Nord-Süd-Strecke
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The North–South railway (German: Nord-Süd-Strecke) is an amalgamation of several railway lines in Germany that came to significant importance in West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
and are therefore commonly regarded as a single entity. During the division of Germany, it was the most important and the most densely used long-distance line of the Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
. Since 1991, after the opening of the Hanover–Würzburg high-speed railway, the line mainly sees local passenger trains, freight trains and night services, as the long-distance services almost exclusively use the new line.
History
The single lines on the route were quite notable, however the long-distance traffic HanoverHanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
–Fulda
Fulda
Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district .- Early Middle Ages :...
–Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
/Würzburg
Würzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
was negligible. Most trains between Hanover and Frankfurt were routed via Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
and the Main-Weser Railway
Main-Weser Railway
The Main-Weser Railway is the railway line in central Germany that runs from Frankfurt am Main via Gießen to Kassel and named after the railway company that built the line and also operated it until 1880. It was opened between 1849 and 1852 and was one of the first railways in Germany.- Route...
, and many trains to Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
ran via 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...
/Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
and the Saal Railway
Saal Railway
The Saal Railway is a 153 kilometre-long double-track main line in the German state of Thuringia. It connects the Thuringian Railway at Großheringen with the Franconian Forest Railway at at Saalfeld and is part of the north-south main line, Munich–Nuremberg–Halle / Leipzig–Berlin...
line.
Post-1945
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
– Germany was divided in half, and, owing to the Wanfried Agreement
Wanfried agreement
The Wanfried Agreement concerned a transfer of territory between the U.S. and Soviet occupation zones after World War II in Hesse, Germany, which took place after the determination of the main inner German border at the end of July 1945.In the U.S...
, all of the lines forming the North-South line were situated inside West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. As the connection via Leipzig and Halle was no longer available, the lines had to carry most of the traffic, which had shifted from Germany's previous East-West orientation. Providing a convenient bypass around the GDR
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 lines also took international trains like the Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
expresses. The Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
favoured the faster connection via Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
, Fulda
Fulda
Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district .- Early Middle Ages :...
and Würzburg
Würzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
over the Main-Weser Railway
Main-Weser Railway
The Main-Weser Railway is the railway line in central Germany that runs from Frankfurt am Main via Gießen to Kassel and named after the railway company that built the line and also operated it until 1880. It was opened between 1849 and 1852 and was one of the first railways in Germany.- Route...
which had the disadvantage of the terminal station
Terminal Station
Terminal Station is a 1953 film by Italian director Vittorio De Sica. It tells the story of the love affair between an Italian man and an American woman. The film was entered into the 1953 Cannes Film Festival.-Production:...
in Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
, among others. With the Main-Weser Railway taking most of the freight traffic, the passenger traffic on the North–South railway increased steadily in the 1950s and 1960s.
The line saw massive investments, among them the 1963 electrification
Electrification
Electrification originally referred to the build out of the electrical generating and distribution systems which occurred in the United States, England and other countries from the mid 1880's until around 1940 and is in progress in developing countries. This also included the change over from line...
. The maximum speed was increased wherever possible, with several stretches of line permitting speeds of 160 km/h and 200 km/h on some short stretches between Gelnhausen
Gelnhausen
Gelnhausen is a town and the capital of the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located approx. 40 kilometers east of Frankfurt am Main, between the Vogelsberg mountains and the Spessart range at the river Kinzig...
and Hanau
Hanau
Hanau is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt am Main. Its station is a major railway junction.- Geography :...
. However, other places like Eichenberg
Eichenberg
Eichenberg can refer to a number of places:* Eichenberg, Austria, a municipality in the district of Bregenz in the state of Vorarlberg, Austria* Eichenberg, Hildburghausen, a municipality in the district of Hildburghausen in the state of Thuringia, Germany...
or Bebra
Bebra
Bebra is a small town in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany.-Location:Bebra lies some 45 km south of Kassel on the Fulda. The town is easy to find on most maps thanks to its prominent location on the Fuldaknie...
became severe bottlenecks, only permitting speeds of 100 km/h or even lower.
It was foreseeable since the 1960s that the existing railway line would be too overloaded and too slow for the traffic demand expected in West Germany. The situation worsened when the InterCity
Intercity (Deutsche Bahn)
Intercity is the second-highest train classification in Germany, after the ICE. Intercity services are loco-hauled express services, usually over long-distances. There are Intercity routes throughout Germany, and routes generally operate with a two-hour frequency, with multiple routes giving a more...
service was introduced in 1972 and 1979, and the old line was amended by the Hanover-Würzburg high-speed rail line, whose Fulda-Würzburg part opened in 1988, the Hanover-Fulda part following in 1991.
Since 1991
The ICEInterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
trains from and to Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
use the high-speed line north of Fulda. Trains going to Frankfurt use the Frankfurt branch of the old line. The section Bebra-Fulda sees ICE services from Dresden to Frankfurt.
Between Göttingen
Göttingen
Göttingen is a university town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Göttingen. The Leine river runs through the town. In 2006 the population was 129,686.-General information:...
and Hanover, the former InterRegio
InterRegio
The InterRegio is a train service seen in some European countries. Mostly they are trains that run "from region to region", as best described by Swiss Federal Railways.-Switzerland:...
services now run as InterCity
Intercity (Deutsche Bahn)
Intercity is the second-highest train classification in Germany, after the ICE. Intercity services are loco-hauled express services, usually over long-distances. There are Intercity routes throughout Germany, and routes generally operate with a two-hour frequency, with multiple routes giving a more...
trains, calling at Alfeld, Kreiensen
Kreiensen
Kreiensen is a municipality in the district of Northeim, in Lower Saxony, Germany.-Geography:Kreiensen is situated on the river Leine, approx. 20 km north of Northeim, and 35 km south of Hildesheim....
and Northeim
Northeim
Northeim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, as of 2002, a population of 31 000. It's located on the German Half-Timbered House Road.-History:...
.
Other than that, the Nord-Süd-Strecke sees almost exclusively RegionalExpress
RegionalExpress
The term Regional-Express denotes a type of regional train in Germany and Austria .It is best compared to a semi-fast train, as it calls at fewer stations than Regionalbahn or S-Bahn trains, but stops more often than InterCity services...
and RegionalBahn
RegionalBahn
The Regionalbahn is a type of local passenger train in Germany.-Service:Regionalbahn trains usually call at all stations on a given line, with the exception of RB trains within S-Bahn networks, these may only call at selected stations...
trains as well as a high number of freight trains. Some night trains operated by DB NachtZug
DB NachtZug
City Night Line is a category of night trains in Europe. They were originally operated by the former railway company CityNightLine AG...
use the line at night to prolong travel times to prevent a too early arrival at their destination.
Hannover–Göttingen–Friedland
The section from Göttingen is part of the Hanoverian Southern Railway that was opened in 1854 (Hanover–KasselKassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
–Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
–Frankfurt am Main). Important stations are Alfeld (Leine) and Northeim
Northeim
Northeim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, as of 2002, a population of 31 000. It's located on the German Half-Timbered House Road.-History:...
. In 1867, a branch line via Friedland
Friedland, Lower Saxony
Friedland is a municipality in the district of Göttingen, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Leine, approx. 13 km south of Göttingen. Its seat is in the village Groß Schneen.-References:...
was built to Arenshausen
Arenshausen
Arenshausen is a village in the Eichsfeld district of Thuringia, Germany....
to connect the Halle-Kassel Railway with Göttingen and the Southern Railway (Südbahn). This part of the line mostly runs in the Leine
Leine
The Leine is a river in Thuringia and Lower Saxony, Germany. It is a left tributary of the Aller river and 281 km in length.The river's source is located close to the town of Leinefelde in Thuringia...
river valley.
Friedland–Bebra
In 1876, after PrussiaPrussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
had annexed the Kingdom of Hanover
Kingdom of Hanover
The Kingdom of Hanover was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg , and joined with 38 other sovereign states in the German...
and Kurhessen, the Prussian railways built a connection between the Hanoverian Southern Railway and the Frankfurt–Bebra railway via Bad Sooden-Allendorf
Bad Sooden-Allendorf
-Location:The spa town of Bad Sooden-Allendorf lies in the Werra valley near the Hoher Meißner, right on the boundary with Thuringia, almost at Germany’s geographical centre, 33 km east of Kassel.-Neighbouring communities:...
and Eschwege
Eschwege
Eschwege , the district seat of the Werra-Meißner-Kreis, is a town in northeastern Hesse, Germany.- Location :The town lies on a broad plain tract of the river Werra at the foot of the Leuchtberg northwest of the Schlierbachswald and east of the Hoher Meißner...
. Near Eichenberg and Cornberg
Cornberg
Cornberg is a community in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany. It is the district’s smallest municipality.- Location :The community lies between the towns of Bad Hersfeld to the south and Eschwege to the north, each 27 km away...
, four tunnels had to be built.
Bebra–Fulda–Frankfurt am Main
The line was opened in 1868 as the Frankfurt–Bebra railway. The section from HanauHanau Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for Hanau, Germany and a major rail junction east of Frankfurt am Main.The first Hanau station was built on the Frankfurt-Hanau Railway at the location of the current Hanau West station, close to Hanau city centre....
and Fulda is now known as the Kinzig Valley Railway
Kinzig Valley Railway (Hesse)
The Frankfurt–Bebra Railway runs from Bebra to Frankfurt am Main via Fulda, Gelnhausen, Hanau and Offenbach am Main in south central Germany. The southern section between Fulda and Frankfurt is known as the Kinzig Valley Railway due to the route it follows through the Kinzig Valley.This important...
and the section between Fulda and Bebra is known as the Bebra–Fulda railway. Between Bad Hersfeld
Bad Hersfeld
The festival and spa town of Bad Hersfeld is the district seat of Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany, roughly 50 km southeast of Kassel....
and Fulda, it leaves the valley of the Fulda. Originally, the line connected Flieden
Flieden
Flieden is a municipality in the district of Fulda, in Hesse, Germany.Traditionally called a “Königreich” , it may show a crown in its coat of arms.-Geography:...
to Elm using a zig zag
Zig Zag (railway)
A railway zig zag, also called a switchback, is a way of climbing hills in difficult country with a minimal need for tunnels and heavy earthworks. For a short distance , the direction of travel is reversed, before the original direction is resumed.A location on railways constructed e.g...
, then went down again to Schlüchtern
Schlüchtern
Schlüchtern is a town in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hessen, Germany. It is located on the river Kinzig at the southwest of a hill called Landrücken, approx. 30 km southwest of Fulda.-History:...
. This section has been cut off since 1914 by the Distelrasen Tunnel. From Schlüchtern, the line follows the Kinzig
Kinzig (Main)
The Kinzig is a river in southern Hesse, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Main. It is 82 km long. Its source is in the Spessart hills, near Schlüchtern. The Kinzig flows into the Main in Hanau. The Main-Kinzig-Kreis was named after the river...
river, ultimately leading to Frankfurt
Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for Frankfurt am Main. In terms of railway traffic, it is the busiest railway station in Germany. With about 350,000 passengers per day the station is the second most frequented railway station in Germany and one of the most frequented in Europe.- Proto-history :In the late...
via Gelnhausen
Gelnhausen
Gelnhausen is a town and the capital of the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located approx. 40 kilometers east of Frankfurt am Main, between the Vogelsberg mountains and the Spessart range at the river Kinzig...
and Hanau. Between Hanau and Frankfurt there are two lines, the north bank line and the south bank line.
Flieden–Gemünden
The Flieden–Gemünden railway, built in 1872, is a very curvy line that is rich in tunnels. It leads through the valleys of the rivers FliedeFliede
-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse...
, Kinzig
Kinzig (Main)
The Kinzig is a river in southern Hesse, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Main. It is 82 km long. Its source is in the Spessart hills, near Schlüchtern. The Kinzig flows into the Main in Hanau. The Main-Kinzig-Kreis was named after the river...
and Sinn, following the Sinn until it meets the Main near Gemünden
Gemünden am Main
Gemünden am Main is a town in the Main-Spessart district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany and lies roughly 40 km down the Main from Würzburg.- Location :...
.
Gemünden–Würzburg
Traffic on the North–South Line uses the Main-Spessart RailwayMain-Spessart Railway
The Main-Spessart Railway is a 110 kilometre long railway line in the Bavarian province of Lower Franconia and the neighbouring state of Hesse in south central Germany. It runs from Würzburg via Gemünden and Aschaffenburg to Hanau...
, which mostly runs in the valley of the Main river between Gemünden and Würzburg.
External links
- There is a relevant English-language forum at Railways of Germany