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The Uelzen–Langwedel railway runs through the
Lüneburg Heath Lüneburg Heath (, ) is a large area of heath (habitat), heath, geest, and woodland in the northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover and Bremen and is ...
in north
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in an east-west direction. The line became known as part of the so-called
America Line The America Line (German: ''Amerikalinie'') is the official name of a railway line in northern Germany which is mainly of regional importance today. It runs in an east-west direction and links Stendal in Saxony-Anhalt with the Hanseatic city of Br ...
.


History


Imperial era

The '' Bremen State Railway'', as it was first called, was originally built by the Bremen Senate and opened in 1873. It runs from Lower Saxon
Langwedel Langwedel is a municipality in the district of Verden, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Weser, approx. 7 km northwest of Verden, and 30 km southeast of Bremen. Langwedel belonged to the Prince-Bishop ...
eastwards through the Lüneburg Heath to Uelzen. The line was renowned as part of the so-called
America Line The America Line (German: ''Amerikalinie'') is the official name of a railway line in northern Germany which is mainly of regional importance today. It runs in an east-west direction and links Stendal in Saxony-Anhalt with the Hanseatic city of Br ...
. In Langwedel it formed a junction with the line to Wunstorf, that was owned 50/50 by Bremen and Hanover and operated by the Royal Hanoverian State Railways. Profits on the Langwedel–Uelzen section were initially split in a 2:1 ratio between the Magdeburg-Halberstadt Railway Company (MHE) and Bremen, until operations were taken over by
Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...
. At the start of the 20th century the line entered the spotlight as the shortest link between Berlin and the
naval base A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that usu ...
at
Wilhelmshaven Wilhelmshaven (, ''Wilhelm's Harbour''; Northern Low Saxon: ''Willemshaven'') is a coastal town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western side of the Jade Bight, a bay of the North Sea, and has a population of 76,089. Wilhelmsha ...
, which is why several
barracks Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...
and
military training area A military training area, training area (Australia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom) or training centre (Canada) is land set aside specifically to enable military forces to train and exercise for combat. Training areas are usually out of bounds ...
s were established at Munster (Örtze) and the line doubled in 1907.


1918 to 1945

Between the wars several
express train An express train is a type of passenger train that makes few or no stops between its origin and destination stations, usually major destinations, providing faster service than local trains that stop at many or all of the stations along their ...
s ran between Berlin and Wilhelmshaven or Norddeich over this line. In the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
the stations were repeatedly the targets of air raids. At the end of the 1930s there was a collision between a bus and
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
's train at the level crossing near
Walle Walle is a surname of Norwegian and German origin, which is a variant of the surname Wall. Wall in turn is a topographic name, which meant a person who lived by a defensive or stone-built wall.''Dictionary of American Family Names''"Wall Family Hi ...
which resulted in several fatalities. Today the level crossing has gone; in its place is an overbridge for the B 215. The so-called ''Führerzug'' ("Führer's train") continued on its way after a short stop at Kirchlinteln.Weblink zur Geschichte of the America Line with Unglücksfällen
In February 1945 a refugee train was destroyed during an air raid near the villages of Scharnhorst and Walle resulting in a high death toll. Towards the end the line was the scene of heavy fighting between retreating
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...
troops and the advancing
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
.


Post-war period

After the Second World War the line through the Lüneburg Heath was reduced in stages to a single-track
branch line A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Branch lines may serve one or more industries, or a city or town not located ...
by 1987 and several halts and stations were closed to passenger services. In addition many of the goods facilities were closed. In 1987 most of the manually operated level crossings were replaced by automatic barriers.


Situation today


Physical condition

Even after the fall of the
Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...
the non-electrified line was of little importance within the
Deutsche Bahn (, ; abbreviated as DB or DB AG ) is the national railway company of Germany, and a state-owned enterprise under the control of the German government. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). DB was fou ...
network and has had very little in the way of modernisation measures. As a result, between Langwedel and Uelzen there are many features of interest to railway fans such as old
signal box A signal is both the process and the result of transmission of data over some media accomplished by embedding some variation. Signals are important in multiple subject fields including signal processing, information theory and biology. In ...
installations, telegraph poles, semaphore signals and station buildings.


Renovation work

In early 2009 renovations to the permanent way were carried out between Langwedel and Soltau, something that had been repeatedly delayed since the 1990s. The Federal Railway Office (EBA) had set Deutsche Bahn a deadline after when it threatened to ban operations between Langwedel and Soltau. Consequently, train services in the 2008/2009 winter timetable were interrupted due to major work on the line and in
Visselhövede station Visselhövede station is on the Uelzen–Langwedel railway in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is served by ''RegionalBahn'' passenger trains operated by DB Regio and goods trains run by the East Hanoverian Railways (OHE). Location Visselh ...
. These measures secured the continued existence of the line.


Passenger services

Up to December 2008 passenger services consisted of ''Regionalbahn'' trains run by DB Regio as part of the Uelzen-Bremen route, not all of which were operated to a fixed-interval system. Following the changeover of timetables in December 2008, ''
RegionalBahn The ''Regionalbahn'' (; lit. Regional train; abbreviated ''RB'') is a train categories in Europe, type of Regional rail, local passenger train (stopping train) in Germany. It is similar to the Regionalzug (R) and Regio (Swiss railway train), R ...
'' trains now only run between Uelzen and Langwedel; passengers have to change for Bremen. This service is justified on the grounds that a lot of construction work is taking place. The occasional trains between Brunswick and Bremen that ran over the Brunswick–Uelzen railway and Langwedel before December 2008 have also been dropped from the timetable. The
Osthannoversche Eisenbahnen The Osthannoversche Eisenbahnen AG (OHE) is a Celle based transportation company with railway network in North-eastern Lower Saxony around the Lüneburg Heath area of over 250 km. The OHE's main business is the transportation of freight ...
AG (OHE) won the tender for the ''Heidekreuz'' (cross heath) services (Bremen–Uelzen and Buchholz–Hanover). The newly founded subsidiary ''
Erixx Erixx GmbH (stylized as erixx) is a private railway company operating regional train service in Lower Saxony and Bremen, northern Germany. It is wholly owned by Osthannoversche Eisenbahnen AG (OHE). Since 11 December 2011, Erixx operates on be ...
'' took over operations from the timetable change in December 2011 for eight years. Except for a few exceptions during peak hours, services run on a two-hour cycle. There are no longer any commuter or school trains on the America Line, so the majority of travellers are occasional passengers.


Goods traffic

The low level of goods traffic, which comprises wood trains, transfers to the Visselhövede mineral oil dealer and container trains, was operated by the
East Hanoverian Railways The Osthannoversche Eisenbahnen AG (OHE) is a Celle based transportation company with railway network in North-eastern Lower Saxony around the Lüneburg Heath area of over 250 km. The OHE's main business is the transportation of freight ...
. From time to time vehicles from the Middle Weser Railway MWB run on the line. Since 2024 some gravel hauling trains with EGP Eisenbahn Gesellschaft Potsdam diesels and MKB Mindener Kreis-Bahn Dual-Mode engines are spotted.


Future

The railway is seriously threatened with closure, mainly due to the lack of passenger numbers. Nevertheless, there are regular discussions about electrifying and upgrading the line for goods traffic, especially as a junction to the ''
JadeWeserPort JadeWeserPort () is Germany's largest harbour project. It is supported by the states of Lower Saxony (50.1% stake) and Bremen (state), Bremen (49.9% stake). This new containerization, container port is located at Wilhelmshaven at the Jade ...
'' container port at Wilhelmshaven. In a 2004 federal railway upgrade law it was described as of "urgent necessity". In
Kirchlinteln Kirchlinteln is a municipality in the district of Verden, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Its central village is situated approximately 6 km east of Verden, and 40 km southeast of Bremen. It is surrounded by the Linteln Geest (also called ...
there are efforts being made to have a halt built for passengers. The demand is for a more central facility unlike the former station. In Visselhövede there are plans to close the present station and build another one further east nearer the town centre. There is also an intent to double the line between Tadel (between the old stations of Jeddingen and Bendingbostel) and Langwedel as part of the new wye section (''Y-Trasse'') on the Hanover–Bremen route for the
high speed train High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail transport network utilising trains that run significantly faster than those of traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated railway track, tracks. While there is ...
s; but construction has been delayed several times and its future is uncertain.


Rolling stock

Locomotives of DRG classes  03 and  50 used to be a common sight on the line. These were mainly stationed in Uelzen. The line was one of the longest in West Germany to be regularly worked by steam engines. In addition, immediately after the war Wittfelder accumulator cars could be seen on the line as well as steam-hauled trains. The Wittfelders were later replaced by Class  798 Uerdingen railbuses and prototype units of Class  628.0. In the 1980s and 1990s DB Class 216s,
624 __NOTOC__ Year 624 ( DCXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 624 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for ...
s, 218s and even occasional 212s were used in charge of '' Eilzug'' trains. Local passenger trains no longer run any more. In 2008
diesel multiple unit A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also ...
s of classes  628.2 and 628.4 were introduced. Until the timetable change in December 2008
DB Class 614 The DB Class 614s are German diesel multiple units operated by the Deutsche Bundesbahn, comprising two Class 614 driving units and up to two Class 914 centre cars. On 1 January 1994 the ownership of these vehicles was transferred to the DB's legal ...
units were used. On 10 December 2005 the DB Class 634s were withdrawn. ''InterCity'' trains between Munster via Uelzen to Berlin, midday on Fridays for the weekend home travels of German Army soldiers and back to Munster late Sunday evenings were headed by 218s until 2012. Now this service is taken over by regular Alstom class 648.4 RDCs of DB Regio Start Niedersachsen-Mitte. The wood and container trains were occasionally hauled by
ADtranz DE-AC33C The Blue Tiger (manufacturer designation: DE-AC33C) is a type of high powered diesel-electric locomotive developed by ADtranz in association with General Electric. History and design The prototype was unveiled in 1996. Initially the axle lo ...
diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover (locomotive), power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is con ...
s with their ''Red Tiger'' livery, with locomotives of classes MaK G 1202 BB, MaK G 1204 BB or MaK G 1205 BB in charge of smaller transfer trains operated by the OHE. Now occasionally freights are run by DB BR 232, Mak G 1206 BB, BR 218s, whereas since 2023 some Siemens Dual Mode Vectrons are spotted with heavier trains. File:Hundertwasserbahnhof uelzen1.JPG, The Hundertwasser station in
Uelzen Uelzen (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Uelzen (), is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the district of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a Hanseatic town and an independent municipality. Uelz ...


See also

*
List of scheduled railway routes in Germany NB: The scheduled routes given here are based primarily on the timetable of the Deutsche Bahn dated 9 December 2007.In addition the list of routes (see external links) reflects those of the German Regional Railway (''Deutsche Regionaleisenbahn'') ...
* Bremen State Railway


References


External links

*
America Line Depot Monument museum station Ebstorf (Uelzen)

More on the Uelzen–Langwedel line
(pdf file, 414 KB)
Discussion on the Uelzen–Ebstorf section

1944 timetable, including express services
{{DEFAULTSORT:Uelzen-Langwedel railway Railway lines in Lower Saxony Buildings and structures in Verden (district) Rotenburg (district) Buildings and structures in Heidekreis Uelzen (district) Soltau Railway lines opened in 1873 1873 establishments in Germany