here, in 1870 and 1871. In this way, it became the eighth railway junction within the Palatinate. Its entrance building, which is no longer used for railway operations, corresponds to the architectural style that was applied to the other stations along the Alsenz as well as between Landau and Zweibrücken. Despite its status as a railway junction, it lost part of this importance with the opening in 1875 of the Kaiserslautern–Enkenbach railway.
On 1 May 2007, the functions of the signal box, which was housed in the entrance building, were taken over by the signalling control centre in
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. ...
, so the local controller was no longer required and the station is now remotely controlled. Previously, the station had other signal boxes. One of them was on the overpass of Bundesstraße 48, federal highway 48 and has since been renovated and turned into a restaurant. It was originally built by
Deutsche Reichsbahn
The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'', also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the regiona ...
.
Althochspeyer
''Althochspeyer'' (old Hochspeyer) station was in the west of Hochspeyer near Heidestrasse. It was the original station of the municipality of Hochspeyer. Its construction was only agreed to after the construction of the railway commenced. In the statistical yearbooks it was often called ''Bahnhof am Kreuz'' ("station at the crossing"). With the opening of the Alsenz Valley Railway and the new Hochspeyer station, it lost its function for passenger transport and was given the new name of Althochspeyer. Because a chemical company had been established in its area and because of its importance to the wood industry, it continued to be used as a freight yard. During the time of the
Royal Bavarian State Railways
The Royal Bavarian State Railways (''Königliche Bayerische Staats-Eisenbahnen'' or ''K.Bay.Sts.B.'') was the state railway company for the Kingdom of Bavaria. It was founded in 1844. The organisation grew into the second largest of the German ...
(''Königlich Bayerischen Staatseisenbahnen'') it was assigned to category 4. Deutsche Reichsbahn closed it In the 1930s. Its former entrance building was then used for apartments for railway workers.
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof
![Bahnhof Kaiserslautern-2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Bahnhof_Kaiserslautern-2.jpg)
''Kaiserslauter Hauptbahnhof'' was opened on 1 July 1848 with the Homburg–Kaiserslautern section of the Ludwig Railway. Half a year later, the line was extended to Frankenstein and the line was completed from Rheinschanze to Bexbach. In spite of its importance, it did not become a railway junction until 1875 with the opening of the Kaiserslautern–Enkenbach railway, which served as a connection to the
Alsenz Valley Railway
The Alsenz Valley Railway (german: Alsenztalbahn) is a line that runs from Hochspeyer via Winnweiler and Alsenz to Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The line closely follows the Alsenz river from the Enkenbac ...
and the Donnersberg Railway (''Donnersbergbahn''). It received a new entrance building in 1879. In addition, the station gained in importance with the opening of the Lauter Valley Railway in 1883 and the completion of the Biebermühl Railway (''Biebermühlbahn'') to
Pirmasens
Pirmasens (; pfl, Bärmesens (also ''Bermesens'' or ''Bärmasens'')) is an independent town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. It was famous for the manufacture of shoes. The surrounding rural district was called ''Lan ...
in 1913. The second station building was badly damaged in the Second World War and demolished after the war.
Kennelgarten
The halt of ''Kennelgarten'' is located in the west of the city of Kaiserslautern. Deutsche Reichsbahn opened it on 1 January 1927. It primarily served the settlement of ''Siedlung Bahnheim'' built for the families of railwaymen on the principles of the Garden city movement of Ebenezer Howard.
Kaiserslautern-Ausbesserungswerk
The former halt of ''Kaiserslautern-Ausbesserungswerk'' was located at a ''Ausbesserungswerk'' (repair shop) in the Kaiserslautern district of Vogelweh and had an island platform. It only served the repair shop traffic and there was no public access. The halt was abandoned after the works lost its importance. The island platform and canopy were demolished in the middle of 2015.
Vogelweh, Einsiedlerhof and Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard
![20120530Bahnhof Einsiedlerhof1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/20120530Bahnhof_Einsiedlerhof1.jpg)
The ''Einsiedlerhof Rangierbahnhof'' (marshalling yard) was completed in 1921 because its predecessor at the
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof
Kaiserslautern Hauptbahnhof is a through-station in the German city of Kaiserslautern and one of seven stations in the city. It is a stop on the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn and Deutsche Bahn’s Intercity-Express network and a hub for all the regional tra ...
had reached the limits of its capacity. Since then, it has been a yard for freight trains within the Western Palatinate. In recent decades, it has lost importance because of the increasing shift of freight to road transport.
In its catchment area, there are two passenger halts at Einsiedlerhof and Vogelweh. ''Einsiedlerhof'' halt was built around 1900 and was rebuilt as a station with the construction of the Einsiedlerhof marshalling yard and received a new entrance building, which is no longer used. ''Vogelweh'' halt is located on the north-western edge of the Vogelweh district of Kaiserslauter and was opened after the Second World War. Einsiedlerhof halt is centrally located within the Einsiedlerhof district.
Kindsbach
''Kindsbach'' station was founded after 1871 and is located in the north-west of the local community of Kindsbach. It belongs to station category 6 and is served by the services of the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn and
Regionalbahn services on the Kaiserslautern–Kusel route. From the 1920s onwards, the company of ''Formsandwerke Ludwigshafen am Rhein'', which quarried Molding sand, moulding sand and transported it by cableway to the station, was a significant freight customer.
Landstuhl
![Bahnhof Landstuhl](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Bahnhof_Landstuhl.jpg)
''Landstuhl'' station is located on the northern outskirts of Landstuhl and has four tracks. It was commissioned in 1848 with the Kaiserslautern–Homburg section of the Ludwig Railway. It was always the most important intermediate station on this section. Since 1868, the
line to Kusel has branched off to the northwest of the station. Thus the station was the seventh railway junction in the Palatinate after Schifferstadt (1847), Ludwigshafen (1853), Neustadt an der Haardt (1855), Homburg (1857), Winden (Pfalz) station, Winden (1864) and
Schwarzenacker (1866). It is served by S-Bahn, Regionalbahn, Regional-Express and occasional Intercity (Deutsche Bahn), InterCity services. Freight traffic at the station has been abandoned.
Hauptstuhl
![Hauptstuhl Bahnhof](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Hauptstuhl_Bahnhof.jpg)
''Hauptstuhl'' station is located in the north of the municipality of Hauptstuhl. It belongs to station category 6. The conversion of the station for the operations of the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn resulted in the shortening of the platforms. In the northern part of the station, there used to be facilities for goods transport, but they have been dismantled. The former entrance building is no longer used for railway purposes. The municipality bought it and converted it into a community hall. A siding branches off from the station to the Miesau Army Depot of the US Army.
Bruchmühlbach-Miesau
![20110505Bahnhof Bruchmuhlbach-Miesau1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/20110505Bahnhof_Bruchmuhlbach-Miesau1.jpg)
The former ''Bruchmühlbach-Miesau'' station, which is now classified as a halt, was originally called just ''Bruchmühlbach''. During the time when the Saar Protectorate, Saarland was not yet part of the West Germany, Federal Republic of Germany, border controls (immigration and customs) were located here. After the creation of the municipality of Bruchmühlbach-Miesau in the Rhineland-Palatinate administrative reform, the station was given its current name. It is located at the western end of Bruchmühlbach and is classified as a category 6 station. With the upgrade of the line for long-distance transport and its integration into the network of the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn, an adjacent level crossing was replaced by a road bridge and the pedestrian footbridge was replaced by a pedestrian underpass.
Eichelscheid
The former ''Eichelscheid'' station was located in the Homburg district of Bruchhof-Sanddorf. It was opened in the beginning of the 1890s and was originally called ''Eichelscheid-Lambsborn''. Its passenger services mainly served the residents of the municipalities of Bechhofen, Rhineland-Palatinate, Bechhofen, Lambsborn, Rosenkopf and Wiesbach, Germany, Wiesbach. The discharge of fertiliser played a major role in its freight traffic. From 1947, it functioned as a customs station because of the separation of the Saar area from West Germany. Deutsche Bundesbahn closed the station with the absorption of the Saarland into West Germany in 1959.
Homburg (Saar) Hauptbahnhof
![Homburg Saar Hauptbahnhof 2012-05-03](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Homburg_Saar_Hauptbahnhof_2012-05-03.jpg)
It was called ''Homburg (Pfalz)'' station until 1923. It was opened in 1848 along with the Kaiserslautern–Homburg section of the Ludwig Railway. The now closed
Homburg–Zweibrücken railway was opened in 1857. Thus, it became the fourth railway junction in the Palatinate after Schifferstadt (1847), Ludwigshafen (1853), and Neustadt (1855).
The Homburg–Limbach–Kirkel–Rohrbach line, which followed on 1 January 1904, like the
Glan Valley Railway
The Glan Valley Railway (german: Glantalbahn) is a non-electrified line along the Glan river, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It consists of the Glan-Münchweiler–Altenglan section, which was built as part of the Landstuhl–Kuse ...
, which was opened four months later, was built as a strategic railway. After the First World War the station was part of the
Territory of the Saar Basin
The Territory of the Saar Basin (german: Saarbeckengebiet, ; french: Territoire du bassin de la Sarre) was a region of Germany occupied and governed by the United Kingdom and France from 1920 to 1935 under a League of Nations mandate. It had its ...
and after the Second World War part of the Saarland, so it has been called Homburg (Saar) since then. As a result of the territorial change, the trains of the Blies Valley Railway (''Bliestalbahn'') tended to run to Homburg instead of Zweibrücken as previously. Passenger services to Zweibrücken ended in 1989 and to the Blies valley in 1991. In addition to being located on the main line from Mannheim to Saarbrücken, the station is the eastern terminus of the Homburg–Neunkirchen railway, line from Neunkirchen, which is part of the historical Ludwig Railway from Bexbach.
Zollbahnhof Homburg (Saar) West
The ''Zollbahnhof Homburg (Saar) West'' (Homburg (Saar) West customs station) was built as a result of the creation of the Territory of the Saar Basin in 1920. It was built north of the railway opened in 1904 on the border between Homburg and the communities of Limbach and Altstadt. There were connecting curves to the lines to Neunkirchen and Zweibrücken. ''Homburg (Saar) West'' halt was built on the existing line near the customs station to serve its workers.
Limbach (b Homburg, Saar)
Originally the station was called ''Limbach-Altstadt''. DB rebuilt it as halt with the modernisation of the Mannheim–Saarbrücken railway. It is centrally located within Limbach and belongs to station category 6. In 2007, two outside platforms replaced the existing island platform. The former entrance building is no longer used for railway operations.
Kirkel
![Bahnhof Kirkel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Bahnhof_Kirkel.JPG)
''Kirkel'' station is located on the north-western outskirts of
Kirkel
Kirkel is a municipality in the Saarpfalz district in Saarland, Germany. It is situated approximatively 8 km southeast of Neunkirchen, and 20 km east/northeast of Saarbrücken.
Overview
A rather well-preserved castle ruin
Ruins ...
and is classified as a category 6 station. It was opened on 1 January 1904 with the Homburg–Rohrbach railway. It was originally called ''Kirkel-Neuhäusel''.
Rohrbach (Saar)
''Rohrbach (Saar)'' station is located on the south-western outskirts of Rohrbach and is classified as a category 6 station. It was opened in 1895 as part of the bypass of the
Würzbach Railway (''Würzbachbahn'') that was built from Schwarzenacker to St. Ingbert because the
Hasseler Tunnel
Hasseler Tunnel was a 507-metre tunnel in Saarland, 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 ...
had turned out to be a problem for railway operations. It became a railway junction with the opening of the Homburg–Rohrbach section in 1904. Since then, the line now called the
Landau–Rohrbach railway
The Landau–Rohrbach railway (sometimes called the Südpfalzbahn—"South Palatinate Railway"—or the Queichtalbahn—"Queich Valley Railway") is a major line running from Landau in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate to Rohrbach in the Saa ...
has had its western terminus at the station.
St. Ingbert
![ICE IGB3](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/ICE_IGB3.jpg)
''St. Ingbert'' station belongs to station category 3. It was created in 1867 as the western terminus of the Würzbach Railway starting in Schwarzenacker and was at that time the most western station within the then Palatinate. It became a through station with the extension of the line to Saarbrücken in 1879. At the same time, it received its current entrance building, which has been rebuilt over the years. To the east of the station the line was given a new course in 1895 due to the problems of the
Hasseler Tunnel
Hasseler Tunnel was a 507-metre tunnel in Saarland, 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 ...
. The station is the only stop for regional trains on the Saarbrücken–Pirmasens route between Rohrbach and Saarbrücken.
Rentrisch
''Rentrisch'' station is located on the western edge of the St. Ingbert district of Rentrisch and belongs to station category 6. It was opened on 7 February 1932. In the meantime it has been reconstructed as a halt. It has an island platform.
Scheidt (Saar)
![Bahnhof Scheidt (Saar) 06](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Bahnhof_Scheidt_%28Saar%29_06.jpg)
The halt of ''Scheidt (Saar)'' is located centrally within the Scheidt district of Saarbrücken Scheidt (Saarbrücken), Scheidt and belongs to station category 6. It was created in 1879 with the opening of the St. Ingbert–Saarbrücken section of the line.
Schafbrücke
The station was originally called ''Bischmisheim''. It was given its current name of ''Schafbrücke'' after the district of Schafbrücke was created in its present form. A connecting line, which was built for strategic reasons, branched from it to the railway line at Brebach on the
Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway
The Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway (also known in German language, German as the Obere Saartalbahn, Upper Saar Valley Railway) is a two-track main line railway, running from Saarbrücken Central Station, Saarbrücken in the German state of th ...
.
[Map of the Reichsbahndirektion Mainz of 1 January 1940] It belongs to station category 6.
Saarbrücken Ost
The halt of ''Saarbrücken Ost'' (east) is primarily used by the Saarbrücken districts of Rotenbühl, Kaninchenberg, Sankt Arnual and Eschberg. It was created after the Second World War and belongs to station category 5. The Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway, railway to Sarreguemines branches off here.
Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof
![20100225 Eurobahnhof Panorama 25p](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/20100225_Eurobahnhof_Panorama_25p.jpg)
''Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof'' has existed since 1852 and was initially called St. Johann-Saarbrücken. It was then the western terminus of the Ludwigshafen – Homburg – Neunkirchen – Saarbrücken main line. It is now the most important station in
Saarland
The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...
. It is the terminus of several other railway lines such as the Fischbach Valley Railway, the
Nahe Valley Railway
The Nahe Valley Railway (german: Nahetalbahn) is a two-track, partially electrified main line railway in the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, which runs for almost 100 kilometres along the Nahe (Rhine), Nahe. It was built by the ...
, the
Saar Railway
The Saarbrücken–Trier railway, known in German as the ''Saarstrecke'' (literally the "Saar line") in the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. It connects Saarbrücken and Trier. It was opened in 1858 and 1860 and is one o ...
and the
Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway
The Saarbrücken–Sarreguemines railway (also known in German language, German as the Obere Saartalbahn, Upper Saar Valley Railway) is a two-track main line railway, running from Saarbrücken Central Station, Saarbrücken in the German state of th ...
. The original entrance building was located between the tracks. DB demolished it in 1960 and replaced it with a new one.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mannheim-Saarbrucken railway
Railway lines in Rhineland-Palatinate
Railway lines in the Saarland
Railway lines opened in 1847
1847 establishments in Bavaria
Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn
Buildings and structures in Saarbrücken