Bamberg–Rottendorf railway

Bamberg–Rottendorf railway
Bamberg–Rottendorf railway
	standard gauge
Electrification	15 kV/16.7 Hz AC overhead catenary
Operating speed	160 km/h (99 mph)
Route map
	Legend
	Source: German railway atlas

The Bamberg–Rottendorf railway is a two-track electrified main line railway in the

Ludwig's Western Railway (German: Ludwigs-West-Bahn) from Bamberg via Haßfurt and Schweinfurt to Würzburg. Between Bamberg and Schweinfurt, the line runs largely along the Main river. The line was opened in sections between 1852 and 1854 and is one of the oldest railways in Germany

.

History

Before the completion of the modern

division of Germany in 1945, more long-distance trains to Thuringia and Saxony used the Würzburg–Schweinfurt line than the line via Hof. In 1978, faster regional services were established, accompanied by the closure of several stations, as was the case on many lines in Germany during the 1970s and 1980s. InterRegio train services ran on the Stuttgart–Würzburg–Schweinfurt–Erfurt route from soon after German reunification

until 2001.

Opening dates

The line was opened in three stages from Bamberg from 1852 to 1854:

1 August 1852: Bamberg–Haßfurt
3 November 1852: Haßfurt–Schweinfurt
1 July 1854: Schweinfurt–Würzburg

Further development of the line to create additional capacity to handle increased traffic was necessary over the years:

1897: duplication between Schweinfurt and Waigolshausen
1905–1908: duplication between Bamberg and Schweinfurt and between Waigolshausen and Würzburg
1984: adding of the third line between Würzburg and Rottendorf

In addition, on 1 July 1864, a new railway station was opened in Würzburg, as the old Ludwigsbahnhof (Ludwig’s station) in the city centre had to be closed because it was unable to cope with the increase in traffic.

Electrification

In 1954 and in 1971 and 1972 overhead wire was erected over the track in three sections:

3 October 1954: Würzburg–Rottendorf
22 September 1971: Waigolshausen–Bamberg
26 May 1972: Rottendorf–Waigolshausen

Current services

Since the timetable change in December 2004, Regional-Express trains have run every two hours, generally with two routes overlapping to provide hourly services on most sections. Specifically, trains run on the following lines:

Würzburg–Schweinfurt–
Mellrichstadt–Suhl–Erfurt

Würzburg–Schweinfurt–Haßfurt–Bamberg–Lichtenfels–Hof/Bayreuth
Würzburg–Schweinfurt–Haßfurt–Bamberg–
Nürnberg

Modern vehicles are exclusively used on the three lines. The first two lines because of their winding routes are operated with

class 146

locomotives, saving several minutes on the line. Regional-Express trains stop only at the stations of Bamberg, Haßfurt, Schweinfurt and Würzburg on the 100-kilometre route.

Regionalbahn services also supplement the Regional Express train services. Services run hourly on the Würzburg–Schweinfurt line, continuing every two hours to Bamberg. Trains terminating in Schweinfurt in some cases continue to Schweinfurt Stadt station. On the Haßfurt–Bamberg section extra services run, increasing services to an hourly frequency. The trains are usually composed of a class 111 or class 143 locomotives and four or five Silberling carriages.

Notes

ISBN 978-3-89494-139-0
.

References

"Die Kursbuchstrecke 810" (in German). www.nahverkehr-franken.de. Retrieved 16 November 2010.

External links

Media related to Bamberg–Rottendorf railway at Wikimedia Commons

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bamberg–Rottendorf_railway&oldid=1203014939"

[Eisenbahnatlas-1] ISBN 978-3-89494-139-0
.

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