Leipzig Tramway Network History
Encyclopedia
This article is a translation of the German article Geschichte des Straßenbahnnetzes Leipzig.
Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe GmbH (LVB, "Leipzig Transport Company, LLC" ) operates one of Germany's largest tramway networks. The tramway network history is presented below in tabular form, including opening, electrification, and closing dates by segment. Street names of the time are used in the tables, with current names in (parentheses).
local authority granted to Count ("Graf") Gabriel Diodati and Geneva banker Adolph Schaeck a concession
for construction of horse tramway lines. Construction was started in February 1872. On 24 May 1872, six days following the opening of the initial segment, the company, its property and concession was taken over by the Leipzig Tramways Company Ltd., organized in London by the British engineer Hutton Vignoles. The undertaking continued to use the LPE title in the German Empire
. The LPE was taken over on 1 January 1896 by the Großen Leipziger Straßenbahn (GLSt, "Greater Leipzig Tramway") undertaking.
served as the principal financial backer of the new undertaking. Because LESt cars were painted red, the company was known colloquially as the Rote ("Red One"). The competing tramway enterprise (LPE, from 1896 the GLSt) operated blue cars, and was known as the Blaue ("Blue One"). The concession for construction and operation of electric tramways was granted to LESt on 28 February 1895. Construction began after a short planning period on 11 June 1895. Because of the regulation limiting the length of each LESt segment in the same road as competing lines to just 400 meters, the company built a substantial length of lines in parallel roads and unreasonable workings in nearby side streets, which remain today
line in Leipzig entered service.
The LAAG remained independent following establishment of the LVB. Only at 1 July 1946 was this undertaking merged into the LVB. The company remained the "official" owners of the tracks and other facilities until 1 October 1951. On this day, the LAAG was taken over completely by the nationalized undertaking VEB (K) Verkehrsbetriebe der Stadt Leipzig (LVB) (see below).
Kombinat Verkehrsbetriebe der Stadt Leipzig (LVB) ("People's Collective Enterprise 'Transport Services of Leipzig City'").
) were constructed east and west of the town, and these were to be connected to the tramway network. Following the end of the DDR
, the LVB became the Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe (LVB) AG i. A. ("Leipzig Transport Company, Ltd. (in liquidation") as the first step toward conversion from a state-owned enterprise (see Treuhand
).
) from 16 March 1993, was modernization of the vehicle fleet and also some segments of tram lines. These measures have not yet been completed (at 2006). Some segments were closed because of heavy losses. From 27 May 2001, the tramway service network was rearranged, with service restored to one segment on which a previous service had been withdrawn.
Lines 1/1E
A 10-minute service interval ("headway") is operated between Lausen and Schönefeld from Monday to Friday during daytime service hours, and a 20-minute interval to Mockau. At other times Line 1E does not operate and 15-minute intervals are operated between Lausen and Mockau. Both services are worked mostly by three-car formations of Tatra stock (Tatra-Großzüge, Tw+Tw+Bw). Some late evening and weekend services are worked by low-floor NGT8 stock. The primary function of these lines is to connect the densely-populated Grünau-Süd, Schleußig and Schönefeld districts with the town center.
Lines 2/2E
Line 2 operates only during peak periods every 20 minutes. Line 2E is operated during peak periods every 20 minutes, weekday mornings and evenings every 10 minutes and on weekends during daytime service hours every 15 minutes. During late evening and weekend early-morning service hours, Lines 2 and 2E are not operated. On Sunday mornings, the segment of Line 2E between Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz and Naunhofer Straße is served by cars working Line 8E. These lines connect the residential districts of Grünau-Süd, Schleußig and Probstheida/Meusdor to the southern town central and serve important research institutes and universities. Both are served by two-car trains of Tatra stock (Tw+Tw/Bw) and NGT8 low-floor trams.
Lines 3/3E
Line 3 operates only during peak hours. Line 3 operates during weekday mornings, evenings and weekend daytime service hours. On Mondays through Fridays service operates every 20 minutes, and every 30 minutes on weekends. Both low-floor NGT8 stock and Tatra motor cars with a (mostly) low-floor trailer are used on this line. This line connects residential areas (Knauthain, Großzschocher, Volkmarsdorf, Paunsdorf) and larger industrial areas (Heiterblick) as well as the Paunsdorf-Center shopping center and the de:Belantis theme park (with feeder buses from Knautkleeberg) to the town center.
Line 4
On Mondays to Fridays during daytime service hours, Line 4 operates every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. It is worked primarily by NGT8 stock. The major function of Line 4 is to connect the residential districts of Gohlis, Reudnitz and Stötteritz with the town center.
Line 7
This line operates at the same intervals as Line 4, every 10 minutes during weekday daytime hours and every 15 minutes at other times. At times when Line 8 does not operate, Line 7 operates via Torgauer Platz. Also on weekends and during late evening service hours, three-car trains of Tatra stock (Tatra-Großzüge) with low-floor trailers or LEOLINER trams in two-coupled formations work this line. Line 7 connects the densely-built-up residential districts of Böhlitz-Ehrenberg, Leutzsch, Reudnitz, Sellerhausen and Paunsdorf with the town center, and in addition the large Paunsdorf-Center shopping center.
Lines 8/8E
To connect the large housing estates of Grünau-Nord and Paunsdorf as well as the districts of Lindenau und Volkmarsdorf with the southern town center, Line 8 operates during daytime service hours. On Mondays through Fridays, modernized tow-car formations of Tatra stock operate every 10 minutes, and on weekends every 15 minutes. On Sunday mornings only, Line 8E trams operate through workings with Line 2E services to the Naunhofer Straße. At these times, the NGT8 cars reverse at the Angerbrücke Depot.
Line 9
Line 9 operates during weekday daytime service hours every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. It connects the housing developments of Mockau, Südvorstadt-Ost, Connewitz and Markkleeberg-West with the town center. Both two-car formations of Tatra stock and NGT8 trams are used.
Line 10
Only during weekday daytime service hours do the NGT8 low-floor vehicles serve Line 10. The segment between Wahren and Hauptbahnhof does not operate on Sunday mornings. The service frequencies correspond to those provided on other lines, thus weekdays every 10 minutes, on weekends 15 minutes. The line connects the large housing estate at Lößnig as well as the districts of Connewitz, Südvorstadt, Gohlis, Möckern and Wahren with the town center.
Lines 11/11E
Line 11 is the longest line of the Lepzig tramway network. It operates through three fare zones and crosses the municipal boundary at both extremities.
During weekday daytime service hours, both lines operate every 20 minutes, with Line 11E working only to Dölitz. On line 11, three-car Tatra-Großzüge formations with low-floor trailers are used, and on line 11E both Tatra-Großzüge and the new Leoliner stock are used.
At other times, the two lines operate every 30 minutes and Line 11E terminates at Markkleeberg-Ost. Both lines are worked with two-car Tatra formations, and Line 11 is thereby worked mostly by low-floor tramcars.
The lines connect the neighboring towns of Schkeuditz, Lützschena and Markkleeberg, and the districts of Wahren, Möckern, Gohlis, Südvorstadt, Connewitz and Dölitz with the Leipziger Stadtzentrum (Leipzig town center).
Lines 12/4E
The two lines, 4E and 12, operate through workings, that is, services, worked primarily by NGT8 stock, operate through and line designations are changed at terminals. Line 4E, however, operates only during daytime service hours, on weekdays only during peak periods. At noon the direction of travel changes. Thereafter, only Line 12 operates between Gohlis-Nord and Johannisplatz. Earlier services operate from Gohlis-Nord via the Prager Straße, the Riebeckstraße, and Reudnitz before returning to Gohlis-Nord. At the Prager Straße / Riebeckstraße intersection, the line number is changed. However, afternoon services operate around the "Ring" in the opposite direction. Line numbers are changed at the Goerdelerring and at the Prager Straße / Riebeckstraße intersection. On weekdays, during daytime service hours, service operates at 10-minute intervals, and at 15-minute intervals at other times. The two lines connect the districts of Gohlis, Nordvorstadt, Reudnitz and Thonberg with the town center.
Line 13
Line 13 operates Monday through Friday every 20 minutes during daytime service hours, and every 30 minutes at other times. Both low-floor NGT8 stock and Tatra motor cars with a (mostly) low-floor trailer are used. The line connects both residential areas (Knauthain, Großzschocher, Volkmarsdorf, Taucha) and larger industrial areas (Heiterblick) with the town center.
Line 14
This line, under threat of closure, operates every 20 minutes Monday to Friday during daytime service hours, and every 30 minutes at other times. NGT8 stock, LEOLINER motor trams as well as two-car Tatra formations are used. The line connects the residential areas of Plagwitz and Eutritzsch with industrial areas on the Wittenberger Straße and near the town center.
Line 15
The busiest line of the Leipzig tramway network is served during weekday daytime hours every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. Bombardier Classic-XXL stock, each with the capacity of a three-car Tatra formation (Tatra-Großzug), entered service from 2005 / 2006. Because only 12 Bombardier vehicles are on hand (at 2006 July), Tatra formations with low-floor trailers also serve this line, especially on weekdays. The line connects the large housing estates at Miltitz and Grünau-Nord, as well as the densely populated districts of Lindenau, Thonberg, Probstheida and Meusdorf with the town center.
Lines 16/16E
On school days, trains of NGT8 stock operate on Line 16 at 8-minute intervals. At other times during weekday daytime service and during holiday peak periods, they operate every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. During events at the Leipzig Trade Fair
, Tatra formations are used and the interval between services is halved by operation of Line 16E between the fairground and the Leuschnerplatz. In addition to the fairground, Line 16 serves also the large housing estate at Lössnig and the districts of Wiederitzsch, Eutritzsch and Nordvorstadt.
Line 16 is the only tramway line in Leipzig which has already been upgraded in part to Stadtbahn
standards.
standards. In addition, on 20 February 2006, the underpass under the intersection of Jahnallee and Marschnerstraße was opened. Subsequent projects for modernization of other important lines (1, 3, 7, 11) are planned.
Line extensions are at present only in planning. Under study are an extension of Line 15 from Meusdorf to Pösna-Park as well as the extension of Line 16 to Seehausen. It appears at present that both will be built, but probably not in the next several years.
Today, Angerbrücke depot, the most modern on the Leipzig tramway network, houses vehicles working Lines 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 and 15. Line 8E trams and buses of Line 130 to Frankenheim also terminate here.
A connection from the Brandstraße to two tracks on the lower level was restored in 1939 for "wartime technical reasons" (kriegstechnischen Gründen). The depot was last used in August 1957, when vehicles working Line 24 were based here because the line to the usual depot was obstructed. The entire facility, including service-track connections, was closed in 1963. Remaining tracks may be seen today on the former depot site and in the Simildenstraße.
The last rolling based here, used to work Lines 16 and 21, were stabled in the north shed from 4 December 1943 to 1949. This became necessary after the Wittenberger Straße depot was bombed. After 1949, up to the final closure on 1 July 1950, the north shed was used for storage of war-damaged rolling stock.
at the rear of the facility. At the time of electrification, on 18 April 1896, Gohlis I was the largest depot of the GLSt. A line terminal, with waiting hall built on the depot grounds, was built here in 1927. A new tramcar shed was built in 1899 and the old main stable building (Hauptstallgebäude) was converted to a tramcar shed. The old workshop shed was disused from 1920, and repairs took place from then on in the tramcar sheds.
The last lines based, according to plan, at Gohlis I, were Lines 28E and 29E, to 24 September 1963. In the meantime Gohlis I had been downgraded to a branch of Möckern depot. The facility was closed at the end of the year 1963.
The depot was reopened for regular operation on 1 November 1925. From 1 October 1950 Gohlis II depot was named "Jugendbahnhof „Rudi Opitz“
" because mainly younger staff members worked here. From 1954 it was a branch of the Möckern depot. The decrease of vehicle requirements following die Wende
meant that the Gohlis II depot was no longer needed. Vehicles working Line 6 were stabled from 25 May 1993 at the Wittenberger Straße depot.
terminated aircraft construction. The Leipzig
local authority purchased the land and built facilities for a tramway main workshop (Straßenbahn-Hauptwerkstatt), opened 1 June 1926.
From the outset, the HW (Hauptwerkstatt) Heiterblick has performed repairs and (partial) new construction of rolling stock. It is not used for stabling of tramcars. However, line 3E uses a reversing triangle (wye) on the workshop grounds.
The Lindenau workshops could be abolished after opening of the new main workshop at Heiterblick, in August 1927. Motorbuses were stabled at Lindenau from 1 April 1928. The tramcar shed opened in 1924 had a track connection to 1972, thereafter, it was no longer necessary to accommodate tramcars. The three tracks between the two sheds opened in 1899 still exist and from 27 March 1984 connected via a reversing triangle ("wye") to the Lützner Straße. Lindenau Depot housed trolleybuses
from 1938 to 1975.
The depot burned on 19 March 1972, and tramcars were stabled here again from October. The workshop was reopened only in 1986, but from then was able to accommodate Tatra stock. The depot was last used for operations at the end of the 1990s. Since that time, Möckern Depot has seen a new use, as a tramway museum.
The Probstheida Depot was closed to tramcars from 1 August 1973 and converted to a motorbus depot. Motorbuses were based here from 15 April 1977. However, the three-track tram terminal, removed in 1988 was replaced by a single track in 2005.
The LVB expanded Reudnitz Depot from 1970 to 1972, and built the access tracks to the Dresdner Straße and from the Täubchenweg. In addition, at the rear, a tramcar shed connected to the Täubchenweg was opened and between the Dresdner Straße and this shed an open-air storage yard was created. The project was finished with the opening of a terminal loop on the depot grounds on 5 December 1972.
The depot was closed from 6 May 1998 after nearly 126 years of operation, because of the decline in passenger traffic following the political turning point of 1989 and reductions in tramcar fleet size. Sufficient free capacity was present at Paunsdorf Depot for the vehicles based at Reudnitz. The track connection to the Täubchenweg was removed, but the entry switches in the Dresdner Straße were only removed in 2005.
After GLSt revised the service pattern in 1920, only the workshop remained in use. The tramcar shed connected to the Apelstraße was used to store vehicles belonging to the track construction department. The depot was reopened as an operating division in 1927. After the new main workshop at Heiterblick was opened, the majority of workshop activity could be moved there. In order to simply depot access, the transfer tables were removed in October 1928 and the former workshop shed was connected directly to the Wittenberger Straße. The open-air storage yard was closed.
On 4 December 1943 the depot was destroyed to a large extent by allied bombers. Only one part of the workshop remained usable. Part of the site of the former tramcar shed connected to the Apelstraße was cleared in 1945 and a new open-air storage yard created. The depot could again be used for stabling of trams used in service only from 1949.
Extensive reconstruction was started in 1964. The Bitterfelder Straße loop track was completed by 1968. From 1980, trams could no longer turn directly from the Apelstraße in the direction of the Berliner Straße, but only away from the town center (landwärts). This measure had become necessary because the LVB wished to expand the open-air storage yard by an additional 11 tracks. The modernized workshop was reopened on 8 November 1992 .
Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe GmbH (LVB, "Leipzig Transport Company, LLC" ) operates one of Germany's largest tramway networks. The tramway network history is presented below in tabular form, including opening, electrification, and closing dates by segment. Street names of the time are used in the tables, with current names in (parentheses).
Leipziger Pferde-Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (LPE, "Leipzig Horse Railway Company")
On 20 April 1871, the LeipzigLeipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
local authority granted to Count ("Graf") Gabriel Diodati and Geneva banker Adolph Schaeck a concession
Concession (contract)
A concession is a business operated under a contract or license associated with a degree of exclusivity in business within a certain geographical area. For example, sports arenas or public parks may have concession stands. Many department stores contain numerous concessions operated by other...
for construction of horse tramway lines. Construction was started in February 1872. On 24 May 1872, six days following the opening of the initial segment, the company, its property and concession was taken over by the Leipzig Tramways Company Ltd., organized in London by the British engineer Hutton Vignoles. The undertaking continued to use the LPE title in the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
. The LPE was taken over on 1 January 1896 by the Großen Leipziger Straßenbahn (GLSt, "Greater Leipzig Tramway") undertaking.
The First Phase of Construction (1872/73)
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 18 May 1872 | Opened | Zentrumsring: Roßplatz – Augustusplatz – Georgiring – Bahnhöfe (Hauptbahnhof) – Blücherplatz (Tröndlinring/Kurt-Schumacher-Straße) – Fleischerplatz (Tröndlin-/Goerdelerring Goerdelerring Goerdelerring is a street and large tramway station in Leipzig, Germany. It is named after Carl Friedrich Goerdeler.- The street :The street Goerdelerring is part of the city circle of Leipzig, leading the traffic around the city center... ) – Obstmarkt (Martin-Luther-Ring) – Königsplatz (Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz) – Roßplatz |
| Opened | Augustusplatz, Mittelfahrbahn – Johannisplatz – Dresdner Straße – de:Reudnitz, Depot | |
| Opened | Königsplatz – Peterssteinweg – Südplatz – Kochstraße – :de:Connewitz, Kreuz – Connewitz, Eiskeller (Nähe Koburger Brücke) | |
| 4 Jun 1872 | Opened | Obstmarkt – Weststraße (Fr.-Ebert-Straße, the road alignment at that time was in Höhe Rudolfstraße, parallel to Karl-Tauchnitz-Straße in the Ring) – Plagwitzer Straße (Karl-Heine-Straße) – de:Plagwitz, "Felsenkeller" |
| 22 Sep 1872 | Opened | "Felsenkeller" – Zschochersche Straße – Plagwitz, "Drei Linden" (Zschochersche/Dreilindenstraße) |
| 1 Dec 1872 | Changed to service track | Augustusplatz – Bahnhöfe – Schulplatz – Obstmarkt/Weststraße |
| 19 Dec 1872 | Reopened | Augustusplatz – Bahnhöfe – Blücherplatz |
| Opened | Blücherplatz – Blücherstraße (Kurt-Schumacher-Straße) – Chausseehaus (Delitzscher/Georg-Schumann-Straße) – Eutritzsch, Markt – Gräfestraße – Eutritzsch, Gasthof "Zum Helm" | |
| 20 Jan 1873 | Opened | Yorckplatz (W.-Liebknecht-Platz) – Gohliser Straße – Menckestraße – Möckernsche Straße – de:Gohlis, "Weintraube" (Möckernsche Str. 5) |
The Second Phase of Construction (1881–1891)
After the new transport system had worked satisfactorily and enjoyed increasing popularity with Leipzig citizens, the company planned extensions to link surrounding districts of Leipzig with the tramway network.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 1881 | Opened | Südplatz – Connewitzer Chaussee (K.-Liebknecht-Straße) – Connewitz, Kreuz |
| Closed | Südplatz – Kochstraße – Connewitz, Kreuz | |
| 24 Dec 1881 | Opened | Frankfurter/Leibnizstraße (Jahnallee/Leibnizstraße) – Waldplatz – Angerbrücke – Kuhturmstraße (>) / Dreilindenstraße (<) - Lindenauer Markt - Odermannstraße - Lützner Straße - Endersstraße - Guts-Muths-Straße (>) / Merseburger Straße (<) - Plagwitz, Depot (Nähe König-Albrecht-Brücke) |
| 1 Apr 1882 | Opened | Brühl/Katharinenstraße - Schulplatz - Frankfurter/Leibnizstraße |
| 18 Jun 1882 | Opened | Augustusplatz, Mittelfahrbahn - Goethestraße - Brühl – Brühl/Katharinenstraße |
| 22 Jul 1882 | Opened | Plagwitz, "Felsenkeller" – Albertstraße (Karl-Heine-Straße) – Plagwitz, Depot |
| Changed to service track | Plagwitz, "Felsenkeller" – Plagwitz, "Drei Linden" | |
| 22 Aug 1882 | Opened | Bahnhöfe – Goethestraße/Brühl |
| Opened | Augustusplatz/Goethestraße – Schillerstraße – Peterstor (Schiller-/Petersstraße) | |
| 24 Oct 1882 | New alignment | Change at Augustusplatz, Mittelfahrbahn terminal from four to two tracks |
| 22 Dec 1882 | Opened | Georgiring/Wintergartenstraße – Wintergartenstraße – Eisenbahn-/Kirchstraße (Eisenbahn-/H.-Liebmann-Straße) |
| 25 Jul 1883 | Opened | Gohlis, "Weintraube" – Möckernsche Straße – Gohlis, Depot (Möckernsche Straße 37/41) |
| Opened | Peterstor – Königsplatz | |
| 7 Sep 1883 | Opened | Roßplatz – Kurprinzstraße (Grünewaldstraße) – Windmühlenstraße – Bayrischer Bahnhof |
| 18 May 1884 | Opened | Johannisplatz – Ostplatz |
| 22 Jun 1884 | Opened | Obstmarkt/Harkortstraße – Harkortstraße – Spießbrücke (Harkort-/Telemannstraße) |
| 13 Jul 1884 | Opened | Spießbrücke – Pestalozzistraße (Telemannstraße) – Festplatz Scheibenholz |
| 18 Jul 1884 | Reopened | Centralhalle Dittrichring (Schauspielhaus) – Obstmarkt/Weststraße |
| 1 Aug 1884 | Changed to service track | Spießbrücke – Festplatz (Operated only for special events (Veranstaltungen, "meetings")) |
| 16 Sep 1884 | Reopened | Fleischerplatz (Tröndlin-/Goerdelerring) – Centralhalle Dittrichring |
| 1885 | Reopened | Blücherplatz – Fleischerplatz |
| ?? Dec 1885 | Opened | Ostplatz – Mühlstraße – Thonberg, Cecilienstraße |
| 1886 | Opened | Eutritzsch, Gasthof "Zum Helm" – Gräfestraße – Eutritzsch, Depot |
| 14 May 1887 | Opened | Eisenbahn-/Kirchstraße – Eisenbahnstraße – Torgauer Platz |
| 1887 | Opened | Reudnitz, Depot – Breite/Engelsdorfer Straße (Breite/Zweinaundorfer Straße) |
| 19 Aug 1888 | Opened | Breite/Engelsdorfer Straße – Anger-Crottendorf, "Albertgarten" (Zweinaundorfer/Herbartstraße) |
| 28 Oct 1889 | Opened | Wiesenstraße (G.-Mahler-Straße) – Promenadenstraße (K.-Kollwitz-Straße, at that time the road ran straight to the Wiesenstraße) – Fleischerplatz |
| Opened | Bayrischer Bahnhof – Bayrische Straße (A.-Hoffmann-Straße) – Kantstraße – Schlachthof (MDR-Zentrum) | |
| Opened | Spießbrücke – Kaiser-Wilhelm-Straße (A.-Bebel-Straße) – Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Bebel-/K.-Eisner-Straße) | |
| 5 May 1890 | Opened | Fleischerplatz – Pfaffendorfer Straße – Nordplatz |
| New alignment | Straight-line route via the Nordplatz in the course of the Michaelis- und Gohliser Straße on this day by the existing bypass | |
| 8 Sep 1890 | Opened | Thonberg, Hospital-/Mühlstraße (Prager/Mühlstraße) – Reitzenhainer Straße (Prager Straße) – Friedhofsweg |
| Changed to service track | Segment in the Mühlstraße | |
| 13 Jun 1891 | Opened | Chausseehaus – Hallische Straße (G.-Schumann-Straße) – Möckern, Kernstraße |
Leipziger Elektrische Straßenbahn (LESt, "Leipzig Electric Tramway Company")
The second tramway undertaking in Leipzig, the LESt, was founded on 3 April 1893 and entered into the municipal Trade Register (Handelsregister) on 7 May 1895. The electrical-equipment manufacturer AEGAEG
Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in 1883 by Emil Rathenau....
served as the principal financial backer of the new undertaking. Because LESt cars were painted red, the company was known colloquially as the Rote ("Red One"). The competing tramway enterprise (LPE, from 1896 the GLSt) operated blue cars, and was known as the Blaue ("Blue One"). The concession for construction and operation of electric tramways was granted to LESt on 28 February 1895. Construction began after a short planning period on 11 June 1895. Because of the regulation limiting the length of each LESt segment in the same road as competing lines to just 400 meters, the company built a substantial length of lines in parallel roads and unreasonable workings in nearby side streets, which remain today
Development of the Concession Network (1896–1898)
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 20 May 1896 | Opened | Mockau, Kirche – Berliner Straße – Nordstraße (>) / Gerberstraße (<) - Katharinenstraße (>) / Reichsstraße (<) - Neumarkt - Königsplatz (Ostseite) - Brüderstraße |
| Opened | de:Schönefeld, Löbauer Straße - Volbedingstraße - Berliner/Volbedingstraße | |
| 2 June 1896 | Opened | Brüderstraße - Nürnberger Straße – Bayrischer Bahnhof |
| 3 June 1896 | Opened | Königsplatz (Ostseite) – Wächterstraße – Grassistraße – Beethovenstraße – Marschnerstraße – S.-Bach-Straße – Klingerbrücke – Könneritzstraße – :de:Schleußig, Oeserstraße |
| 5 June 1896 | Opened | Gohlis, Platnerstraße – Rosental – Waldplatz – Elsterstraße – Zentralstraße – Thomaskirche – Markt – Augustusplatz (north side, beyond the entrance to the opera house) – Poststraße (road no longer exists) – Querstraße – Schützenstraße – Karlstraße (Chopinstraße) – Marienplatz |
| 22 June 1896 | Opened | Schleußig, Oeserstraße – Antonienstraße – "Adler" – Hauptstraße (Dieskaustraße) – Großzschocher, Huttenstraße |
| 30 October 1896 | Opened | Quer-/Poststraße – Johannisplatz – Nürnberger Straße – Nürnberger/Brüderstraße |
| Opened | Bayrischer Bahnhof – Albertstraße (Riemannstraße) – Mozartstraße – Grassi-/Beethovenstraße | |
| 5 August 1897 | Opened | Albert-/Elisenstraße (Riemann-/B.-Göring-Straße) – Elisenstraße – Elisen-/Arndtstraße |
| 20 October 1897 | Opened | Marienplatz – Ranftsche Gasse – Kohlgartenstraße – Bergstraße – Kirchplatz (Berg-/H.-Liebmann-Straße) (temporary triangular junction (Gleisdreieck) built here) |
| 14 November 1897? | Opened | Kirchplatz – Kirchstraße (H.-Liebmann-Straße) – Schönefelder Brücke (Südrampe) (possibly opened on 10 January 1898) |
| 8 December 1897 | Opened | Johannisplatz – Täubchenweg – Riebeckstraße – Stötteritzer Straße – :de:Stötteritz, Hofer Straße/Stadtgrenze |
| 21 December 1897 | Opened | Lindenthaler/Hallische Straße (G.-Schumann-/Lindenthaler Straße) – Eisenacher Straße (>) / Wahrener Straße (Wolfener Straße) (<) - Gohlis, Platnerstraße |
| 15 May 1898 | Opened | Stötteritz, Stadtgrenze - Wasserturmstraße - Weißestraße - Arnoldstraße - Holzhäuser Straße - Stötteritz, Depot (current terminal) |
| 23 July 1898 | Opened | Kirchplatz – Kirchstraße (H.-Liebmann-Straße) – Wurzner Straße – Wurzner/Plaußiger Straße |
| 20 August 1898 | Opened | Stannebeinplatz – Schönefeld, Löbauer Straße |
| Opened | Berliner/Apelstraße – Wittenberger/Heinickestraße | |
| 30 August 1898 | Opened | Bayrischer Bahnhof – Windmühlenweg (Ph.-Rosenthal-Straße) – Johannisallee – Ostplatz – Oststraße (>) / Stötteritzer Straße (<) - Riebeckstraße |
| Opened | Stötteritzer/Schönbachstraße - Schönbach-/Reitzenhainer Straße (Schönbach-/Prager Straße) | |
| 1898 | Opened | Wittenberger/Heinickestraße - Eutritzsch, Markt - Delitzscher Straße/Alte Dübener Landstraße |
| 14 November 1898 | Opened | Gohlis, Kasernen (Landsberger/Olbrichtstraße) – Landsberger Straße – Lindenthaler/Hallische Straße |
Short Extensions (1899–1917)
After the backbone network of the LESt was developed, the company built only shorter extensions at various extremities and the town center. Issues related to the struggle between competing tramway enterprises proved burdensome to the local authority, and so merger of the companies was sought during the First World War. This was accomplished from 1 January 1917, when the LESt was absorbed by its larger competitor, the GLSt.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 19 November 1899 | Opened | Gohlis, Stockstraße – Eisenacher Straße – Möckernsche Straße – Kirschbergstraße – Möckern, Gasthof "Zum Anker" (Hotel "Zum Anker", continues in business) |
| 10 September 1900 | Opened | Elisen-/Arndtstraße – Elisenstraße (B.-Göring-Straße) – Elisen-/Scharnhorststraße |
| 12 June 1902 | Opened | Riebeck-/Stötteritzer Straße – Riebeckstraße – Arbeitsanstalt (Riebeck-/Prager Straße) |
| 14 July 1904 | Opened | Elisen-/Scharnhorststraße – Elisen-/Hardenbergstraße |
| 21 October 1905 | Opened | Wurzner/Plaußiger Straße – Paunsdorf, Stadtgrenze (at the east wall of the Sellerhausen cemetery) |
| 15 December 1906 | Opened | Elisen-/Hardenbergstraße – Elisenstraße – Waisenhausstraße (A.-Nitzsche-Straße) – Connewitz, Kreuz |
| 10 March 1910 | Opened | gemeinsam mit der GLSt: Wendescheife Bahnhöfe/Richard-Wagner-Straße (southernmost of four loop tracks owned by LESt) |
| 30 September 1910 | Opened | Gohlis, Depot (today's Landsberger Straße terminal) – Landsberger Straße – Gohlis, Kasernen (provisional opening as service track) |
| 10 November 1912 | Opened | Waisenhausstraße – Zwenkauer Straße – Depot Connewitz/Hildebrandstraße |
| 1 March 1913 | Opened | Windmühlenweg/Johannisallee – Windmühlenweg (Ph.-Rosenthal-Straße) – Siegismundstraße (terminal loop, at approximate site of today's Deutscher Platz loop) |
| 1 May 1913 | Opened | Quer-/Schützenstraße – Hahnekamm – Brandenburger Straße – Richard-Wagner-Straße / Hauptbahnhof |
| 1 June 1913 | Opened | Paunsdorf, Stadtgrenze – Paunsdorf, Depot (provisional opening as service track) |
| 16 July 1913 | Opened | Reitzenhainer/Schönbachstraße – Reitzenhainer Straße (Prager Straße) – Südfriedhof (Covered terminal at the south side of the Reitzenhainer Straße) |
| 17 February 1914 | Opened | Schleife Siegismundstraße (Deutscher Platz) – Reitzenhainer Straße – Naunhofer Straße (Terminal in the Naunhofer Straße) |
| 31 October 1914 | Opened | Eutritzsch, Delitzscher Straße/Dübener Landstraße – Krankenhaus St. Georg (current terminal) |
| 18 August 1916 | New alignment | reserved track alongside the road between the Waldstraßenbrücke bridge and the Polizeiwache (police station, approximately at today's Höhe Tennisplatz) |
Große Leipziger Straßenbahn (GLSt, "Greater Leipzig Tramway Company")
The course of events prompted the LPE to convert its network to electric traction. For this purpose, on 15 November 1895 the Große Leipziger Straßenbahn AG was entered into the municipal Trade Register. Effective 1 January 1896, the LPE, together with its contracts with the electrical manufacturer Union-Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft (UEG) and the banking house of Becker & Co, was handed to GLSt.Electrification (1896–1897)
Because the competing enterprise was already busy with construction of an extensive electric tramway network, electrification of the horse tramway lines had to be advanced hastily. Within 18 months, the entire horse traction network had been changed to overhead electric traction.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 18 April 1896 | Electrified | Gohlis, Depot Möckernsche Straße – Nordplatz – Bahnhöfe – Goethestraße – Schillerstraße – Königsplatz (W.-Leuschner-Platz) – Connewitzer Chaussee (K.-Liebknecht-Straße) – Connewitz, Kreuz – Connewitz, Eiskeller (near Koburger Brücke) |
| 30 October 1896 | Electrified | Plagwitz, Depot – Lindenauer Markt – Waldplatz – Blücherplatz – Georgiring – Augustusplatz – Roßplatz – Bayrischer Bahnhof – Prager Straße – Friedhofsweg |
| Electrified | Fleischerplatz – Brühl – Brühl/Goethestraße | |
| 31 October 1896 | Electrified | Plagwitz, Depot – "Felsenkeller" – Obstmarkt – Königsplatz – Roßplatz |
| Electrified | Georgiring/Wintergartenstraße – Eisenbahnstraße – Torgauer Platz | |
| Opened | Plagwitzer Bahnhöfe – Albertstraße (K.-Heine-Straße) – Plagwitz, Depot | |
| 2 March 1897 | Electrified | Augustusplatz, Mittelfahrbahn – Reudnitz – Anger-Crottendorf, "Albertgarten" |
| 3 March 1897 | Electrified | Nordplatz – Fleischerplatz – Obstmarkt – Spießbrücke – Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Bebel-/K.-Eisner-Straße) |
| 4 March 1897 | Electrified | Blücherplatz – Chausseehaus – Möckern, Kernstraße |
| 5 March 1897 | Electrified | Wiesen-/Promenadenstraße (G.-Mahler-/K.-Kollwitz-Straße) – Promenadenstraße – Fleischerplatz |
| Electrified | Bayrischer Bahnhof – Bayrische Straße (A.-Hoffmann-Straße) – Schlachthof | |
| 17 April 1897 | Electrified | Chausseehaus – Eutritzsch, Markt – Eutritzsch, Depot Gräfestraße |
| 9 May 1897 | Electrified/ Reopened | Spießbrücke – Rennbahn |
| 28 October 1897 | Electrified/ Reopened | Plagwitz, "Drei Linden" – "Felsenkeller" |
Extensive Development of the Network (1897–1902)
The company also built new lines, because many districts were not yet served by the Leipzig tramway network.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 28 October 1897 | Opened | "Felsenkeller" – Zschochersche Straße – "Adler" – Windorfer Straße – Kleinzschocher, Taborkirche |
| 13 November 1897 | Opened | Albert-/Nonnenstraße (K.-Heine-/Nonnenstraße) – Nonnenstraße – Weißenfelser Straße – Weißenfelser/Zschochersche Straße |
| Ende 1897 | Opened | Lützner-/Endersstraße – Lützner Straße – Lindenau, Depot (today: Bushof Lindenau) (provisional opening as service track) |
| 1 June 1898 | Opened | Reitzenhainer Straße/Friedhofsweg (Prager Straße/Friedhofsweg) – Friedhofsweg – Südfriedhof (at the tobacco mill (Tabaksmühle)) |
| 24 July 1898 | Opened | Reudnitz, Depot – Wurzner Straße – Torgauer Straße – Torgauer Platz |
| 26 October 1898 | Opened | Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Bebel-/K.-Eisner-Straße) – Kronprinz-/Südstraße (K.-Eisner-/K.-Liebknecht-Straße) |
| Opened | Connewitz, Kreuz – Bornaische/Meusdorfer Straße | |
| 1898 | Opened | Gohlis, Depot Möckernsche Straße – Wiederitzscher Straße – Wiederitzscher/Hallische Straße |
| Opened | Nordplatz – Roscherstraße – Roscher-/Eutritzscher Straße (Betriebsstrecke) | |
| 27 January 1899 | Opened | Lindenauer Markt – Querstraße – G.-Schwarz-Straße – Leutzsch, Schule |
| 14 April 1899 | Opened | Leutzsch, Schule – Rathenaustraße – Bahnhof Leutzsch |
| 23 July 1899 | Opened | Möckern, Kernstraße – Hallische Straße – Möckern, Kirche |
| 30 November 1899 | Opened | Hallische/Meusdorfer Straße – Lößnig, Hallische/Siegfriedstraße |
| 6 December 1899 | Opened | Lößnig, Siegfriedstraße – Hallische Straße – :de:Dölitz, Leinestraße |
| 1900 | Opened | Dölitz, Leinestraße – Dölitz, Depot (provisional opening as service track) |
| 20 December 1900 | Opened | Reitzenhainer Straße/Friedhofsweg – Reitzenhainer Straße (Prager Straße) – Probstheida, Depot (today: Bushof Probstheida) (segment between Probstheida, Gasthof (Prager/Russenstraße) and Depot used only as service track) |
| Regular operation on former service track | Lützner/Endersstraße – Lindenau, Depot | |
| 14 October 1901 | Opened | Waldplatz – Westplatz |
| 22 November 1901 | Changed to service track | Spießbrücke – Rennbahn (operated only during track and field events) |
| 9 June 1902 | Opened | Schiller-/Universitätsstraße – Roßplatz |
| Opened | Bayrische/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Hoffmann-/K.-Eisner-Straße) – Kronprinz-/Südstraße (K.-Eisner-/K.-Liebknecht-Straße) | |
The End of Network Expansion (1908–1917)
After the GLSt completed its planned network, it began to build terminal loops at important terminals where space was available (Bahnhof Leutzsch, Richard-Wagner-Straße (shared with LESt), Eutritzsch/Markt, Völkerschlachtdenkmal/Gletschersteinallee, Connewitz/Klemmstraße, Ludwig-/Bussestraße (Tauchaer Tor), Tabaksmühle). Some short extensions at extremities were also built. In spite of the war, regular service to Depot Dölitz was started on 19 June 1915.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 5 October 1911 | Opened | Gohliser/Menckestraße – Lützowstraße – Gohlis-Nord, Virchow-/Gottschallstraße |
| 1 November 1913 | Opened | Lindenau, Depot – Lützner Straße – Plautstraße – Lindenau, Plaut-/Demmeringstraße |
| 13 January 1914 | Opened | Torgauer Platz – Eisenbahnstraße – Eisenbahn-/Portitzer Straße (four-track shunting facility built here) |
| 9 July 1914 | Opened | Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße – Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kaiserin-Augusta-Straße (A.-Bebel-/R.-Lehmann-Straße) |
| 1 January 1915 | Opened | Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kaiserin-Augusta-Straße – Brand-/Simildenstraße (Depot Connewitz/Brandstraße including service track in the Simildenstraße) |
Network Rationalization (1917–1923)
After the merger, the GLSt began to simplify its route network. Many now-redundant parallel segments were closed, however, short new segments were opened in order to connect the two systems more effectively.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 7 February 1917 | Changed to service track | Enders-/Lützner Straße – Guts-Muths-Straße (>) / Merseburger Straße (<) - Albertstraße |
| 31 March 1917 | Changed to service track | Kronprinz-/Bayrische Straße (K.-Eisner-/A.-Hoffmann-Straße) - Kronprinz-/Südstraße (K.-Eisner-/K.-Liebknecht-Straße) |
| 1 April 1917 | Closed | Schiller-/Universitätsstraße – Roßplatz |
| Changed to service track | Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Bebel-/K.-Eisner-Straße) – Brandstraße | |
| 20 September 1917 | New alignment | between Polizeiwache (police station, approximately at today's Höhe Tennisplatz) and the Gohliser Wehrbrücke bridge, on reserved track along the Waldstraße |
| 19 November 1917 | Changed to service track | Berliner/Apelstraße – Eutritzscher Markt |
| Closed | Elisen-/Waisenhausstraße (B.-Göring-/A.-Nitzsche-Straße) – Connewitz, Kreuz | |
| Changed to service track | Albert-/Elisenstraße (Riemann-/B.-Göring-Straße) – Elisenstraße – Waisenhausstraße – Zwenkauer Straße – Connewitz, Depot Hildebrandstraße | |
| Changed to service track | Eutritzsch, Markt – Eutritzsch, Depot Gräfestraße | |
| 2 January 1918 | Regular operation on former service track | Paunsdorf, Stadtgrenze – Paunsdorf, Depot |
| Closed | Gohlis, Stock-/Eisenacher Straße – Eisenacher Straße – Kirschbergstraße – Möckern, Gasthof "Zum Anker" | |
| 10 January 1918 | Changed to service track | Gohlis, Tauchaer Weg (M.-Liebermann-Straße) – Gohlis, Kasernen |
| 11 May 1918 | Closed | "Adler" – Windorfer Straße – Kleinzschocher, Taborkirche |
| 1918 | Opened | Wendeschleife Stötteritz, Papiermühlstraße (Häuserblockumfahrung) |
| Closed | Stötteritzer/Schönbachstraße – Schönbach-/Reitzenhainer Straße (Schönbach-/Prager Straße) | |
| 1 October 1919 | Changed to service track | Wurzner/Torgauer Straße – Torgauer Platz |
| Closed | Augustusplatz, Nordseite – Poststraße – Post-/Querstraße | |
| um 1920 | Opened | Eisenbahn-/Annenstraße – Wurzner/Annenstraße |
| 1 April 1920 | Closed | Königsplatz/Ostseite – Brüderstraße – Nürnberger/Brüderstraße |
| 10 June 1920 | Closed | Kirchplatz (H.-Liebmann-/Bergstraße) – Bergstraße – Kohlgartenstraße – Marienplatz – Schützenstraße – Schützen-/Querstraße |
| Changed to service track | Kirch-/Eisenbahnstraße – Kirchstraße (H.-Liebmann-Straße) – Kirch-/Wurzner Straße | |
| Changed to service track | Hauptbahnhof – Brandenburger Straße – Hahnenkamm – Querstraße – Johannisplatz | |
| Closed | Albert-/Elisenstraße – Elisenstraße – Waisenhausstraße, as well as the connecting track, away from the town center, in the Zwenkauer Straße to the depot | |
| 5 November 1922 | Opened | Tauchaer/Kohlgartenstraße (Fr.-Liszt-Platz) – Kohlgartenstraße – Reudnitz, Dresdner/Kohlgartenstraße |
| 17 December 1922 | Closed | Albert-/Nonnenstraße – Nonnenstraße – Weißenfelser Straße – Weißenfelser/Zschochersche Straße |
| 17 January 1923 | Closed | Windmühlenweg/Johannisallee – Ostplatz – Stötteritzer Straße (>) / Oststraße (<) - Riebeckstraße |
| 8 November 1923 | Regular operation on former service track | Gohlis, Tauchaer Weg - Gohlis, Depot Landsberger Straße |
Between the Inflation and the Second World War (1924-1938)
After the network was rationalized to the extent necessary, the GLSt then began building new lines and additional terminal loops (Möckern/Huygensstraße, Connewitz/Kreuz, Möckern/Depot, Kleinzschocher/Depot, Wahren/Rathaus, Fortuna-Stadion, Schönefeld/Volbedingstraße, Stötteritz/Holzhäuser Straße). Up to the reorganization of the undertaking as the Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe (LVB, "Leipzig Transport Company"), from 29 July 1938, the last large districts were connected to the tramway network. Coincidentally, on the same day the first trolleybusTrolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
line in Leipzig entered service.
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 1925 | Closed | Schönefeld, Volbedingstraße – Mockauer/Volbedingstraße terminal (including dismantling of the single-track segment) |
| 26 February 1925 | New alignment | Reconstruction of the Blücherplatz (Tröndlinring/K.-Schumacher-Straße) |
| 27 August 1925 | New alignment | Facilities at Richard-Wagner-Platz (old terminal removed, but double-track segment built to terminal at Hallischen Tor) |
| 21 October 1925 | Reopened | Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Bebel-/K.-Eisner-Straße) – Brandstraße, Depot |
| 27 March 1926 | Reopened | Eutritzsch, Markt – Berliner/Apelstraße |
| 26 June 1926 | Opened | Philipp-Rosenthal-/Semmelweisstraße – :de:Großmarkthalle (at the animal hospitals) |
| 15 July 1926 | Opened | Krankenhaus St. Georg – Wiederitzsch, Seehausener Straße |
| 14 April 1927 | Opened | Paunsdorf, Depot – Hans-Weigel-Straße – Engelsdorf, Kirche (reversing triangle) |
| 15 July 1927 | Opened | Torgauer Platz – Taucha, An der Bürgerruhe |
| 11 September 1927 | Opened | Möckernsche/Wiederitzscher Straße – Kirschbergstraße – Kernstraße – Kern-/Hallische Straße (used as terminal loop only in this direction) |
| 1 March 1928 | Reopened | Kirch-/Eisenbahnstraße – Kirchstraße (H.-Liebmann-Straße) – Kirch-/Wurzner Straße |
| 1 April 1928 | Opened | Dölitz, Depot – Markkleeberg-Ost, Schillerplatz |
| 2 September 1928 | Opened | Harkortstraße, Reichsverwaltungsgericht – Simsonplatz – Mozartstraße |
| Closed | Grassi-/Beethovenstraße – Wächterstraße – Königsplatz (east side) | |
| 2 December 1928 | Opened | "Adler" – Antonienstraße – Diezmannstraße – Schönauer Weg – Hermann-Meyer-Straße (reversing triangle) |
| 16 December 1928 | Opened | Probstheida, Depot – Meusdorf (Zwischenschleife) – Liebertwolkwitz, Störmthaler Straße (loop) |
| Opened | Anger-Crottendorf, Herbartstraße – Anger-Crottendorf, Ostfriedhof (loop) | |
| 2 March 1929 | Opened | Kaiserin-Augusta-/Südstraße (R.-Lehmann-/K.-Liebknecht-Straße) – Kaiserin-Augusta-Straße – Kaiserin-Augusta-/Zwickauer Straße (provisional opening only for operation during fairs) |
| Opened | Bayrische/Kantstraße – Bayrische Straße (A.-Hoffmann-Straße) – Bayrische/Kaiserin-Augusta-Straße (A.-Hoffmann-/R.-Lehmann-Straße) | |
| 13 July 1929 | New alignment | Reconstruction of facilities at the railway station forecourt (Hauptbahnhofsvorplatz) |
| 4 January 1930 | Opened | An der Tabaksmühle – Kaiserin-Augusta-/Zwickauer Straße (R.-Lehmann-/Zwickauer Straße) |
| Regular operation on former service track | Kaiserin-Augusta-/Südstraße – Kaiserin-Augusta-/Zwickauer Straße | |
| 15 April 1931 | Opened | Mockau, Kirche – Thekla (loop) |
| 15 July 1931 | Opened | Zwickauer/Kaiserin-Augusta-Straße – Behelfsholzbrücke bridge across the railway – Lößnig, Märchenwiese |
| 4 June 1934 | Opened | Großzschocher, Dieskau-/Huttenstraße – Großzschocher, G.-Ellrodt-Straße (loop) |
| 7 April 1935 | Closed | Kant-/Bayrische Straße (Kant-/A.-Hoffmann-Straße) – Schlachthof (MDR-Zentrum) |
| 30 May 1935 | Opened | Großzschocher – Knautkleeberg |
| 15 December 1936 | Opened | Yorckplatz (W.-Liebknecht-Platz) – Yorckstraße (Erich-Weinert-Straße) – Yorck-/Berliner Straße |
| Changed to service track | Berliner/Yorckstraße (Berliner/Erich-Weinert-Straße) – Nordstraße (>)/Gerberstraße (<) - Katharinenstraße (>)/Reichsstraße (<) - Neumarkt - Königsplatz | |
Leipziger Außenbahn AG (LAAG "Leipzig External Railway Corporation, Ltd.")
This undertaking was organized on 6 February 1900, and planned to connect larger neighboring towns with Leipzig. The undertaking was controlled from the outset by the GLSt, but traded as an independent company. In accordance with the light railway law (Kleinbahngesetz) of Prussia, the line from the municipal boundary at Stahmeln to :de:Schkeuditz was built and operated under a light railway concession.The LAAG remained independent following establishment of the LVB. Only at 1 July 1946 was this undertaking merged into the LVB. The company remained the "official" owners of the tracks and other facilities until 1 October 1951. On this day, the LAAG was taken over completely by the nationalized undertaking VEB (K) Verkehrsbetriebe der Stadt Leipzig (LVB) (see below).
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 21 December 1900 | Opened | Möckern, Kirche – Hallische Straße – Wahren, Linkelstraße |
| 16 May 1902 | Opened | Connewitz, Eiskeller (near Koburger Brücke) – Koburger Straße – Bahnhof Markkleeberg – Ring – Markkleeberg, Gasthof "Weißer Stern" (Koburger/A.-Bebel-Straße) |
| 9 June 1905 | Opened | Wahren, Linkelstraße – Stahmeln – Lützschena, Gasthof |
| 17 May 1907 | Opened | Leutzsch, Rathaus – Gundorf (Böhlitz-Ehrenberg) |
| 27 October 1910 | Opened | Lützschena, Gasthof – Schkeuditz, Depot |
The Second World War and Its Consequences (1938–1948)
The trolleybus program received increased emphasis following creation of the LVB. New terminal loops were developed at "Adler" (in the Limburgerstraße and the Wachsmuthstraße), and at Torgauer/Bautzner Straße. The tramway network few extensions to the end of the war. On the contrary, some segments were destroyed during the war and were not restored thereafter. Other segments, restored briefly, had to be closed again in order to secure materials.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 9 December 1940 | Regular operation on former service track | Schönefeld, Volbedingstraße – Mockauer/Volbedingstraße |
| 1941 | Closed | StrBahnhof Connewitz, Zwenkauer Straße – Zwenkauer Straße – Waisenhausstraße (tracks in direction of town center) |
| Summer 1942 | Opened | Schönefeld, Volbedingstraße – Mockauer/Volbedingstraße (provisional opening as service track) |
| 4 December 1943 | Closed | Berliner/Yorckstraße (Berliner/Erich-Weinert-Straße) – Nordstraße (>)/Gerberstraße (<) - Blücherplatz |
| Closed | Bayrischer Bahnhof - Albertstraße (Riemannstraße) - Petrikirche | |
| 27 February 1945 | Closed | Kaiser-Wilhelm-/Kronprinzstraße (A.-Bebel-/K.-Eisner-Straße) - Brandstraße, Depot |
| 1 October 1946 | Changed to service track | Harkortstraße/former Reichsgericht – Simsonplatz – Mozartstraße |
| Changed to service track | Marschner-/Plagwitzer Straße (Marschner-/K.-Kollwitz-Straße) – Beethovenstraße – Mozartstraße – Albertstraße – Petrikirche | |
| End of 1946 | Closed | Harkortstraße/ehem. Reichsgericht – Simsonplatz – Mozartstraße |
| Closed | Marschner-/Plagwitzer Straße (Marschner-/K.-Kollwitz-Straße) – Beethovenstraße – Mozartstraße – Albertstraße – Petrikirche | |
| 4 August 1947 | Changed to service track | Philipp-Rosenthal-/Semmelweisstraße – Großmarkthalle (at the animal hospitals) (only for goods traffic) |
| 1 November 1948 | Closed | Johannisplatz – Täubchenweg – Betriebshof Reudnitz |
Restructuring and New Terminal Facilities (1949–1961)
Because of the new political situation the Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe was also restructured. As the first step, from 22 March 1949, the LVB was integrated with the Kommunale Wirtschaftsunternehmen (KWU) Leipzig ("Local Economic Undertakings of Leipzig"). Some tramway track segments and connections were closed. On the other hand, many new reversing triangles (Knautkleeberg, Virchow-/Gottschallstraße, Großmarkthalle, Wiederitzsch, Johannisplatz, Emmausstraße, Böhlitz-Ehrenberg) and terminal loops (Markkleeberg-Mitte/Parkstraße, Märchenwiese, Plaut-/Demmeringstraße, Zentralstadion/Feuerbachstraße, Mockau/Post, Schkeuditz/Depot, Bf. Plagwitz, Markkleeberg-West) were built.| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 3 January 1949 | Closed | Eisenbahn-/Annenstraße – Eisenbahn-/Portitzer Straße (These facilities can be recognized in the pavement today) |
| 1 July 1950 | Closed | Eutritzsch, Markt – Gräfestraße – Eutritzsch, Depot |
| 1 November 1950 | Closed | Hauptbahnhof – Brandenburger Straße – Hahnekamm – Querstraße – Johannisplatz – Nürnberger Straße – Bayrischer Bahnhof |
| Closed | Wendeschleife Torgauer/Bautzner Straße | |
| 13 April 1951 | Closed | Waldplatz – Elsterstraße – Thomaskirche – Markt – Karl-Marx-Platz (Augustusplatz) |
| Autumn 1951 | Closed | Terminal loop at Fortuna-Stadion (stadium) |
| End of 1951 | Closed | Blücherplatz – Katharinenstraße (>)/Reichsstraße (<) - Neumarkt - Königsplatz (the connection from the R.-Wagner-Straße to the Ring remains) |
| 1955 | Closed | Harkort-/Pestalozzistraße (Harkort-/Telemannstraße) - Rennbahn |
| 1 September 1956 | New alignment | Widening and creation of reservation in the Georgiring |
| 1 December 1958 | Closed | Covered terminal at Prager Straße/Südfriedhof (so-called "Schlippe") |
| 31 July 1959 | New alignment | reserved track between the Roßplatz and the Bayrischer Bahnhof |
| 1959 | Closed | Terminal at Connewitz, Eiskeller |
| 15 June 1960 | Reopened | Lützner/Endersstraße – Guts-Muths-Straße (>)/Merseburger Straße (<) - Karl-Heine-Straße |
| 11 February 1961 | New alignment | Käthe-Kollwitz-/Elsterstraße - Westplatz (previous alignment of the K.-Kollwitz-Straße removed) |
| 14 February 1961 | Closed | Markkleeberg-West - Gasthof "Weißer Stern" |
| 18 May 1961 | Opened | Gohlis-Nord, Gottschallstraße – Gohlis-Nord, Virchowstraße (loop) |
| 15 December 1961 | Changed to service track | Lützner/Endersstraße – Guts-Muths-Straße (>)/Merseburger Straße (<) - Karl-Heine-Straße |
Reconstruction of Facilities in the Town Center (1964-1978)
Traffic growth completely overloaded facilities in and near the town center, creating an urgent need for expansion and modernization. The Tröndlinring was greatly widened and a four-track terminal facility was built at Friedrich-Engels-Platz (Goerdelerring). Various segments in other locations were modernized, but some extremities fell victim to the "red pencil" because of losses and were replaced by motorbus. From 1 January 1970, the undertaking was renamed VEBVolkseigener Betrieb
The Volkseigener Betrieb was the legal form of industrial enterprise in East Germany...
Kombinat Verkehrsbetriebe der Stadt Leipzig (LVB) ("People's Collective Enterprise 'Transport Services of Leipzig City'").
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 20 June 1964 | Closed | Friedrich-Engels-Platz – Brühl – Brühl/Goethestraße |
| New alignment | Haltestelle Friedrich-Engels-Platz (Tracks 1 and 3) | |
| 20 August 1964 | New alignment | Haltestelle Friedrich-Engels-Platz (Tracks 2 and 4) |
| Opened | Friedrich-Ebert-/Moritzstraße – Karl-Tauchnitz-Straße – Neues Rathaus | |
| Closed | old Friedrich-Ebert-Straße between Moritzstraße and Martin-Luther-Ring | |
| 1 January 1965 | Closed | Philipp-Rosenthal-/Semmelweisstraße – Großmarkthalle |
| 30 August 1965 | New alignment | reserved track Augustusplatz – Johannisplatz |
| 1966 | Closed | reserved track alongside the Friedhofsweg |
| 11 July 1967 | Reopened | Kurt-Eisner-/Arthur-Hoffmann-Straße – Kurt-Eisner-/Karl-Liebknecht-Straße |
| Opened | Arthur-Hoffmann-/Richard-Lehmann-Straße – Wiedebachplatz | |
| 28 July 1967 | Closed | Richard-Lehmann-/Zwickauer Straße – Zwickauer/Arno-Nitzsche-Straße (reversing triangle at R.-Lehmann-/Zwickauer Straße remains) |
| 4 August 1967 | Changed to service track | Kurt-Eisner-/Arthur-Hoffmann-Straße – Kurt-Eisner-/Karl-Liebknecht-Straße |
| Opened | Wiedebachplatz – Arno-Nitzsche-/Zwickauer Straße | |
| 3 October 1967 | Closed | Lützner/Endersstraße – Guts-Muths-Straße (>)/Merseburger Straße (<) - Karl-Heine-Straße |
| 1967 | New alignment | Kreuzungsbereich Richard-Wagner-Straße/Tröndlinring/Gerberstraße |
| 25 May 1968 | Closed | Augustusplatz - Schillerstraße - Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz |
| 15 July 1968 | Closed | Diezmannstraße/Schönauer Weg – Hermann-Meyer-Straße |
| 1 June 1969 | Opened | Schleife Sellerhausen, Emmausstraße |
| Spring 1970 | Closed | Schönefeld reversing triangle, Dimpfelstraße (north of the crossing of the Stannebeinplatz) |
| 15 December 1970 | Opened | Diezmannstraße/Schönauer Weg – Kurt-Kresse-Straße – Hermann-Meyer-Straße |
| 28 June 1971 | Closed | Meusdorf – Liebertwolkwitz |
| 10 July 1971 | Closed | Richard-Wagner-Straße west of the terminal facilities |
| 16 July 1971 | Opened | Wendeschleife Hauptbahnhof/Westseite |
| 27 August 1971 | New alignment | Friedrich-Engels-Platz – Hauptbahnhof |
| 23 March 1972 | Closed | Kurt-Eisner-/Arthur-Hoffmann-Straße – Kurt-Eisner-/Karl-Liebknecht-Straße |
| 22 August 1973 | New alignment | reserved track Antonienstraße – Diezmannstraße – Kurt-Kresse-Straße (following installation of longer gauntlets at the crossing (junction) Antonien-/Diezmannstraße, this was removed from 13 October 1979) |
| 19 April 1974 | New alignment | Hauptbahnhof/Ostknoten (Georgiring/Wintergartenstraße) |
| 24 May 1974 | New alignment | Kreuzung Hauptbahnhof/Goethestraße |
| 12 September 1974 | Closed | Schleife Messegelände/Deutscher Platz ("Siegismundschleife") |
| 1 October 1974 | Closed | Paunsdorf, Depot – Sommerfeld – Engelsdorf, Kirche |
| 23 December 1974 | Opened | Märchenwiese – Lößnig |
| 3 November 1975 | New alignment | Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz – Roßplatz |
| 1 November 1976 | Opened | Wendeschleife Torgauer/Bautzner Straße |
| 28 January 1978 | New alignment | rebuilding of Thekla loop |
Development of New Residential Areas (1979–1990)
From 1979 a new task awaited the transport planning staff of the LVB. Large new prefabricated housing blocks (PlattenbauPlattenbau
Plattenbau is the German word for a building whose structure is constructed of large, prefabricated concrete slabs. The word is a compound of Platte and Bau...
) were constructed east and west of the town, and these were to be connected to the tramway network. Following the end of the DDR
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
, the LVB became the Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe (LVB) AG i. A. ("Leipzig Transport Company, Ltd. (in liquidation") as the first step toward conversion from a state-owned enterprise (see Treuhand
Treuhand
The Treuhandanstalt was the agency that privatized the East German enterprises, Volkseigener Betrieb , owned as public property. Created by the Volkskammer on June 17, 1990, it oversaw the restructuring and selling of about 8,500 firms with initially over 4 million employees...
).
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 5 April 1979 | Opened | Hermann-Meyer-Straße – Ratzelstraße – Grünau-Süd |
| 1 September 1980 | New alignment | Koburger Brücke |
| 29 September 1980 | Opened | Deutscher Platz loop |
| 2 September 1982 | Opened | Lützner/Plautstraße – Lützner Straße – Schönauer Ring – Grünau-Nord |
| 31 October 1983 | Opened | Lützner Straße/Schönauer Ring – Lützner/Plovdiver Straße (temporary reversing triangle) |
| 31 August 1984 | New alignment | reserved track Lenin-/Schönbachstraße (Prager/Schönbachstraße) – Sandgrube |
| 30 September 1984 | Opened | Lützner/Plovdiver Straße – Miltitz |
| 30 November 1985 | Opened | Grünau-Süd – Lausen |
| 23 August 1986 | New alignment | reserved track Antonien-/Könneritzstraße – Antonienstraße/E.-Zeigner-Allee |
| 21 May 1987 | Changed to service track | Lützner/Plautstraße – Plaut-/Demmeringstraße loop |
| 24 December 1987 | Opened | Paunsdorf, Depot – Am Vorwerk (temporary stub terminal) |
| 25 November 1988 | Opened | Am Vorwerk – Ahornstraße (temporary stub terminal) |
| 10 March 1989 | Opened | Böhlitz-Ehrenberg terminal loop |
| 17 November 1989 | Opened | Ahornstraße – Paunsdorf-Nord |
| 10 December 1989 | New alignment | Roßplatz reversing triangle |
The LVB As a Modern Transport Service (from 1990)
The most important task of the new undertaking, which was converted to a company with limited liability (GmbHGesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung
Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung is a type of legal entityvery common in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and other Central European countries...
) from 16 March 1993, was modernization of the vehicle fleet and also some segments of tram lines. These measures have not yet been completed (at 2006). Some segments were closed because of heavy losses. From 27 May 2001, the tramway service network was rearranged, with service restored to one segment on which a previous service had been withdrawn.
| Date | Type of Change | Segment |
|---|---|---|
| 18 December 1990 | New alignment | The terminal loop at Dölitz no longer extended across the depot grounds |
| 27 May 1992 | New alignment | Waldplatz crossing |
| 2 December 1992 | New alignment | Georgiring/Wintergartenstraße crossing |
| 21 January 1993 | Closed | Connewitz terminal loop, Hildebrandstraße (officially from 22 March 1993) |
| 26 July 1993 | New alignment | loop Gohlis-Nord, Virchowstraße |
| 18 October 1993 | New alignment | reserved track (or separate lanes for trams and autos) Goerdelerring – Neues Rathaus |
| 26 January 1994 | New alignment | Johannisplatz – Prager/Riebeckstraße |
| 9 May 1994 | Closed | Wodanstraße/Fregestift terminal loop |
| 29 May 1994 | Opened | Paunsdorf-Nord – Sommerfeld |
| 6 June 1994 | New alignment | Eutritzscher/Michaelisstraße reversing triangle |
| 20 February 1995 | Closed | Nordplatz – Roscherstraße – Eutritzscher/Roscherstraße |
| 28 May 1995 | New alignment | reserved track Erich-Weinert-Platz (W.-Liebknecht-Platz) – Chausseehaus |
| 29 May 1995 | Opened | Portitzer Allee – Paunsdorf-Nord |
| 2 December 1995 | New alignment | reserved track Chausseehaus – Eutritzsch, Markt |
| Ende 1995 | New alignment | reserved track Eutritzsch, Markt – Krankenhaus St. Georg |
| 16 March 1996 | New alignment | reserved track Krankenhaus St. Georg – Dachauer Straße |
| 12 April 1996 | Opened | Wiederitzsch – Neue Messe (Messegelände, "Fairgrounds") |
| 29 August 1997 | Closed | Breite Straße – Anger-Crottendorf |
| Changed to service track | Fr.-List-Platz – Kohlgartenstraße – Reudnitz, Köhlerstraße | |
| 6 May 1998 | Closed | Reudnitz Depot – Täubchenweg/Breite Straße |
| 1 August 1999 | Opened | Deutsche Bücherei – Semmelweisstraße – Zwickauer Straße – Zwickauer/Arno-Nitzsche-Straße (provisional opening as service track) |
| 9 October 1999 | Closed | Neues Rathaus – Harkortstraße – August-Bebel-Straße – Kurt-Eisner-Straße – Kurt-Eisner-/Karl-Liebknecht-Straße |
| 1 August 2000 | Closed | Georg-Schumann-/Wiederitzscher Straße – Wiederitzscher Straße – Möckernsche Straße – Stock-/Möckernsche Straße |
| 20 August 2000 | Regular operation on former service track | Deutsche Bücherei – Semmelweisstraße – Zwickauer Straße – Zwickauer/Arno-Nitzsche-Straße |
| 20 December 2000 | New alignment | Berliner Brücke – Mockauer/Volbedingstraße |
| 27 May 2001 | Closed | Arthur-Hoffmann-/Richard-Lehmann-Straße – Arthur-Hoffmann-/Arno-Nitzsche-Straße |
| Changed to service track | Hermann-Liebmann-/Eisenbahnstraße – Wurzner/Hermann-Liebmann-Straße | |
| Changed to service track | Prager/Naunhofer Straße – Richard-Lehmann-/Arthur-Hoffmann-Straße | |
| Changed to service track | Rathaus Leutzsch – Bahnhof Leutzsch | |
| 3 February 2003 | Opened | Stannebeinplatz reversing triangle (Gleisdreieck) |
| Closed | Hermann-Liebmann-/Eisenbahnstraße – Wurzner/Hermann-Liebmann-Straße | |
| 24 August 2003 | Changed to service track | Schönauer Ring – Grünau-Nord |
| 27 June 2004 | New alignment | Friedrich-List-Platz – Eisenbahnstraße – Hermann-Liebmann-Straße – Stannebeinplatz |
| 1 December 2004 | New alignment | Eisenbahn-/Hermann-Liebmann-Straße – Torgauer Platz |
| 11 April 2005 | Closed | Prager/Naunhofer Straße – Richard-Lehmann-/Zwickauer Straße |
| 16 July 2005 | New alignment | Stop (boarding) facilities at Johannisplatz/Prager Straße |
| 29 August 2005 | New alignment | Stop (boarding) facilities Johannisplatz/Dresdner Straße |
| 17 October 2005 | Opened | Rabensteinplatz loop |
| 23 December 2005 | New alignment | Knoten Hauptbahnhof/Goethestraße |
| 1 January 2006 | Changed to service track | Portitzer Allee – Paunsdorf-Nord (Line 18 withdrawn) |
| 20 February 2006 | New alignment | Goerdelerring – Waldplatz – Sportforum (with underpass at the crossing (intersection) Jahnallee/Marschnerstraße) |
| 2 April 2006 | Reopened | Portitzer Allee – Paunsdorf-Nord (worked by Lines 3 and Line 3E) |
Current Tramway Service Network, As At 2 April 2006
| 1 | Lausen – Grünau-Süd – Adler – Schleußig – Westplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Eisenbahnstraße – Stannebeinplatz – Schönefeld – Mockau, Post |
| 1E | Lausen – Grünau-Süd – Adler – Schleußig – Westplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Eisenbahnstraße – Stannebeinplatz – Schönefeld, Volbedingstraße |
| 2 | Lausen – Grünau-Süd – Adler – Schleußig – Westplatz – Leuschnerplatz – Bayrischer Platz – Deutsche Bücherei – Probstheida – Meusdorf |
| 2E | (Lausen – Grünau-Süd – Adler – Schleußig – Westplatz -) Leuschnerplatz – Bayrischer Platz – Deutsche Bücherei – Naunhofer Straße (Trams work through as Line 8E) |
| 3 | Knautkleeberg – Großzschocher – Kleinzschocher – Adler – Felsenkeller – Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Eisenbahnstraße – Torgauer Platz – Heiterblick – Portitzer Allee – Paunsdorf-Nord – Sommerfeld |
| 3E | Großzschocher, G.-Ellrodt-Straße – Kleinzschocher – Adler – Felsenkeller – Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Eisenbahnstraße – Torgauer Platz – Heiterblick – Portitzer Allee – Paunsdorf-Nord – Sommerfeld |
| 4 | Gohlis, Landsberger Straße – Lindenthaler Straße – Rosental – Waldplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Reudnitz – Riebeckstraße – Stötteritz, Holzhäuser Straße |
| 4E | Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Reudnitz – Riebeck-/Stötteritzer Straße (Trams work through as Line 12 in both directions) |
| 7 | Böhlitz-Ehrenberg – Leutzsch – Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Reudnitz – (Torgauer Platz) – Sellerhausen – Paunsdorf – Paunsdorf-Nord – Sommerfeld |
| 8 | Miltitz – Grünau-Nord – Lindenau – Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Westplatz – Leuschnerplatz – Augustusplatz – Wintergartenstraße/Hbf. – Eisenbahnstraße – Torgauer Platz – Sellerhausen – Paunsdorf – Paunsdorf-Nord |
| 8E | Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Westplatz – Leuschnerplatz (Trams work through as Line 2E) |
| 9 | Thekla – Mockau – Apelstraße – Hauptbahnhof/Westseite – Goerdelerring – Leuschnerplatz – Bayrischer Platz – Connewitz – Markkleeberg-West |
| 10 | (Wahren – Möckern – Gohlis – Chausseehaus -) Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Leuschnerplatz – Connewitz – Märchenwiese – Lößnig |
| 11 | Schkeuditz – Lützschena – Wahren – Möckern – Gohlis – Chausseehaus – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Leuschnerplatz – Connewitz – Dölitz – Markkleeberg-Ost, Schillerplatz |
| 11E | Wahren – Möckern – Gohlis – Chausseehaus – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Leuschnerplatz – Connewitz – Dölitz, Straßenbahnhof (- Markkleeberg-Ost, Schillerplatz) |
| 12 | Gohlis-Nord – Lützowstraße – Zoo – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Johannisplatz (- Prager/Riebeckstraße) (Trams work through as Line 4E) |
| 13 | Knautkleeberg – Großzschocher – Kleinzschocher – Adler – Felsenkeller – Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Eisenbahnstraße – Torgauer Platz – Heiterblick – Taucha, An der Bürgerruhe |
| 14 | Krankenhaus St. Georg – Eutritzsch – Apelstraße – Hauptbahnhof/Westseite – Goerdelerring – Westplatz – Felsenkeller – Bf. Plagwitz |
| 15 | Miltitz – Grünau-Nord – Lindenau – Angerbrücke – Waldplatz – Goerdelerring – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Prager Straße – Probstheida – Meusdorf |
| 16 | Messegelände – Wiederitzsch – Eutritzsch – Chausseehaus – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Bayrischer Platz – Deutsche Bücherei – Märchenwiese – Lößnig |
| 16E | Messegelände – Wiederitzsch – Eutritzsch – Chausseehaus – Hauptbahnhof – Augustusplatz – Leuschnerplatz (operates only during fairs, i.e. during various events at the Leipzig Trade Fair Leipzig Trade Fair The Leipzig Trade Fair was a major fair for trade across Central Europe for nearly a millennium. After the Second World War, its location happened to lie within the borders of East Germany, whereupon it became one of the most important trade fairs of Comecon and was traditionally a meeting place... ) |
Lines 1/1E
A 10-minute service interval ("headway") is operated between Lausen and Schönefeld from Monday to Friday during daytime service hours, and a 20-minute interval to Mockau. At other times Line 1E does not operate and 15-minute intervals are operated between Lausen and Mockau. Both services are worked mostly by three-car formations of Tatra stock (Tatra-Großzüge, Tw+Tw+Bw). Some late evening and weekend services are worked by low-floor NGT8 stock. The primary function of these lines is to connect the densely-populated Grünau-Süd, Schleußig and Schönefeld districts with the town center.
Lines 2/2E
Line 2 operates only during peak periods every 20 minutes. Line 2E is operated during peak periods every 20 minutes, weekday mornings and evenings every 10 minutes and on weekends during daytime service hours every 15 minutes. During late evening and weekend early-morning service hours, Lines 2 and 2E are not operated. On Sunday mornings, the segment of Line 2E between Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz and Naunhofer Straße is served by cars working Line 8E. These lines connect the residential districts of Grünau-Süd, Schleußig and Probstheida/Meusdor to the southern town central and serve important research institutes and universities. Both are served by two-car trains of Tatra stock (Tw+Tw/Bw) and NGT8 low-floor trams.
Lines 3/3E
Line 3 operates only during peak hours. Line 3 operates during weekday mornings, evenings and weekend daytime service hours. On Mondays through Fridays service operates every 20 minutes, and every 30 minutes on weekends. Both low-floor NGT8 stock and Tatra motor cars with a (mostly) low-floor trailer are used on this line. This line connects residential areas (Knauthain, Großzschocher, Volkmarsdorf, Paunsdorf) and larger industrial areas (Heiterblick) as well as the Paunsdorf-Center shopping center and the de:Belantis theme park (with feeder buses from Knautkleeberg) to the town center.
Line 4
On Mondays to Fridays during daytime service hours, Line 4 operates every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. It is worked primarily by NGT8 stock. The major function of Line 4 is to connect the residential districts of Gohlis, Reudnitz and Stötteritz with the town center.
Line 7
This line operates at the same intervals as Line 4, every 10 minutes during weekday daytime hours and every 15 minutes at other times. At times when Line 8 does not operate, Line 7 operates via Torgauer Platz. Also on weekends and during late evening service hours, three-car trains of Tatra stock (Tatra-Großzüge) with low-floor trailers or LEOLINER trams in two-coupled formations work this line. Line 7 connects the densely-built-up residential districts of Böhlitz-Ehrenberg, Leutzsch, Reudnitz, Sellerhausen and Paunsdorf with the town center, and in addition the large Paunsdorf-Center shopping center.
Lines 8/8E
To connect the large housing estates of Grünau-Nord and Paunsdorf as well as the districts of Lindenau und Volkmarsdorf with the southern town center, Line 8 operates during daytime service hours. On Mondays through Fridays, modernized tow-car formations of Tatra stock operate every 10 minutes, and on weekends every 15 minutes. On Sunday mornings only, Line 8E trams operate through workings with Line 2E services to the Naunhofer Straße. At these times, the NGT8 cars reverse at the Angerbrücke Depot.
Line 9
Line 9 operates during weekday daytime service hours every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. It connects the housing developments of Mockau, Südvorstadt-Ost, Connewitz and Markkleeberg-West with the town center. Both two-car formations of Tatra stock and NGT8 trams are used.
Line 10
Only during weekday daytime service hours do the NGT8 low-floor vehicles serve Line 10. The segment between Wahren and Hauptbahnhof does not operate on Sunday mornings. The service frequencies correspond to those provided on other lines, thus weekdays every 10 minutes, on weekends 15 minutes. The line connects the large housing estate at Lößnig as well as the districts of Connewitz, Südvorstadt, Gohlis, Möckern and Wahren with the town center.
Lines 11/11E
Line 11 is the longest line of the Lepzig tramway network. It operates through three fare zones and crosses the municipal boundary at both extremities.
During weekday daytime service hours, both lines operate every 20 minutes, with Line 11E working only to Dölitz. On line 11, three-car Tatra-Großzüge formations with low-floor trailers are used, and on line 11E both Tatra-Großzüge and the new Leoliner stock are used.
At other times, the two lines operate every 30 minutes and Line 11E terminates at Markkleeberg-Ost. Both lines are worked with two-car Tatra formations, and Line 11 is thereby worked mostly by low-floor tramcars.
The lines connect the neighboring towns of Schkeuditz, Lützschena and Markkleeberg, and the districts of Wahren, Möckern, Gohlis, Südvorstadt, Connewitz and Dölitz with the Leipziger Stadtzentrum (Leipzig town center).
Lines 12/4E
The two lines, 4E and 12, operate through workings, that is, services, worked primarily by NGT8 stock, operate through and line designations are changed at terminals. Line 4E, however, operates only during daytime service hours, on weekdays only during peak periods. At noon the direction of travel changes. Thereafter, only Line 12 operates between Gohlis-Nord and Johannisplatz. Earlier services operate from Gohlis-Nord via the Prager Straße, the Riebeckstraße, and Reudnitz before returning to Gohlis-Nord. At the Prager Straße / Riebeckstraße intersection, the line number is changed. However, afternoon services operate around the "Ring" in the opposite direction. Line numbers are changed at the Goerdelerring and at the Prager Straße / Riebeckstraße intersection. On weekdays, during daytime service hours, service operates at 10-minute intervals, and at 15-minute intervals at other times. The two lines connect the districts of Gohlis, Nordvorstadt, Reudnitz and Thonberg with the town center.
Line 13
Line 13 operates Monday through Friday every 20 minutes during daytime service hours, and every 30 minutes at other times. Both low-floor NGT8 stock and Tatra motor cars with a (mostly) low-floor trailer are used. The line connects both residential areas (Knauthain, Großzschocher, Volkmarsdorf, Taucha) and larger industrial areas (Heiterblick) with the town center.
Line 14
This line, under threat of closure, operates every 20 minutes Monday to Friday during daytime service hours, and every 30 minutes at other times. NGT8 stock, LEOLINER motor trams as well as two-car Tatra formations are used. The line connects the residential areas of Plagwitz and Eutritzsch with industrial areas on the Wittenberger Straße and near the town center.
Line 15
The busiest line of the Leipzig tramway network is served during weekday daytime hours every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. Bombardier Classic-XXL stock, each with the capacity of a three-car Tatra formation (Tatra-Großzug), entered service from 2005 / 2006. Because only 12 Bombardier vehicles are on hand (at 2006 July), Tatra formations with low-floor trailers also serve this line, especially on weekdays. The line connects the large housing estates at Miltitz and Grünau-Nord, as well as the densely populated districts of Lindenau, Thonberg, Probstheida and Meusdorf with the town center.
Lines 16/16E
On school days, trains of NGT8 stock operate on Line 16 at 8-minute intervals. At other times during weekday daytime service and during holiday peak periods, they operate every 10 minutes, and every 15 minutes at other times. During events at the Leipzig Trade Fair
Leipzig Trade Fair
The Leipzig Trade Fair was a major fair for trade across Central Europe for nearly a millennium. After the Second World War, its location happened to lie within the borders of East Germany, whereupon it became one of the most important trade fairs of Comecon and was traditionally a meeting place...
, Tatra formations are used and the interval between services is halved by operation of Line 16E between the fairground and the Leuschnerplatz. In addition to the fairground, Line 16 serves also the large housing estate at Lössnig and the districts of Wiederitzsch, Eutritzsch and Nordvorstadt.
Line 16 is the only tramway line in Leipzig which has already been upgraded in part to Stadtbahn
Stadtbahn
A ' is a tramway or light railway that includes segments built to rapid transit standards, usually as part of a process of conversion to a metro railway, mainly by the building of tunnels in the central city area....
standards.
Future Prospects
The major project in planning at present is upgrading of Line 15 (Miltitz – Meusdorf) to StadtbahnStadtbahn
A ' is a tramway or light railway that includes segments built to rapid transit standards, usually as part of a process of conversion to a metro railway, mainly by the building of tunnels in the central city area....
standards. In addition, on 20 February 2006, the underpass under the intersection of Jahnallee and Marschnerstraße was opened. Subsequent projects for modernization of other important lines (1, 3, 7, 11) are planned.
Line extensions are at present only in planning. Under study are an extension of Line 15 from Meusdorf to Pösna-Park as well as the extension of Line 16 to Seehausen. It appears at present that both will be built, but probably not in the next several years.
Angerbrücke
On 4 December 1925, the Angerbrücke tram depot was opened. Among other facilities, it replaced the Kleinzschocher and Plagwitz depots. On 11 June 2005, following a prolonged reconstruction, the depot was ceremoniously reopened. The western hall was rebuilt into through-track configuration, thus creating a rear entrance. At the same time the former eastern hall was converted to a covered car-park but, at the east end of the facility, a new two-track repair shop was built.Today, Angerbrücke depot, the most modern on the Leipzig tramway network, houses vehicles working Lines 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 and 15. Line 8E trams and buses of Line 130 to Frankenheim also terminate here.
Connewitz I (Brandstraße and Simildenstraße)
The LPE opened a new depot in 1891 between the Brandstraße and the Simildenstraße. The distinguishing characteristic of the Connewitz I depot was its two-level tramcar shed. The upper floor was reached from the Simildenstrasse, and the upper floor from the Brandstraße. This depot was also used by the first electric tramcars to operate in Leipzig, on 18 April 1896. The connection to the Brandstraße was removed at the end of 1922 and the beginning of 1923, and the connection to the Simildenstraße was removed in 1931. Only a single track between these roads remained passable thereafter.A connection from the Brandstraße to two tracks on the lower level was restored in 1939 for "wartime technical reasons" (kriegstechnischen Gründen). The depot was last used in August 1957, when vehicles working Line 24 were based here because the line to the usual depot was obstructed. The entire facility, including service-track connections, was closed in 1963. Remaining tracks may be seen today on the former depot site and in the Simildenstraße.
Connewitz II (Zwenkauer Straße)
The LESt opened their second southern depot (after Kleinzschocher) on 10 November 1912. After the merger with the GLSt in 1929, this depot was used for painting of rolling stock and running repairs. Because of the August 1957 obstruction which cut off access to the usual depot, Connewitz II depot was used again by cars working Lines 10, 11 and 22. The last use of the tramcar shed was in 1960/61 by cars working Line 26. The entire facility was closed in 1963. The last remnants of the depot, the Wendeschleife Hildebrandstraße, which extended across part of the depot area, was disconnected from the network on 21 January 1993.Dölitz
In the year 1900 the GLSt opened a depot in Dölitz, opposite what later became the Agra area (Agra-Geländes). Twelve years later, a second tramcar shed was opened. The reversing loop terminal east of this facility was opened prior to 13 July 1984. The depot continues in use and accommodates stock working Lines 9, 10, 11 and 16.Eutritzsch
This depot was opened for use as a stable building in the year 1886 for the horse tramway. A small tramcar shed was built in the following year. The depot approach was in the Gräfestraße. This, together with the depot itself, was used by electric tramcars from 17 April 1897. A second tramcar shed, also accessed by the Gräfestraße, entered service in 1899. Enlargement of thees two tramcar sheds was completed on 17 November 1908. After the merger of LESt and GLSt, starting from December 1920, the Eutritzsch depot could be reached from the Delitzscher Straße. In addition, a third tramcar shed was built between the existing sheds, and the old south shed (Südhalle) of 1887 was closed. Eutritzsch depot was already closed for regular operation at 1927. The north shed (Nordhalle) was used for storage of cars which experienced mechanical breakdowns in service. After a few years, the old middle shed (Mittelhalle) was disconnected from the track network in 1935.The last rolling based here, used to work Lines 16 and 21, were stabled in the north shed from 4 December 1943 to 1949. This became necessary after the Wittenberger Straße depot was bombed. After 1949, up to the final closure on 1 July 1950, the north shed was used for storage of war-damaged rolling stock.
Gohlis I (Möckernsche Straße)
From 25 July 1883, Gohlis I accommodated the first actual main workshop (Hauptwerkstatt) of the Leipzig tramway network. This workshop could only be accessed by a hand-operated traverserTransfer table
A transfer table, also called a traverser , is a piece of railroad equipment. It is similar in function to a turntable, though it cannot be used to turn equipment around. The table consists of a single length of track which can be moved from side to side, in a direction perpendicular to the track...
at the rear of the facility. At the time of electrification, on 18 April 1896, Gohlis I was the largest depot of the GLSt. A line terminal, with waiting hall built on the depot grounds, was built here in 1927. A new tramcar shed was built in 1899 and the old main stable building (Hauptstallgebäude) was converted to a tramcar shed. The old workshop shed was disused from 1920, and repairs took place from then on in the tramcar sheds.
The last lines based, according to plan, at Gohlis I, were Lines 28E and 29E, to 24 September 1963. In the meantime Gohlis I had been downgraded to a branch of Möckern depot. The facility was closed at the end of the year 1963.
Gohlis II (Landsberger Straße)
The Gohlis-Möckern depot was opened on 30 October 1910 by LESt. It was redesignated Gohlis II following the merger with GLST, but was closed in 1917, after only seven years of operation.The depot was reopened for regular operation on 1 November 1925. From 1 October 1950 Gohlis II depot was named "Jugendbahnhof „Rudi Opitz“
Rudolf Opitz
Rudolph "Rudi" Opitz was a German lithographer, Nazi Party opponent and victim.His name appears on the Rudi-Opitz-Straße, a service road in the de:Gohlis district of Leipzig...
" because mainly younger staff members worked here. From 1954 it was a branch of the Möckern depot. The decrease of vehicle requirements following die Wende
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
meant that the Gohlis II depot was no longer needed. Vehicles working Line 6 were stabled from 25 May 1993 at the Wittenberger Straße depot.
Heiterblick (Hauptwerkstatt, "Main Workshop")
The area was opened 1915 as an aircraft building facility and has since had its own railway stop. In addition, an airfield was built together with an observation tower. The Versailles TreatyTreaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The other Central Powers on the German side of...
terminated aircraft construction. The Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
local authority purchased the land and built facilities for a tramway main workshop (Straßenbahn-Hauptwerkstatt), opened 1 June 1926.
From the outset, the HW (Hauptwerkstatt) Heiterblick has performed repairs and (partial) new construction of rolling stock. It is not used for stabling of tramcars. However, line 3E uses a reversing triangle (wye) on the workshop grounds.
Kleinzschocher
In order to reduce empty travel to and from depots (pull-outs and pull-ins), around the turn of the (last) century LESt built so-called “overnight accommodation depots” (Übernachtungsdepots). These depots were used exclusively for stabling of vehicles, and no repairs were performed here. Kleinzschocher Depot, such an “overnight accommodation depot” was opened on 15 October 1898. Workshop operations were started here from 1906. A new tramcar shed, north of the old, was then built, and opened on 15 November 1912. This depot was supplanted by opening of Angerbrücke Depot in 1926. Thereafter, it was not used for stabling of tramcars, but for storage of cars awaiting repair or scrapping. After the Second World War through the mid-1950s, tramcars working Line 3 were based here on occasion. The depot was closed in the year 1959.Lausen
The Lausen storage facility is behind the Lausen terminal. It was opened on 28 September 1986 accommodates today some of the rolling stock used on Lines 1 and 2.Leutzsch
On 24 March 1908, the GLSt opened a new Leutzsch Depot at the likewise new Leutzsch terminal. Some of the vehicles stabled at Lindenau could now be shifted to here. Before the First World War, the storage tracks were expanded and the double-track terminus expanded. In 1968 the last vehicles used for Line 27 were shifted to Angerbrücke Depot, and operations from Leutzsch Depot thus ceased for the time being. Starting from 26 September 1982, after installation of new storage facilities, a workshop for Tatra stock as well as a connecting curve at the Rathaus Leutzsch in the direction of Böhlitz-Ehrenberg, tramcars were once again stabled here. From 18 July 1991, Leutzsch Depot lost its "self-sufficiency" and became a branch of Angerbrücke Depot. With the revision of services that took effect from 27 May 2001, operations again ceased from Leutzsch Depot. During reconstruction of Angerbrücke Depot from 2003 to 11 June 2005, Leutzsch Depot experienced a "Renaissance" when stock assigned to Lines 3, 7, 8 and 15 had to be accommodated here. With the reopening of Angerbrücke, Leutzsch Depot is idle.Lindenau
On the site of today's Lindenau motorbus depot, a tram depot and workshop was established in 1899. The latter had a notable characteristic: only one of the four tracks was connected to the tram network. The others were accessed by transfer table. Within a year, a power plant and an additional tramcar shed had already been built. A third tramcar shed, with transfer table, was built in 1907. Following construction of the new depots, the last tramcars working Line P were relocated to Probstheida Depot. The oldest tramcar shed was converted into a trackless workshop building. Nevertheless, in the same year, a new workshop building was opened, which tramcars could access only on transfer tables. In 1924, another workshop was established at Hinterfeld, with most of the tracks connected by a new transfer table. These complicated facilities as well as the ever-growing number of buses made a new solution urgently necessary.The Lindenau workshops could be abolished after opening of the new main workshop at Heiterblick, in August 1927. Motorbuses were stabled at Lindenau from 1 April 1928. The tramcar shed opened in 1924 had a track connection to 1972, thereafter, it was no longer necessary to accommodate tramcars. The three tracks between the two sheds opened in 1899 still exist and from 27 March 1984 connected via a reversing triangle ("wye") to the Lützner Straße. Lindenau Depot housed trolleybuses
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
from 1938 to 1975.
Möckern
A terminal facility on the future depot site had already been built by 1905. The tramcar shed and the workshop were opened on 1 July 1907. Until about 1924, tramcars could reach two of the four depot tracks only by transter table. A second four-track tramcar shed was opened in 1909. Line 10 tramcars used depot tracks for shunting until 1926.The depot burned on 19 March 1972, and tramcars were stabled here again from October. The workshop was reopened only in 1986, but from then was able to accommodate Tatra stock. The depot was last used for operations at the end of the 1990s. Since that time, Möckern Depot has seen a new use, as a tramway museum.
Paunsdorf
The LESt opened its last new depot on 1 June 1913. It burned to the ground on 23 June 1920. Only in 1922 could the tramcar sheds be reopened, but for storage of old tramcars, not for stabling of active rolling stock. However, from 1 October 1924, tramcars were again based at Paunsdorf. A second tramcar shed was inaugurated on 9 June 1926. In the year 1965 a workshop was opened. In 1978 the tracks connecting toward the city were connected toward the west of the depot, and the large loop around the depot was opened. Additional connecting tracks were opened in 1987. Lines 3, 7 and 8, and also some motorbuses, are based at Paunsdorf Depot today.Plagwitz
On 24 December 1881 the LPE opened a new depot in Plagwitz, at Karl-Heine-Straße 85/87. After an expansion of the old shed in 1889, one of the horse stables was converted into a tramcar shed in 1895 and the other in 1897. The facility was again expanded in 1908. Vehicles working Line F were based here to 1917. Plagwitz was no longer used as an operating depot from 4 December 1925, when the new Angerbrücke Depot was opened. The facilities were used for storage of cars awaiting scrapping until closure in 1935.Probstheida
The GLSt opened its line to Probstheida on 20 December 1900. The company opened its Probstheida terminal and depot on 1 May 1913. A new tramcar shed, south of the original facility, was opened on 4 September 1912.The Probstheida Depot was closed to tramcars from 1 August 1973 and converted to a motorbus depot. Motorbuses were based here from 15 April 1977. However, the three-track tram terminal, removed in 1988 was replaced by a single track in 2005.
Reudnitz
The first tramcar depot in Leipzig, and the company head office of the LPE, was located at the depot in the Dresdner Straße, in Reudnitz. This was used for the first horse tramway line opened on 18 May 1872 opens. The tramcar shed had to be expanded five years thereafter. After the electrification of the depot from 2. March 1897 the horse stables were torn down. In May 1910 the GLSt opened a new tramcar shed in its place. A third shed, which tramcars could access only from the Täubchenweg, was opened in 1926.The LVB expanded Reudnitz Depot from 1970 to 1972, and built the access tracks to the Dresdner Straße and from the Täubchenweg. In addition, at the rear, a tramcar shed connected to the Täubchenweg was opened and between the Dresdner Straße and this shed an open-air storage yard was created. The project was finished with the opening of a terminal loop on the depot grounds on 5 December 1972.
The depot was closed from 6 May 1998 after nearly 126 years of operation, because of the decline in passenger traffic following the political turning point of 1989 and reductions in tramcar fleet size. Sufficient free capacity was present at Paunsdorf Depot for the vehicles based at Reudnitz. The track connection to the Täubchenweg was removed, but the entry switches in the Dresdner Straße were only removed in 2005.
Schkeuditz
The only depot owned by the LAAG was at its terminal in Schkeuditz. The company opened it on 27 October 1910. The terminal loop was built as recently as 1958. The LVB closed the depot ca. 2001. It had not been used for stabling of tramcars for some years, but housed the collection of museum tramcars. This collection was moved subsequently to Möckern.Sellerhausen/Bennigsenstraße
In 1909, when the Reudnitz Depot of the GLSt was expanded, some of the vehicles stabled there had to be relocated. For this purpose, two sidings were built along the Bennigsenstraße at the Torgauer Platz and opened on 7 October 1909. This facility was removed in 1910, after work was completed at Reudnitz.Stötteritz
An additional "overnight accommodation depot" was opened by the LESt on 15 May 1898 at the Holzhäuser Straße tram terminal. A second tramcar shed was built by 1908. By 1917, vehicles working Line 6 were relocated to Probstheida Depot, and Stötteritz was no longer used as an operating base. The GLSt reopened this depot between 1924 and 1926, but only as branch of Reudnitz Depot. Thereafter, the company used this facility for storage of disused rolling stock. Approach tracks were rebuilt in 1929 and the connecting tracks changed to face away from the town center (landwärtiger). From December 1943 to the early 1950s, tramcars working Lines 6 and 7 as well as trailers used on Line 4 were serrviced here. The LVB closed Stötteritz Depot in 1957.Wittenberger Straße
The LESt opened this depot, near the town center, on 20 May 1896. At first it had two tramcar sheds with a workshop in between. This could be accessed only by means of a transfer table. All facilities were at first connected only to the Wittenberger Straße. A transfer table at the rear of the facility, connecting all the tramcar shed tracks, was opened on 20 August 1898. At the same time the depot was connected to the tracks in the Apelstraße, because an additional small workshop and an additional tramcar shed were built, which did not have exits to the Wittenberger Straße. An open-air storage yard was established at the corner of the Apelstraße and the Berliner Straße. This was accessible only by transfer table. Only in October 1909 was the first connecting track opened between the Apelstraße and the Wittenberger Straße.After GLSt revised the service pattern in 1920, only the workshop remained in use. The tramcar shed connected to the Apelstraße was used to store vehicles belonging to the track construction department. The depot was reopened as an operating division in 1927. After the new main workshop at Heiterblick was opened, the majority of workshop activity could be moved there. In order to simply depot access, the transfer tables were removed in October 1928 and the former workshop shed was connected directly to the Wittenberger Straße. The open-air storage yard was closed.
On 4 December 1943 the depot was destroyed to a large extent by allied bombers. Only one part of the workshop remained usable. Part of the site of the former tramcar shed connected to the Apelstraße was cleared in 1945 and a new open-air storage yard created. The depot could again be used for stabling of trams used in service only from 1949.
Extensive reconstruction was started in 1964. The Bitterfelder Straße loop track was completed by 1968. From 1980, trams could no longer turn directly from the Apelstraße in the direction of the Berliner Straße, but only away from the town center (landwärts). This measure had become necessary because the LVB wished to expand the open-air storage yard by an additional 11 tracks. The modernized workshop was reopened on 8 November 1992 .
Further reading
- Bauer/Kuschinski (German): Die Straßenbahnen in Ostdeutschland (Band 1), Schweers+Wall, 1993.
- Leipziger Verkehrs-Betriebe (German): Vom Zweispänner zur Stadtbahn, Leipzig, 1996.
External links
- Offizielle Seite der Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe
- http://www.leipzig-lexikon.de