Ludwigsburg catenary railways

Ludwigsburg catenary railways
Car 1 around 1916 at the Hoheneck spa
Route length:	15.1 km
Legend Ludwigsburg train station Ludwigsburg Arsenalplatz Ludwigsburg town hall Ludwigsburg star crossing Ludwigsburg Heilbronner Tor Neckar Bridge Hoheneck spa Hoheneck Ludwigsburg residential palace Ludwigsburg car hall Wagenhalle , Schorndorfer Straße 76-78 Ludwigsburg Neckarstrasse Oßweil school house Neckargröningen town hall Neckargröningen linden tree Aldingen

The Ludwigsburger Oberleitungs-Bahnen was a trolleybus system, back then still called Gleislose Bahn . The facility existed from 1910 to 1926 and connected the Württemberg residence city of Ludwigsburg with the then still independent neighboring communities of Oßweil and Hoheneck on the one hand and with the villages of Neckargröningen and Aldingen, which now belong to Remseck am Neckar, on the other. The operation was led by the Ludwigsburger Oberleitungs-Bahnen GmbH . With a total route length of 15.1 kilometers, it was the most extensive system of a trackless railway in that era.

history

Discarded tram plans

The city of Ludwigsburg had been planning to equip the city with a tram network since the beginning of the 1890s . A plan of July 20, 1898 envisaged the construction of four star-shaped routes into the surrounding area, including a connection to Stuttgart . But this ambitious project could not be realized; it failed, among other things, because of the resistance of the then mayor of Ludwigsburg, Gustav Hartenstein. He feared that Ludwigsburg could become the “residential suburb” of the state capital.

Decision in favor of the trackless railway

On September 12, 1907, the city of Ludwigsburg finally received an offer from the Saxon Society for Trackless Railways Max Schiemann & Co. to build a trackless tram instead of a conventional one . At the time, Max Schiemann was a constant in the market for such railways. By this time he had already commissioned seven plants, all of which were located in the German Reich. Because the residential city was still unable to finance the construction of a conventional tram network, it was very interested in this offer - but no contract was concluded.

A second offer was made soon after by the company H. Balz & Co., GmbH from Stuttgart, it was the southern German general agency of the Austrian Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft from Wiener Neustadt . Their offer of a trackless railway based on the Mercédès-Électrique-Stoll system , also known as the Elektro-Daimler-Stoll system, which was only introduced in 1907 , was ultimately also rejected.

Finally, on February 28, 1910, the city's traffic committee agreed to a third offer from Gleislose Lloydbahnen Köhlers Bahnpatente GmbH from Bremen , which in turn sold a different overhead line system. In March the construction of the railway was commissioned by the local council. It is noteworthy that the Lloyd-Köhler system was not used for the first time in Bremen until August 1910, so it had not yet been tested at all. As early as September 1910, all the overhead line masts to Aldingen were in place. In the Ludwigsburg city center, however, their installation raised considerable questions; in the interests of a good street scene, the city fathers wanted the contact wires to be installed on overhead line rosettes as an alternative . This wish was largely fulfilled, only a few homeowners in Myliusstraße did not meet the city despite multiple requests. It was in this busy area of ​​all places that masts had to be installed. The future operating company was finally founded on October 13, 1910, with initial capital of 280,000 marks. The employed managing director was the electrical engineer Carl Frizlen. Through his work he recognized the steadily increasing need for electrical equipment, including power resistors . He therefore founded an electrical installation business in 1914, also to repair the resistances of the overhead lines, which were often defective due to the strong vibrations during the journey. From 1922 onwards, his company manufactured the resistors for the overhead contact lines.

First route to Neckargröningen and Aldingen

Excerpt from the first timetable of the Ludwigsburg catenary railways from 1910, not all courses served the entire route

The departure point of the overhead line railways was at the Ludwigsburg station forecourt, in the image of two cars and the now demolished old station building

On December 21, 1910, the Ludwigsburg catenary railways began their regular operations. On the opening day, the reverse was done in Neckargröningen, at the remains of the former mill. The line to Aldingen went into operation a little later, but the first car went there as early as the end of 1910. The Ludwigsburg plant was thus the first trolleybus operation in Württemberg , even before the trackless railway Heilbronn – Böckingen, which only went into operation in January 1911. According to Victor von Röll's encyclopedia of railways , the Aldingen route was 6.9 kilometers long, another source mentions 10.6 kilometers.

The starting point for the overhead lines was the forecourt of the Ludwigsburg train station . There was a connection to today's Frankenbahn and the railway line to Backnang , and from 1916 finally also to the railway line to Markgröningen . From the train station, the route ran through the city center via Myliusstrasse, Arsenalstrasse and Wilhelmstrasse. In the further course, the overhead lines reached the village of Oßweil through Schorndorfer Straße, which was incorporated into Ludwigsburg in 1922. In Oßweil there was a bus stop at the old school building on Westfalenstraße / corner of Wettemarkt, today's bus stop Westfalenstraße .

From there it went on via today's state road 1140 to Neckargröningen, which, together with Aldingen and other communities, has formed the town of Remseck am Neckar since 1975. It was mostly an overland route, which ran between Oßweil and Neckargröningen about three kilometers across open fields. In the direction of Ludwigsburg there was a level difference of almost 80 meters between Neckargröningen and Oßweil  .

In Neckargröningen, the center of which the overhead lines reached through Ludwigsburger Strasse, the cars stopped at the old town hall, which was still used as such at that time. Today the Lamm bus stop is located here . There was also a private post office and telegraph station at which mail was handed over to or taken over by the overhead lines. The Neckar Gröninger Wasenstraße following the cars reached the next stop at the Gasthaus Linde at the mouth of Lindenwegs in the Wasenstraße where today the bus stop Wasenstraße located. It was mainly the passengers who got on from Neckarrems on foot , which is also a part of Remseck today.

On the last section, the overhead lines followed the left bank of the Neckar in order to, following Neckarstrasse, reach their terminus in the center of Aldingen. For passengers, however, the journey via Neckargröningen meant a two to three kilometer detour - compared to today's direct road connection via Grünbühl .

The catenary railways replaced a stagecoach connection at the time , eight trips per day were offered in each direction. A trip over the entire route took 40 minutes and cost ten pfennigs . The line was initially extremely successful, by January 1911 more than 16,000 paying passengers had been carried. The then Neckargröningen Schultes Gottlob Räuchle praised the new means of transport in 1910 with the words: It was the safest, cheapest and best way to connect Neckargröningen to the great world transport network . The route was mainly used by day-trippers in the nearby heights of Oßweil and Hochberg .

But the new means of transport did not meet with approval everywhere. For example, residents of Ludwigsburg's Myliusstrasse complained about the drivers' excessive and loud signal fans . The dust that the overhead lines whirled up on the then largely unpaved roads also caused displeasure. The plague of dust could even reduce the value of the apartments, so the concern. To remedy this, it was suggested "to pave a two-meter-wide strip in the middle of the inner-city streets that the train runs through, on which the electric cars would then have to drive."

Second route to Hoheneck

It is busy at the so-called Schwätzbänkle , on the left a car to Hoheneck

A trailer train at the terminus in Hoheneck

The two lines of the overhead line trams on a contemporary city map

On July 14, 1907, the Hoheneck public spa opened in the municipality of Hoheneck, northeast of Ludwigsburg in the Neckar valley, which was independent until 1926 . A comfortable and modern means of transport was required for the bathers arriving from Ludwigsburg . Originally, three horse-drawn carriages were contracted for the trips to the spa . However, the local council soon took the view that the horse-drawn carriages used were advertising in a negative sense and did not make a good impression outside . In addition, the coachmen weren't up to the onslaught of bathers.

As early as the 1908 bathing season, a petrol engine - the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) bus - ran from the Ludwigsburg train station to Hoheneck, and DMG operated this first Ludwigsburg bus route on its own account. However, the financial result could not be satisfactory. Despite a municipal grant, the new line remained so uneconomical that Daimler withdrew from the project after the end of the 1908 bathing season. From 1909, the city therefore maintained the connection with two of its own bathing buses. However, technical inadequacies in the vehicles and the resulting high costs for spare parts once again resulted in an “uneconomical result”.

In order to permanently satisfy the need for traffic to Hoheneck created by the spa, Ludwigsburger Oberleitungs-Bahnen GmbH finally took over the operation to Hoheneck from the city of Ludwigsburg. On June 16, 1911, only six months after the first line to Aldingen opened, the company opened a branch line to the Hoheneck spa. At the time, this was still located directly on the Uferstrasse, at the confluence of the Heilbadweg and the Hungerberg.

The new line was 4.5 kilometers long, it used the existing infrastructure for around 900 meters, whereas 3.6 kilometers was a new line. The spa itself also advertised the new means of transport at the time; a contemporary brochure can be read: A pretty spa hotel offers excellent accommodation; cheap apartments and good meals can also be found in the nearby Hoheneck. However, the medicinal spring is connected to Ludwigsburg by the regular trips of the Ludwigsburg overhead lines.

The new line branched off from the existing line at the former Schwätzbänkle (at that time the Schloßstraße / Wilhelmstraße intersection), today's star intersection (Stuttgarter Straße / Schorndorfer Straße / Wilhelmstraße). From there it led on today's federal road 27 in a northerly direction to Heilbronner Tor, then it reached the spa via Marbacher Strasse (today Landesstrasse 1124) and Uferstrasse (today Kreisstrasse 1663). The terminus was about 400 meters further north, in the area of ​​the central Hoheneck intersection. The new line also served to develop Neckarweihingen , which is located on the other bank of the Neckar and can be easily reached on foot from Hoheneck over the Neckar bridge along the Marbacher Straße. In contrast to the route to Aldingen, no post was sent to Hoheneck.

Difficulties in the First World War

In 1914, 500,000 people were transported, but the Ludwigsburg trolleybuses, like all other trolleybus companies, suffered from the consequences of the First World War . Most of the staff was called up for military service, operating costs rose enormously and spare parts became scarce. The result was that some cars had to be parked. In 1915, the Gleislose Lloydbahnen Köhlers Bahnpatente GmbH filed for bankruptcy , as a result of which the city of Ludwigsburg had to pay ever higher subsidies. After initially only the timetable was thinned out, the decision was made on August 11, 1916 to cease operations entirely on October 1 of the same year - not least because the copper contact wires were to be confiscated and sent to the armaments industry . However, there were conflicts with the military before that; For example, the traindepot of the XIII complained as early as 1913 . Army Corps - it had its administration building at Schorndorfer Strasse 48 - about the vibrations and the noise from the overhead lines. In 1917 the company finally parted ways with its managing director Frizlen, who had meanwhile also been drafted into the military.

Citizen protests prevented the setting for the time being. The Ludwigsburg trolleybus system was the only German trolleybus system that survived the First World War. The 14 remaining, which were built between 1901 and 1912 on the territory of the German Reich in the borders before 1914 , did not survive the year 1918.

Decline in the Weimar Republic

Due to the economic difficulties in the first post-war years (high losses and the effects of inflation ), the railway was finally shut down a few years after the end of the war. In addition to the lack of economic efficiency, the overhead line railways also had to struggle with enormous technical problems. This applied to both the drive and the power collection system, both of which were not yet fully developed at the time. Furthermore, the “natural roads”, which were still mostly unpaved at the time, were not able to cope with the permanent load from the heavy trailer trains of the overhead line trams. In addition, the dirt roads caused a corresponding dust load on the drives, the wheel hub motors used at that time were not as well sealed as today's fully encapsulated motors. In contrast, petrol-powered buses had become more reliable and economical.

The first line to Aldingen was discontinued on May 1, 1923, the last day of operation was Monday, April 30th. In April 1926, the second route to Hoheneck followed, but in contrast to the route to Aldingen, this was seamlessly converted to bus operation. The trolleybuses were replaced by the privately run bus lines of the Ludwigsburg Transport Lines (LVL), the final discontinuation of the trolleybuses in April 1926 is considered to be the birth of the LVL. As a result, Oßweil, Neckargröningen and Aldingen also received a transport connection to Ludwigsburg again in April 1926 after a three-year break. The Ludwigsburger Oberleitungs-Bahnen GmbH itself was not wound up until much later, it still existed until February 18, 1932.

After the Ludwigsburg trolleybuses were closed, there was no trolleybus traffic in Germany for four years before Germany's first modern trolleybus was opened in 1930 with the Mettmann – Gruiten catenary bus.

Infrastructure

Vertical line arrangement in the Lloyd-Koehler system

A special feature of the systems based on the rare Lloyd-Koehler system were the overhead contact line wires, while in all other trolleybus systems they are placed next to each other. In total there were only five systems based on this principle, in addition to the operation discussed here, these were the Bremen-Arster Bahn and the Parkbahn , which also operates in Bremen , the trackless Lloyd-Bahn Brockau and the operation in Stockport, England . Both Ludwigsburg routes were - as was common with early trolleybus systems - completely single-track. If two courses met, they had to stop briefly and exchange the leads to the contact carts. Then they drove on with the pantograph of the oncoming car.

vehicles

In Ludwigsburg, six two-axle motor vehicles with four side windows were used right from the start; their output was 25  hp . They were supplemented by three slightly smaller three-legged trailers . No further vehicles were procured for the connection to Hoheneck, which was subsequently opened, as the existing rolling stock was sufficient for both routes.

On the motor vehicles, the larger rear wheels were driven, the steerable front wheels were a little smaller. As with all Lloyd-Koehler systems, wheel hub motors were used. The motor vehicles had an entry platform at the front and rear and offered twenty seats and ten standing room on two longitudinal bench seats. In the interior they were lined with mahogany and ash wood . On the outside, they were labeled with Ludwigsburg overhead lines . As is customary with trams, there was a bell cord , with the help of this cord that ran from front to back, the conductor could give the driver the order to leave.

Car hall

The Wagenhalle in Schorndorfer Strasse

The carriage hall of the overhead line railways was on the eastern outskirts of Ludwigsburg, on the Schorndorfer Strasse 76-78 property. After the Aldinger line was discontinued in 1923, it was located off the regular route, so the almost one kilometer long Sternkreuzung – Wagenhalle section was purely an operational line for the last three years of operation . After the catenary railways were finally closed, the area was temporarily used from 1926 to 1930 as a parking area for the then newly acquired buses of the Ludwigsburg transport lines. In 1934 the Ludwigsburg Church of the Resurrection was finally built on the site .

Relics

At the music hall there is still a contact wire suspension on the left edge of the building

In the city of Ludwigsburg, the fortifications of the previous overhead line have been preserved on several older buildings along the route. These elaborately decorated catenary rosettes can be found on the following houses:

• Ludwigsburg, Bahnhofstrasse 19, Ludwigsburg Music Hall , a rose window
• Ludwigsburg, Myliusstraße 12/14, a rose window
• Ludwigsburg, Wilhelmstrasse 12, two rosettes

See also

• List of former trolleybus systems
• History of the trolleybus

literature

• Peter Dönges: The wall rosettes have remained !: The trackless railway from Ludwigsburg . In: Tram magazine, electric local transport - yesterday, today, tomorrow . 170 (year 34). GeraNova Zeitschriftenverlag, December 2003, ISSN  0340-7071 , p. 52-58 .
• Eduard Theiner: When Ludwigsburg drove without a track . In: Ludwigsburg history sheets . No. 54 . Historical Association City Archives Ludwigsburg, Ludwigsburg 2000.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Günter Stetza: Die Gleislose Bahnen in Germany 1882–1929 (The story of a traffic unicum) in Nahverkehrsgeschichtliche Blätter Volume 3, self-published in 1974, pp. 7–8
2. ↑ ^{a b c d} The first tram went to Aldingen , article in the Ludwigsburger Kreiszeitung from October 23, 2018, online at lkz.de, accessed on November 28, 2018
3. ↑ ^{a b c} An early problem with particulate matter. (No longer available online.) Kornwestheimer Zeitung, January 29, 2009, formerly in the original ; Retrieved on August 26, 2009 (local edition of the Stuttgarter Nachrichten ).  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.    
4. ↑ General traffic plan - Eglosheim relief and B 27 tunnel in front of the castle. (No longer available online.) Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen , Ludwigsburg municipal council group, February 28, 2008, formerly the original ; Retrieved August 26, 2009 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.    
5. ↑ ^{a b c} Frizlen - 100 years of dynamism through resistance, commemorative publication for the 100th company anniversary in 2014, online at service.me-vermittel.de, accessed on December 10, 2019
6. ↑ messtec drives Automation - the magazine for measuring, controlling, driving, testing , 22nd year, issue 6–7, June 2014, p. 44
7. ↑ The first tram went to Aldingen , In: Oßweiler Nachrichten, 2nd volume, issue No. 11 of November 10, 2018, online at ossweiler-nachrichten.de, accessed on December 12, 2019
8. ↑ ^{a b c d e} 80 years of LVL hunters ( Memento from June 15, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF file; 9.14 MB)
9. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Eduard Theiner: In Ludwigsburg there was already an overhead line. (PDF; 1.17 MiB) In: Ludwigsburger Geschichtsblätter (54). Retrieved August 26, 2009 . 
10. ↑ ^{a b} Trackless railways. In: Viktor von Röll (ed.): Encyclopedia of the Railway System . 2nd Edition. Volume 5: Driver's Freight Tariffs . Urban & Schwarzenberg, Berlin / Vienna 1914, pp  338 -340.
11. ↑ Klaus Hoffmann in book excerpt from Das alten Hoheneck ( Memento from August 1, 2009 in the Internet Archive ), Andreas Hackenberg, Verlag, Antiquariat, Medienservice; Ludwigsburg, 2003 (accessed August 26, 2009)
12. ^ Main State Archives Stuttgart: M 323 Bü 43 - Traindepot of the XIII. Army Corps, Ludwigsburg, administration building Schorndorfer Straße 48 (former Weigle'sches Haus): complaint by the traindepot against the Ludwigsburg overhead line due to vibrations and noise pollution (accessed on August 26, 2009)