InterConnex

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InterConnex logo
Interconnex Rostock – Leipzig

InterConnex is a brand name of Ostseeland Verkehr GmbH , a subsidiary of Transdev GmbH . Under this name, one of the first private long-distance trains in Germany was operated from March 1, 2002 to December 13, 2014 . The InterConnex drove daily from Leipzig via Berlin and Rostock to Warnemünde and back again. InterConnex's approach was to differentiate itself from the competition - especially Deutsche Bahn - as an inexpensive long-distance provider; With the liberalization of long-distance bus transport from 2013 onwards , these transports ultimately proved to be uncompetitive.

history

The InterConnex brand was introduced in mid-2001. Connex Verkehr, the German subsidiary of Vivendi Environnement (later Veolia Transport ) and forerunner of Transdev GmbH , had proposed, with the support of the federal government, the federal states and DB, to establish a replacement offer for the Interregio, which is uneconomical from DB's point of view . The Ostmecklenburgische Eisenbahn (OME), a subsidiary of Connex, has been commissioned to operate the InterConnex . The German Railways Association awarded the Connex Verkehr for the InterConnex the 2002 German Rail Transport Prize . With the offer, the company broke the monopoly in German long-distance passenger rail transport. The operating company OME was incorporated into Ostseeland Verkehr in 2005 ; the parent company Connex was renamed Veolia Verkehr in 2006, but the brand name InterConnex was retained.

In 2012 around 400,000 passengers were carried every year. According to the operating company at the time, the operation had been economically profitable for several years. In the early days, around 200,000 travelers were counted per year. The traffic performance of the trains was approx. 425,000 km per year. In 2013, the number of travelers fell by 16 percent, to 335,000. In 2014, demand rose again as a result of price reductions. In October 2014 it was announced that operations would cease on December 13th. The reason given by Transdev GmbH was high track fees and competition from long-distance buses.

line Line route operator vehicles Traffic period
 X 1  Warnemünde - Rostock Central Station - Neustrelitz - Berlin Central Station - Leipzig Baltic Sea transport 643, 146, FLEX cars and married pair cars 2002-2014
 X 2  (Liberec - Zittau - Cottbus) / Dresden-Neustadt - Berlin-Lichtenberg - Stralsund (- Ostseebad Binz) Ostseeland Verkehr , Lausitzbahn 642 2002-2006
 X 3  (Neuss -) Cologne Central Station - Siegburg - Marburg - Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe - Nordhausen - Halle (Saale) Central Station - Berlin-Lichtenberg - Rostock Baltic Sea transport 185 + Bomz 2003

From March 1, 2002, the InterConnex 1 ran a pair of trains (train numbers DFR 80214/80215) daily from Leipzig and Berlin to Rostock. In the first few years, Gera was the starting station. In the first few years, two Talent railcars of the Ostmecklenburgischen Eisenbahngesellschaft were used, which were adapted in color and interior . The fare per kilometer was initially around seven cents. Children up to the age of six were transported free of charge, and a 30 percent discount was granted up to the age of 26. According to its own information, the company paid a train path price of 2.25 euros per kilometer. A total of 200,000 euros have been invested. In the first few days of operation, a total of around 500 passengers used the two trains each day.

From the timetable change in December 2004, it was planned to transport the trains from Leipzig to Adorf / Vogtl by order of the public transport association Vogtland . to extend. This initially failed due to a lack of routes, but the association wanted to contribute 280,000 euros annually. Since the start of the 2006/2007 winter timetable, the line between Gera and Leipzig has not been used, but the Leipzig – Berlin section has been increased to three pairs of trains on weekdays. From summer 2007 to December 2014, two pairs of trains ran daily between Leipzig and Berlin, one of which continued to Rostock-Warnemünde.

InterConnex 1: (Gera–) Leipzig - Berlin - Warnemünde

In the beginning, the InterConnex traveled the Gera – Leipzig – Berlin – Rostock route once a day in each direction. Intermediate stops were Zeitz , Pegau , Leipzig Hbf , Bitterfeld , Lutherstadt Wittenberg , Luckenwalde , Berlin-Schönefeld , Berlin-Lichtenberg , Berlin-Hohenschönhausen , Oranienburg , Fürstenberg (Havel) , Neustrelitz and Waren (Müritz) . The scheduled travel time was about six hours.

At the time of the timetable change on December 11, 2005, the company said there were no stops at six stops: Pegau, Bitterfeld, Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Luckenwalde, Oranienburg and Fürstenberg (Havel).

For the timetable change on May 28, 2006, the daily route was shortened to the Gera – Leipzig – Berlin section due to construction work, but the train ran twice a day in each direction. The early train to Berlin and the late train to Leipzig also stopped in Berlin Ostbahnhof , Berlin Alexanderplatz , Berlin Friedrichstrasse , Berlin Zoological Garden , Potsdam Rehbrücke , Dessau , Halle (Saale) and at Leipzig / Halle Airport . The extension to Rostock only ran in the opposite direction on Saturdays or Sundays. For the first time, the trains ran on the Berlin Stadtbahn . They drove through the new Berlin Central Station without stopping. In addition, the vehicle material was changed.

Since the timetable change on June 10, 2007, the InterConnex has been running daily from Leipzig to Warnemünde via Berlin Potsdamer Platz , Berlin Hauptbahnhof , Neustrelitz Hbf , Waren (Müritz) and Rostock Hbf as well as with another pair of trains in the morning from Berlin to Leipzig and back in the evening. For this purpose, a six-part wagon set of the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn was given a special paint. The travel time was comparable with the parallel ICE operated by Deutsche Bahn (example Leipzig – Berlin: 1 hour 19 minutes). The Leipzig – Gera section was completely discontinued.

Since December 9, 2007, the Interconnex has also stopped in Güstrow to enable transfer options to the Transdev subsidiary "Ostseeland Verkehr (OLA)". In addition, a stop was made at the train station in Berlin Gesundbrunnen . According to passenger surveys, since the timetable change on December 11, 2011, the Interconnex stopped at Berlin Potsdamer Platz station at Berlin Südkreuz station .

Due to expansion work on sections of the Berlin Northern Railway and the Neustrelitz – Warnemünde railway line , the InterConnex ran a different route from September 2012 to November 2013. It stopped in Schwerin Hauptbahnhof and Bützow instead of Neustrelitz, Waren (Müritz) and Güstrow. Since significantly higher train path prices had to be paid on this route, the train returned to the previous route on November 17, 2013. With the opening of the long-distance transport market for long-distance buses, however, the number of passengers on the InterConnex continued to decline, so that Veolia Transdev, as the transport operator, decided in 2014 to discontinue the traffic at the end of the same year. On December 13, 2014, the last Interconnex rolled between Leipzig and Rostock.

Vehicle material

OME talent
InterConnex at the entrance to Rostock Hbf

The train material was initially provided by the Ostmecklenburgische Eisenbahn (today OLA ), a Connex subsidiary (today Transdev GmbH ), and consisted of diesel multiple units of the type Bombardier Talent , corresponding to the DB class 643. The trains were equipped with a small galley, in the cold and hot drinks as well as ice cream and small dishes were sold. The trains were initially equipped with local traffic seats. After customer complaints, three railcars were gradually equipped with long-distance seats. These were more strongly padded and there were fold-out tables at each place. When converting with long-distance sweeping seats, they also got a special paint job with a large X on the sides and the words InterConnex . Nevertheless, railcars with local transport equipment were repeatedly used.

From August 2, 2002, due to increased demand, the train was run in triple instead of double traction from Friday to Monday. To this end, another Talent local railcar was converted for long-distance transport at the Neustrelitz plant. Previously, the around 200 seats per train were partially overcrowded, especially in weekend traffic. The average utilization in the first year of operation was 68.9 percent.

On the occasion of the Hansesail 2005, a railcar was given a special paint job and the inscription Hanse-Express . The retrofitted railcars were not dismantled at the end of their use, but only adapted to the new color scheme. For the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, the train between Leipzig and Berlin wrong with the former on the Flensburg-Express used UIC Z-car and a locomotive of the series 146 of the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn (NOB). Desiro multiple units of the Lausitzbahn were used between Leipzig and Gera , as this part of the route is not electrified.

Since the timetable change in December 2006, new six-car sets from married pair cars operated by the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn (even eight-car sets in the summer vacation period, which is in high demand until August 31, 2008) have been running , as they did on the Marschbahn from Hamburg to Westerland. As before, they were pulled by a class 146 locomotive. The cars and the locomotive carried full advertising for the InterConnex. The wagons were changed every two weeks for regular maintenance, serviced at the Husum depot and used on the NOB network until the next change.

Connex series 146 at Leipzig Central Station

InterConnex 2: Dresden - / Zittau - Berlin - Stralsund (- Binz)

Weißwasser station , LB65
train ( Lausitz Bahn ) as InterConnex 2 to Liberec (Czech Republic)

The OstseelandExpress is a long-distance train that was discontinued at the end of 2006 between Stralsund and Dresden. Its original name was InterConnex 2 (X) . It was introduced in late 2002 and was renamed OstseelandExpress (OLX) in late 2005 . Its original route led from Zittau to Stralsund , temporarily extended to Binz in the north and into the Czech Liberec in the south, but later it was changed to Dresden – Stralsund.

Vehicle material

Railcar that was used on the InterConnex 2

Class 642 railcars of the Lausitzbahn were originally used on the OstseelandExpress . She also provided the train crew. The railcars had the blue and yellow livery of the Connex and a large X on the sides, in addition the lettering InterConnex was attached to the driver's cabs. From summer 2004 shuttle buses operated from Dresden and to Usedom. The buses to Dresden became superfluous when the trains no longer went to Zittau, but to Dresden-Neustadt. Most recently, the OstseelandExpress drove with class 643 railcars from Ostseeland Verkehr GmbH .

history

Map of the OstseelandExpress

When the timetable changed on December 15, 2002, a second InterConnex line was set up between Görlitz , Berlin and Stralsund . The trains ran between Zittau and Cottbus as local trains on behalf of the ZVON and from Cottbus as long-distance trains. The vehicles used were Desiro railcars with a speed of 120 km / h. The operation was carried out by the Connex subsidiaries Ostmecklenburgische Eisenbahn and Lausitzbahn . The trains ran daily to and from Berlin, Fridays to Mondays to and from Stralsund. Due to numerous customer requests, the company announced in spring 2003 that it would extend the line from May 24 to October 6, 2003, from Stralsund to the Baltic resort of Binz, Friday to Monday . While this extension came into effect as planned, the offer was discontinued Tuesday through Thursday; From now on, the train only ran on the regional section between Zittau and Cottbus on these days. The company justified this step with insufficient passenger numbers; Talks with the state of Brandenburg about the promotion of the offer had previously been unsuccessful.

With the timetable change on December 12, 2004, traffic from Zittau via Görlitz , Spremberg , Cottbus , Berlin-Schönefeld , Berlin-Lichtenberg , Berlin-Hohenschönhausen , Bernau , Eberswalde , Prenzlau , Pasewalk , Anklam , Züssow and Greifswald to Stralsund was started. In the following season, the route was extended to Binz on Rügen with a stop in Bergen , and from summer 2004 to Liberec (Reichenberg) in the Czech Republic with a stop in Hrádek nad Nisou . In addition, charter buses were used as a feeder to this train from Dresden and to Usedom .

For the timetable change on December 12, 2004, a pair of trains running three times a week between Dresden-Neustadt and Berlin was inserted. There was a connection to the Interconnex from and to Rostock; At times these trains ran continuously between Dresden and Stralsund. The trains previously running between Liberec and Stralsund, however, have been shortened to the Liberec – Berlin section.

With the 2006 timetable change, the OstseelandExpress was completely discontinued.

InterConnex 3: (Neuss -) Cologne - Rostock

InterConnex Neuss – Rostock (discontinued)

On June 4, 2003, the maiden voyage of the third Interconnex line was celebrated. On June 6, 2003, commercial operations began on the longest Interconnex long-distance route to date. The trains ran from Cologne via Gießen , Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe , Nordhausen , Halle (Saale) and Berlin to Rostock . 31 stops were served en route. The 912 km were covered in around twelve hours each. One train pair per day was offered. From August 1, 2003, the train route was extended to Neuss .

The trains ran with "economy" routes and were therefore treated with a lower priority than regular traffic.

According to the company, the line's capacity utilization in June 2003 was 26 percent. In August it was 38 percent and in July 45 percent. Due to weak demand, the trains ran in August and September 2003 with four instead of six cars (240 instead of 360 seats). At least 180 passengers were required to cover costs.

On October 2, the company announced the discontinuation of the offer effective October 27. The wagons were used on the Hamburg - Flensburg - Padborg line (formerly Flex offer) from November 1, 2003 .

It was the first Connex Germany train to be operated with wagons and locomotives. The journey times were Rostock from 6:18 a.m. - Neuss at 6:45 p.m., and Neuss from 7:14 a.m. - Rostock at 8:11 p.m.

The connection was officially closed due to unprofitability . The western section in particular was not fully used. The causes were suspected to be unfavorable travel times and the lower awareness of the InterConnex brand compared to the eastern federal states . Connex then used the train material for the Flensburg Express , which was financed by the state of Schleswig-Holstein as a local transport connection . This secure financing can be seen as the main reason for discontinuing the Neuss – Rostock connection. The wagons were then located in the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn depot in Husum and strengthen the NOB trains if necessary. The wagons are currently used together with class 223 diesel locomotives on the RE 6 Chemnitz - Leipzig line of the Central German Regiobahn .

Vehicle material

The InterConnex wagons were used as reserve vehicles on the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn until 2015

The trains were formed from locomotives of the 185 series and modernized express train cars from the former inventory of Deutsche Bahn. For this purpose, 25 wagons had been refurbished at the PFA plant in Weiden from the end of June 2002 . It was a Halberstadt compartment car for the Deutsche Reichsbahn . The two sets were operated by the East Mecklenburg Railway Company, which also provided the train crew.

Route network

Network plan of the InterConnex 3

The train ran from Köln Hbf via Troisdorf , Siegburg , Hennef (Sieg) , Siegen , Dillenburg , Wetzlar , Gießen , Marburg (Lahn) , Treysa , Wabern (Bz Kassel) , Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe , Eichenberg , Heilbad Heiligenstadt , Leinefelde , Nordhausen , Berga-Kelbra , Sangerhausen , Lutherstadt Eisleben , Halle (Saale) , Bitterfeld , Lutherstadt Wittenberg , Luckenwalde , Berlin-Schönefeld , Berlin-Lichtenberg , Berlin-Hohenschönhausen , Oranienburg , Fürstenberg (Havel) , Neustrelitz and Waren (Müritz) to Rostock . It was extended to Neuss on August 1, 2003 in order to reduce the cost of the Neuss – Cologne overpass.

Legal dispute with Deutsche Bahn

The originally planned train name ICx was forbidden by the Deutsche Bahn. DB was of the opinion that this was too reminiscent of its Intercity-Express (ICE) brand .

Another complaint by DB was directed against direct communication with the station managers of the stations along the line. The DB wanted to forbid this and sued for compliance with the "official route". The court did not follow DB's argument.

At the beginning of July 2002, Deutsche Bahn removed the trains from their travel information system. She took the view that “everyone who competes against DB AG” must “inform their customers themselves”. After protests, the company initially took this step back and announced that it would decide in principle for the timetable change on December 15, 2002 whether trains from private competitors should be displayed in the travel information system. In mid-December 2002 Connex obtained an injunction against Deutsche Bahn, which prohibited the company from selling its travel information media after the DB had not mentioned the company's long-distance trains between Stralsund and Zwickau. In mid-January 2003 the Berlin Regional Court decided that the DB had to provide information about the new Connex train by telephone and internet when it came to its electronic timetable information. Deutsche Bahn appealed. In the timetable for the 2003 timetable, the company claimed that “all rail connections in Germany” were contained in the book. The Bundeskartellamt started investigations on suspicion of abuse of a dominant position . Deutsche Bahn was defeated in several proceedings that had the inclusion of private passenger trains in their timetable as their subject.

After further legal proceedings, Deutsche Bahn had to include the train in all timetable media and also announce it on the posted timetables.

Similar line

Until the timetable change in December 2018, Transdev operated another self-service connection as an extension of ordered local transport services.

Berlin - Potsdam - Genthin - Magdeburg - Halberstadt ( train division ) - Quedlinburg - Thale / - Wernigerode - Goslar as weekend excursion and long-distance commuter train Harz-Berlin-Express of the Transdev Saxony-Anhalt

This ran between Genthin and Thale / Goslar as a normal local train at the usual local transport tariffs.

See also

literature

  • Sebastian Koch: Start of the second long-distance train. New InterConnex Zittau - Stralsund . In: LOK MAGAZINE . No. 258 / Volume 42/2003. GeraNova, Munich 2003, ISSN  0458-1822 , pp. 18/19

Web links

Commons : InterConnex  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Private long-distance traffic on the tracks of the DB AG . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 4/2002, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 206 f.
  2. ↑ A chance for the Interregio . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 10/2001, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 466 f.
  3. ↑ Announcement Award for Connex . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 1/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 10
  4. ↑ Dieter Fockenbrock: The Hamburg-Cologne Express starts . In: Handelsblatt , No. 125, July 2, 2012, p. 22 (short version online ).
  5. ↑ Diana Fröhlich: The Challengers . In: Handelsblatt . No. 141, July 24, 2012, ISSN  0017-7296 , p. 44
  6. ↑ Christian Schlesinger: Interconnex threatens to end . In: Wirtschaftswoche . August 25, 2014, ISSN  0042-8582 , p. 9 (similar version online ).
  7. ↑ Veolia Verkehr (Ed.): Veolia Verkehr withdraws from long- distance rail transport . Press release from October 14, 2014.
  8. ↑ Inter-Connex Gera - Rostock successful . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 5/2002, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 220
  9. ↑ a b message Everything new at Inter-Connex . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 12/2004, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 534
  10. ↑ a b message Everything different with the Inter-Connex . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International . Issue 4/2006, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 166
  11. ↑ Message Vogtland Express runs through Berlin Central Station . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International . Issue 7/2006, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 329
  12. ↑ New stops in Schwerin and Bützow well received , press release from September 25, 2012
  13. ^ Last trip for the Interconnex , report in the north magazine of NDR television , November 17, 2013
  14. ↑ Report Inter-Connex reinforced . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 10/2002, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 447
  15. ↑ Announcement One year Inter-Connex . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 4/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 149
  16. ↑ InterConnex: More space in the InterConnex - in the summer holidays with eight instead of six cars
  17. ↑ a b Report on the Second Inter-Connex Line . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 12/2002, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 539
  18. ^ Announcement Second Inter-Connex . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 3/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 99
  19. ↑ Inter-Connex to Rügen . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 5/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 195
  20. ↑ a b c d Inter-Connex: expansion and dismantling . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 6/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 242
  21. ↑ a b c d Third Inter-Connex line in operation . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 7/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , pp. 303-305
  22. ↑ Third Inter-Connex report started . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , Issue 8–9 / 2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , pp. 338 f.
  23. ↑ Report Inter-Connex to Neuss . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 10/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 427
  24. ↑ a b Report Inter-Connex 3: The end after four months . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 11/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 464
  25. ↑ Notification of preliminary injunction rejected . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , Issue 8–9 / 2002, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 354
  26. ↑ Peter Sprickmann Kerkerinck: The course book - an "unrecognized" railway infrastructure . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , Issue 8–9 / 2002, ISSN  1421-2811 , pp. 389–391
  27. ↑ Bahn has to stop distribution of course books . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , No. 289, 2002, ISSN  0174-4917 , p. 22
  28. ↑ a b Bahn has criticism forbidden . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , No. 11, 2003, ISSN  0174-4917 , p. 20
  29. ↑ Announcement of partial victory for Connex . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 2/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 50
  30. ↑ Report by the Cartel Office is targeting DB . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , issue 4/2003, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 147
  31. ↑ Peter Sprickmann Kerkerinck: Is the DB passenger train information also useful for passengers traveling on private railways? . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International . Issue 2/2006, ISSN  1421-2811 , p. 102 f.
  32. ↑ Landgericht Berlin, judgment of April 27, 2004, file number 102 O 64/03 Kart