Trams in Darmstadt

Darmstadt tramway network
Straßenbahn Darmstadt
See caption
Tram at Willy-Brandt-Platz
Operation
LocaleDarmstadt, Hesse, Germany
Steam tram era: 1886 (1886)–1922 (1922)
Status Converted to electric traction
Operator(s)
Propulsion system(s) Steam
Electric tram era: since 1897 (1897)
Status Operational[2]
Lines 10[3]
Operator(s)
Track gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)[3]
Propulsion system(s) Electricity
Stock 48 (including 38 low-floor trams)[2]
Track length (total) 92 km (57 mi)[2]
Route length 42 km (26 mi)[2]
Stops 164[2]
Darmstadt tramway network (2024)
Website HEAG mobilo

The Darmstadt tram network is a tram system which is the backbone of public transport in Darmstadt, Germany. There are ten lines running on a 42 kilometres (26 mi) long network[3] with four main routes, including an interurban route south from Eberstadt to Alsbach. As of 2019 the system served 164 stops, including 126 barrier-free stops.[2] The system is operated by HEAG mobilo [de], and is an integral part of the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV), the public transit authority of the Rhein-Main-Area.

History

A steam locomotive and carriages in a city square
Steam tram in Luisenplatz, 1899

Trams have operated continuously in Darmstadt since 30 August 1886, with the opening of two steam tram lines from the city centre and to Griesheim and Eberstadt. A third line, to Arheilgen, opened on 30 April 1890. The steam tram lines were originally built and operated by a private consortium led by the railway entrepreneur Hermann Bachstein, before being transferred to the newly formed Süddeutsche-Eisenbahn-Gesellchaft on 11 February 1895.[1]: 12–13 

The steam trams did not serve the narrow streets of the city centre so in 1895 the city decided to also build an electric tramway. A concession to build and operate this was awarded to Siemens & Halske and the first two lines opened on 23 November 1897, linking the Hauptbahnhof (main railway station) to Böllenfalltor and Taunusstraße to Hermannstraße. A third line between Fasanerie and Heidelberger Straße opened in 1903.[1]: 13 

The steam and electric routes were amalgamated into the Hessische Eisenbahn-Aktiengesellschaft (HEAG) in 1912, which has operated the network since then.[3] A new line to Darmstadt Ostbahnhof (Darmstadt East railway station) opened on 1 October 1913[1]: 24  and the steam tram lines were electrified. The last steam service ran to Eberstadt in 1914[3] and the lines to Griesheim and Arheilgen were electrified between 1924 and 1926.[1]: 36  During the 1920s the network expanded with lines to Oberwaldhaus, Liebfrauenstraße, Heinheimer Straße and Rodensteinweg.[1]: 36 

While some older lines were closed, including those to Oberwaldhaus in 1970 and Ostbahnhof in 1986,[4] new sections were built following the development of new residential areas. A 1.6 kilometres (0.99 mi) extension of the southern line from Jugenheim to Alsbach opened on 18 August 1979, running partly on reserved track and partly on the route of a former railway line.[5] The branch to Kranichstein opened in 2003, there were short extensions in Alsbach in 2008 and Arheilgen in 2011, and most recently a line to the Technische Universität Darmstadt campus at Lichtwiese opened in 2022.[3] Since the 1990s the existing network has also been gradually been modernised. All lines (except for line 3) have since been less of a classical tram system and more of a light rail system with a separate right-of-way and stops with platforms level with the tram floors.[6]

Lines

The central hub of the Darmstadt tram network is the Luisenplatz, at which eight of Darmstadt's ten tram lines stop. At the Hauptbahnhof railway station the tram system and the Rhine-Main S-Bahn meet. On the main routes the hours of operation are usually from around 5:00 am until 1:00 am. As of 2024 the network is made up of the following lines:

Line Route Stops Notes
1 Hauptbahnhof ↔ Rhein-/Neckarstr. ↔ Eberstadt 19
2 Hauptbahnhof ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ TU Darmstadt, Lichtwiese campus 11
3 Hauptbahnhof ↔ Willy-Brandt-Platz ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Lichtenbergschule 15
4 Griesheim ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Kranichstein 25 Mondays to Fridays, except early morning and late evening
Hauptbahnhof ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Kranichstein 16 Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays; Mondays to Fridays only early morning and late evening
5 Böllenfalltor ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Kranichstein 20
6 Arheilgen ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Eberstadt ↔ Alsbach (Express line) 30 Outside peak hours every second tram terminates in Eberstadt; Express line – does not call at all stops
7 Lichtenbergschule ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Eberstadt 26
8 Arheilgen ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Eberstadt ↔ Alsbach 38
9 Griesheim ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Böllenfalltor 20
10 Griesheim ↔ Hauptbahnhof (Express line) 08 Express line – does not call at all stops

On all main routes at least a 15 minute frequency is offered all day, with the ten lines coordinated so that in peak hours almost all routes (except the section between Eberstadt and Alsbach) have at least a 10 minute frequency. In some places parallel bus routes also offer a higher frequency service.

Future expansion

An expansion of the tram network is planned to serve new developments in the Ludwigshöhviertel, on land formerly used by the US Military. The new line will link the end of the current line 3 at Lichtenbergschule to the route to Eberstadt at Heidelberger Straße, with two intermediate stops. Linking the two existing routes will also provide options for diversions in case of disruption.[7]

Rolling stock

In 2019 the fleet consisted of 48 trams (ten high-floor ST12, 20 low-floor ST13 and 18 low-floor ST14[3]) and 30 low-floor SB9 trailers.[2] 14 new Stadler-built low-floor trams were ordered in January 2020. The new ST15 trams are 43 m long, unidirectional vehicle with five sections and were the first order for the Stadler Tina [de] model.[8] A follow-on order for a further 11 trams was announced in June 2021 to allow the last high-floor ST12 trams to be withdrawn.[9] The first of the new ST15 trams entered test service with passengers in October 2023.[10][11]

  • See caption
    High-floor ST12 tram
  • See caption
    SB9 trailer
  • See caption
    ST13 tram, with SB9 trailer
  • See caption
    ST14 tram
  • ST14 interior
    ST14 interior
  • See caption
    Stadler Tina ST15 tram

Steam tram

Steam locomotive with a train of four carriages running on tram lines in a section of street
Feuriger Elias at Frankenstein tram stop in Eberstadt

Since 1997 a steam tram service, known as Feuriger Elias, has been operated by the ARGE Historische HEAG-Fahrzeuge (Working group for historic HEAG vehicles).[12] The tram runs on selected weekends and holidays in May, June and September on two routes, between Frankenstein in Eberstadt and Alsbach, or between Griesheim and Darmstadt Scholoss.[12][13]

Rolling stock

The 0-4-0T locomotive No. 7 was built in 1919 for industrial use[3][12] by Henschel & Son[14] (works number 17218).[citation needed] It was originally 900 mm (2 ft 11+7⁄16 in) gauge and was re-gauged for use in Darmstadt.[3][12]

The train usually comprises four carriages: one closed carriage, two open carriages with roofs and one fully-open carriage.[12] The open carriage (No. 301) is the only remaining vehicle from the original steam tramway in Darmstadt. The other three carriages are reconstructions built on goods wagon chassis.

  • Steam locomotive and four-wheel closed carriage
    Locomotive No. 7 and carriage No. 4
  • Four-wheel carriage with half-height side walls and a roof
    Carriage No. 100
  • Four-wheel carriage with half-height side walls and a roof
    Carriage No. 101
  • Four-wheel open carriage with half-height side walls and no roof
    Carriage No. 301

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "100 Jahre HEAG" [100 years of HEAG] (PDF) (in German). HEAG. 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "HEAG Mobilo - Daten & Fakten des Verkehrskonzerns 2019" (PDF) (in German). Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Thompson, Andrew (March 2024). "Darmstadt: Sustainability in Sync" (PDF). Tramways & Urban Transit. No. 1035. Light Rail Transit Association. pp. 88–91. ISSN 1460-8324. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  4. ^ Meier, Wolfgang; Eckert, Wilhelm (April 2022). "Einst & Jetzt" [Then & now]. Straßenbahn Magazin (in German). pp. 62–63. ISSN 0340-7071.
  5. ^ "Germany (West) (BRD) - Darmstadt". Modern Tramway and Light Rapid Transit. January 1980. p. 26. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
  6. ^ Wansbeek, C. J. (September 2001). "Darmstadt: A mature tramway grows again". Tramways & Urban Transit. Light Rail Transit Association. ISSN 1460-8324.
  7. ^ Schramm, Jörn (July 2022). "Auf zur Ludwigshöhe" [On to the Ludwigshöhe]. Straßenbahn Magazin (in German). pp. 40–41. ISSN 0340-7071.
  8. ^ "Stadler liefert neue Straßenbahngeneration an HEAG mobilo Darmstadt" [Stadler supplies new generation of tram to HEAG mobilo Darmstadt]. Urban Transport Magazine (in German). 6 January 2020. Archived from the original on 29 February 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  9. ^ "HEAG Mobilo orders more trams". Railway Gazette International. 7 July 2021. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  10. ^ Femppel, Birgit (17 October 2023). "Die Tina nimmt nun Fahrgäste in Darmstadt mit" [The Tina now carries passengers in Darmstadt] (in German). Darmstädter Echo. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
  11. ^ "Nächster Meilenstein erreicht: Erste TINA-Straßenbahnen starten in den Probebetrieb mit Fahrgästen – virtueller 360°-Rundgang möglich" [Next milestone reached: First TINA trams start in test service with passengers - virtual 360°-tour possible] (in German). Retrieved 19 September 2024.
  12. ^ a b c d e Bohndorf, Joachim (March 2017). "Feueriger Elias". Straßenbahn Magazin (in German). pp. 26–27. ISSN 0340-7071.
  13. ^ "Fahrplan 2024" [Timetable 2024] (in German). Arbeitsgemeinschaft Historische HEAG-Fahrzeuge. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  14. ^ Sommer, Frank (12 June 2019). "Zugfahrt wie zu Omas Zeiten im Raum Darmstadt" [Train journey link in Grandma's time in Darmstadt] (in German). Frankfurter Rundschau. Retrieved 5 October 2024.

Bibliography

  • Bürnheim, Hermann; Burmeister, Jürgen (1997). Bahnen und Busse rund um den langen Ludwig. (Engl.: Railways and Buses around the long Ludwig) (4th ed.). Düsseldorf: Alba Publikation. ISBN 978-3-87094-357-8. (German)
  • Höltge, Dieter; Köhler, Günter H. (1992). Straßen- und Stadtbahnen in Deutschland [Tramways and Stadtbahnen in Germany] (in German). Vol. Band 1: Hessen [Volume 1: Hesse] (2nd., enlarged ed.). Freiburg i. B., Germany: EK-Verlag. ISBN 3882553359.
  • Schwandl, Robert (2012). Schwandl's Tram Atlas Deutschland (3rd ed.). Berlin: Robert Schwandl Verlag. ISBN 978-3-936573-33-6.
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