Stuttgart Stadtbahn
Encyclopedia
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
system in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It is operated by the Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG
Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG
Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG is the principal public transport operating company in the German city of Stuttgart. The SSB operates light rail lines, bus lines, a rack railway, and a funicular railway.- Colour:...
(SSB), which also operates the bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
systems in that city. The system covers much of Stuttgart and also reaches the neighbouring towns of Fellbach
Fellbach
Fellbach is a mid-sized town on the north-east Border of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg. With a population of approximately 43,700 as of December 2003 it is the second largest town in the District Rems-Murr-Kreis. The area of the town is 27.7 km²....
, Gerlingen
Gerlingen
Gerlingen is a town in the district of Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 9 km west of Stuttgart, and 15 km southwest of Ludwigsburg, Gerlingen is home to BOSCH appliances....
, Leinfelden-Echterdingen
Leinfelden-Echterdingen
Leinfelden-Echterdingen is a town in the district of Esslingen, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located approx. 10 km south of Stuttgart, near the Stuttgart Airport...
, Ostfildern
Ostfildern
Ostfildern is a town in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is located approx. 8 km southeast of Stuttgart...
and Remseck am Neckar.
Lines
| Line | Route |
|---|---|
| U1 | Fellbach – S.-Bad Cannstatt – S.-Charlottenplatz – S.-Heslach – S.-Vaihingen |
| U2 | S.-Neugereut – S.-Bad Cannstatt – S.-Charlottenplatz – S.-Vogelsang – S.-Botnang |
| U3 | S.-Plieningen – S.-Möhringen – S.-Vaihingen |
| U4 | S.-Untertürkheim – S.-Ostendplatz – S.-Charlottenplatz – S.-Hölderlinplatz |
| U5 | S.-Killesberg – S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Degerloch – S.-Möhringen – Leinfelden |
| U6 | Gerlingen – S.-Weilimdorf – S.-Feuerbach – S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Degerloch – S.-Möhringen – Fasanenhof Schelmenwasen |
| U7 | S.-Mönchfeld – S.-Zuffenhausen – S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Ruhbank – S.-Heumaden – Ostfildern-Nellingen |
| U8 | S.-Vaihingen – S.-Möhringen – S.-Degerloch – Ostfildern-Nellingen |
| U9 | S.-Hedelfingen – S.-Raitelsberg – S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Vogelsang – S.-Botnang |
| U11 | S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Cannstatter Wasen / Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion / Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle only during the Volksfest Cannstatter Wasen The Cannstatter Wasen is a 35 hectare festival area on the banks of the Neckar river in the part of Stuttgart known as Bad Cannstatt.The Cannstatter Wasen form part of the Neckar Park Fairground.... , sporting events and music concerts |
| U12 | S.-Killesberg – S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Degerloch – S.-Möhringen – S.-Vaihingen |
| U13 | S.-Giebel – S.-Feuerbach - S.-Pfostenwäldle – S.-Pragsattel – S.-Bad Cannstatt – S.-Hedelfingen |
| U14 | Remseck-Neckargröningen – S-Münster – S-Hauptbahnhof – S-Rotebühlplatz – S-Heslach |
| U15 | S.-Zuffenhausen – S.-Nordbahnhof – S.-Hauptbahnhof – S.-Eugensplatz – S.-Ruhbank - S.-Heumaden Extension from Zuffenhausen to Stammheim under construction, will be put into operation on December 12, 2010 (estimated). |
| U19 | S.-Bad Cannstatt – S.-Daimler-Stadion only during sporting events, since August 2006 |
History
Stuttgart Stadtbahn, now all standard gauge (1435 mm), has been developed out of a traditional tramway system, which in Stuttgart had metre gaugeMetre gauge
Metre gauge refers to narrow gauge railways and tramways with a track gauge of . In some African, American and Asian countries it is the main gauge. In Europe it has been used for local railways in France, Germany, and Belgium, most of which were closed down in mid 20th century. Only in Switzerland...
.
In 1961 the city council of Stuttgart decided a general modernization of the municipal tram system; in central areas, the tram should be led underground, in peripheral areas it should get new tracks, separate from road traffic. Intercurrent ideas for a totally new subway were rejected in 1976. At the same time it was decided to enhance modernization of the existing tram in combination with a change from metre gauge to standard gauge.
For this reason, Stuttgart made the intermediate effort of rebuilding almost all its tracks with mixed-gauge, on which old streetcars (SSB GT4
GT4 (tram)
The GT4 is a tramway vehicle built by Maschinenfabrik Esslingen.-History:...
, built 1959–1965) could run as well as new metro
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
cars (SSB DT 8, in regular service since 1985).
Current regular operation
The Stadtbahn system runs over 192 km of lines. In the city centre as well as in other densely built-up districts of the city, the Stadtbahn runs underground. The Stadtbahn uses the "U" logo like the underground systems (U-Bahnen) in other German cities. However, here the "U" does not stand for untergrund (underground) but for unabhängig (independent, meaning independent of other traffic infrastructure). Outside the densely built up areas, the Stadtbahn runs on the surface, often along roads with level crossingLevel crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s, though on a separate right-of-way. In a few places, Stadtbahn trains run on street sharing space with other traffic.
The system is operated with 164 cars, operates on standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
track, and is electrified at 750 volt
Volt
The volt is the SI derived unit for electric potential, electric potential difference, and electromotive force. The volt is named in honor of the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta , who invented the voltaic pile, possibly the first chemical battery.- Definition :A single volt is defined as the...
s DC
Direct current
Direct current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
. On December, 8th, 2007 the ongoing replacement of the city's tram lines was finally completed after 27 years.
The Stuttgart Stadtbahn operates from 04:45 - 01:15, with trains every 10 minutes on all lines during daytime service, and every 15–20 minutes after 20:00 as well as before 12:00 on weekends. Most routes are served by two or more lines in the city centre, so there is a train every few minutes at most stations.
Fares and ticketing
The Stadtbahn is part of the regional transport cooperative, the Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund StuttgartVerkehrs- und Tarifverbund Stuttgart
The Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund Stuttgart is a regional transport cooperative that coordinates tickets and fares among all transport operators in the metropolitan area of Stuttgart in Germany...
(VVS), which coordinates tickets and fares among all transport operators in the metropolitan area. Besides the Stadtbahn, these include the SSB's bus networks, together with the Stuttgart S-Bahn
Stuttgart S-Bahn
The Stuttgart S-Bahn is a suburban railway system serving the Stuttgart Region, an agglomeration of around 2.6 million people, consisting of the city of Stuttgart and the adjacent districts of Esslingen, Böblingen, Ludwigsburg and Rems-Murr. It consists of seven lines numbered S1 through S6 and...
, operated by a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
(DBAG), and DBAG's 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...
regional train services within the VVS area.