Gersprenz Valley Railway

Reinheim-Reichelsheim

317 g (1948)

Route length:

17.94 km

		Odenwaldbahn from Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach
		Rodgaubahn from Dieburg
	0.0	Reinheim (Odenw)
		Odenwaldbahn to Darmstadt Hbf
		Reinheimer Tunnel (38 m)
		Bundesstrasse 38
	0.9	Reinheim Hp
	3.3	Groß-Bieberau
	6.7	Wersau
	8.3	Brensbach
	10.6	Nieder-Kainsbach
	11.2	Franconian Crumbach
	12.6	Unter-Gersprenz
	13.7	Ober-Gersprenz
	14.9	Church and Pfaffenbeerfurth
	16.2	Bockenrod
	17.9	Reichelsheim (Odenwald)

The Gersprenztalbahn (also called Reinheim-Reichelsheimer Eisenbahn ) is a private branch line in the Odenwald , which originally ran from Reinheim to Reichelsheim , but has been dismantled between Groß-Bieberau and Reichelsheim since 1964 . There is currently no traffic on the remaining stretch. Popularly known as Lizzie called, the connection is - to them from Stockheimer Lies in the Wetterau rarely, "Reichelsheimer Lizzie" as "Odenwald Lie", referred to - to distinguish.

history

As early as the 1860s there were plans to develop the Odenwald by rail, after the Hessian Ludwigsbahn had already started operating its route along the Bergstrasse from Darmstadt to Heidelberg in 1846 . Some demanded a route from Darmstadt via Ober-Ramstadt, Groß-Bieberau, Brensbach, Bad König to Michelstadt, others wanted a connection from Worms via Heppenheim, Fürth, Michelstadt to Miltenberg and on via Wertheim to Würzburg, and still others saw the future in sight a route from Reinheim via Reichelsheim, Fürth and Weinheim to Mannheim. The first realistic plans for a Gersprenztal railway on a route from Reinheim to Brensbach were made at the end of 1868, and in 1872 the Hessian Ludwigsbahn had measurements carried out in the Gersprenztal .

opening

Reinheim tunnel

However, the consortium around Herrmann Bachstein did not receive a concession for the line from Reinheim to Reichelsheim until March 1887 , which immediately began construction work on the Reinheim-Reichelsheimer Eisenbahn (RRE). Due to the simple route, the almost 18 km long route was opened on October 10, 1887. As a special structural feature, the route has a 38 meter long tunnel in the urban area of Reinheim. Directly behind this tunnel is a level crossing on Ludwigstrasse (formerly Bundesstrasse 38 ).

Renewal Plans

A continuation of the line from Reichelsheim, which had been discussed since the beginning, was discussed intensively again from 1902. The extension should to Fuerth in Odenwald lead and connection to from there to Weinheim leading Weschnitz Valley Railway produced. This gap of only about 9 km was not able to be closed because a sustainable financing could not be found.

Takeover by the SEG

In 1895, the RRE and many other railways initiated by Herrmann Bachstein became part of the Süddeutsche Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (SEG). On the basis of Article 95 of the Weimar Constitution , the law on the State Treaty on the Transfer of State Railways to the Reich of April 30, 1920, transferred railway supervision from the People's State of Hesse to the German Reich on August 1, 1922 , in fact from the Hessian Ministry of Finance to the Railway Directorate Mainz . The concession of the route, limited to 50 years, was forcibly extended indefinitely on the basis of the so-called "SEG Act" of 1936, so that the SEG had to continue operations. After the Second World War , the Reinheim-Reichelsheimer Eisenbahn, like all other SEG branch line operations, caused high deficits.

With the entry into force of the Hessian Constitution of 1946, the transport system, which was bound to rails or overhead lines, was transferred to common property (nationalized) in accordance with Article 41 of Socialization , which also affected the two SEG lines of the Gersprenztalbahn and Hetzbach-Beerfelden in Hesse . Due to the unclear legal situation, the nationalization was initially not carried out, as the Essen headquarters of the SEG was not in the state of Hesse and the applicability of Article 41 of the Hessian constitution remained in dispute. It was not until June 6, 1952 that the Hessian State Court ruled that both railways had been awarded to the State of Hesse with retroactive effect from December 1, 1946. Since the license of the Gersprenz Valley Railway expired anyway on December 31, 1952 by provision of the General Railway Act, the SEG consequently waived an extension.

Transfer to the Hessische Landesbahn and partial shutdown

After the SEG had not extended its license, which expired at the end of 1952, the State of Hesse finally bought the railway and vehicles with effect from January 1, 1953. However, operational management remained with SEG on behalf of and for the account of the State of Hesse until September 1, 1954. On October 1, 1954, the Deutsche Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft took over operations.

Disused bridge at the southern exit of Groß-Bieberau

former Groß-Bieberau train station

Freight sidings in Groß-Bieberau

The last trip of the Odenwälder Lieschen

Odenwälder Lieschen at the Reinheim train station

Odenwälder Lieschen on May 23, 1963

Because of the declining passenger traffic in the 1950s, passenger traffic was discontinued on May 26, 1963. On May 25, 1963, the Reinheim-Reichelsheim Railway's celebratory farewell journey for passenger transport took place. The Elna steam locomotive RRE 140, the multiple unit VT 23 with trailer car VB 122 and all passenger cars were used. A year later, in August 1964, freight traffic on the Groß-Bieberau – Reichelsheim section was also discontinued, and the track systems were demolished from August 1964. The last goods at the Kirch- und Pfaffen-Beerfurth station (according to the goods acceptance book) were dispatched on August 4, 1964. By letter of March 20, 1964 from the Hessische Landesbahn GmbH in Frankfurt / Main, the employees were dismissed as of September 30, 1964. This letter also stated that the railroad would be shut down on September 30, 1964. The country road running next to the route was later expanded to become the B 38 and widened so that the former railway line became part of the road route.

Remaining operation of the Groß Bieberau-Reinheimer railway

The Odenwälder Hartstein-Industrie AG was granted permission to operate a public transport railway from Reinheim to Groß-Bieberau for the transport of goods on October 1st, 1964. This transferred the operation to the Groß-Bieberau-Reinheimer Eisenbahn GmbH (GBRE) founded in 1965 . When DB Cargo stopped freight traffic between Darmstadt and Reinheim as part of Mora C in December 2001 and terminated the rail connection in Reinheim, GBRE's freight traffic also ended. The factory locomotive at the gravel loading point was brought to Nieder-Ofleiden at the beginning of 2002 , where it is still in use today at another gravel works of the Central German hard stone industry.

In the summer of 2003, Westfälische Almetalbahn GmbH carried block trains with ballast from Groß-Bieberau to various track construction sites. Regular freight traffic on the Gersprenztalbahn has been suspended since November 2005 and there have only been very few operations.

On January 1, 2006, the Odenwälder Hartstein-Industrie sold the railway line to a private individual who will operate there together with the city of Groß-Bieberau. In mid-May the switch was overtaken by the Odenwaldbahn in Reinheim , and in October 2007 individual tracks and switches in the Groß-Bieberau station.

In the past few years, several special trips to Groß-Bieberau have taken place with the historic vehicles of the Darmstadt-Kranichstein Railway Museum.

Current situation

Some citizens of the affected communities consider the reactivation of Gersprenz Valley Railway as necessary for optimization of the public transport in the Odenwald . In particular, the proponents want to achieve faster connections to Darmstadt or Frankfurt am Main . For this purpose there is an interest group "Regional Rail Alliance Darmstadt-Dieburg"

The remaining stretch to Groß-Bieberau has been officially closed since March 31, 2018. The main track is still there, but the future is uncertain. The Groß-Bieberau city parliament has spoken out in favor of de-dedication and dismantling of the line in order to be able to dispense with a bridge over the railway line in the planned construction of the B-38 bypass. At the same time, however, efforts are still being made to reactivate the line for passenger traffic and to connect Groß-Bieberau to the Odenwaldbahn, for example with wing trains. At the same time, however , the RMV said that there are currently no plans to reactivate the route.

Train stations

Reinheim (Odenw) train station (km 0.0): Reinheim train station was designed as a joint and transfer station with the Hessian Ludwigsbahn, with only the tracks south of the main through track belonging to the RRE. The security of the train journeys was carried out by the dispatcher on signal box I (next to the level crossing), who also supervised the shunting movements of the RRE trains.
This signal box still exists today and was founded in 2008 by the association Museumsstellwerk Reinheim e. V. taken over. It is currently being restored and a museum for signal box and signaling technology is being set up. In 2009 the building was 100 years old.

Reinheim stop (km 0.9): Immediately at the southern entrance to the tunnel was the first stop where the gatekeeper sold tickets, and a counter window was built into his shack for this purpose.

Groß-Bieberau train station (km 3.3): Groß-Bieberau train station (the Odenwälder Lieschen restaurant has been in the building since 1997 ) was manned by a manager and a second man in two shifts for traffic and operations. In Groß-Bieberau the seat of the Streckbahnmeisterei was, u. a. was responsible for the maintenance and repair of the track systems. Today Groß-Bieberau is the end point of the still existing route. About 300 meters of track remain from the original track in the direction of Reichelsheim and continue to serve as siding for the ballast wagons. The Gersprenz Bridge at the southern exit of the village still exists without tracks. An outbuilding with the headmaster's former official residence was demolished in 1986.

Wersau stop (km 6.7): The stop on today's Bundesstraße 38 was unoccupied, the landlord of the Gasthaus Zum Kühlen Grund , located right next to the stop, took over the ticket sales. He was connected to the telephone network of the RRE.

Brensbach train station (km 8.3): The Brensbach train station, which was initially occupied by a headmaster and a second employee, is still almost unchanged today, and the attached goods shed was increased by one floor. After the staff reduction to one employee, the operational tasks had to be taken over by the train drivers, including a. the operation of the barriers south of the station.

Nieder-Kainsbach stop (km 10.6): The stop was unoccupied, tickets were sold (as in Unter- and Ober-Gersprenz) in nearby restaurants.

Nieder-Kainsbach - Fränkisch-Crumbach (km 11.2): The station building has been rebuilt several times over the years and is now privately owned. In addition to the continuous main track, there was a short siding with a usable length of almost 40 m, which was followed by the loading track with scales in the direction of Reichelsheim, which at times also served as a siding for various companies. Trapezoid panels were used in place of entry signals.

Unter-Gersprenz stop (km 12.6): The stop was at the “Meister” inn.

Ober-Gersprenz stop (km 13.7): The stop was to the right of the “Zum Reichenberg” inn.

Kirch- und Pfaffen-Beerfurth station (km 14.9): In contrast to the other station buildings of the RRE, which were all built from bright red sandstone, the station building of Beerfurth was a simple, small brick building. It was also rebuilt several times and now serves as a residential building. The station was manned by an agent who did not perform any operational tasks, but was only involved in transport services. In Kirch-Beerfurth there was a siding with a usable length of 100 m, which was provided with a weighbridge. On the siding was u. a. the clay from the pit four-piece loaded and weighed.

Bockenrod stop (km 16.2): The Bockenrod stop was equipped with a corrugated iron hall that served as a counter and waiting room. There was an additional loading track next to the platform. For the mining operations in this area, Bockenrod was the loading station on the Reinheim-Reichelsheimer railway for mined ore. Georg Steiger, a lath cutter from Bockenrod, discovered a rich ore store in the Kohlwald near Bockenrod in 1880, for which the company de Wendel from Forbach in Lorraine has the mining rights acquired. A cable car ran from the Bockenrod stop, operated solely by gravity, pulling one full hanging gate down and two empty ones up, to today's four-story shooting range. In the "Darmstädter Zeitung" of April 28, 1886 the following can be read about it: For a few days the cable car built by the company Adolf Bleichert und Komp., Leipzig-Gohlis, according to a completely new system, which transports the manganese ores from which de Wendelschen Gruben is to bring to the state road to Bockenrod. The length of the railway, on which numerous workers worked for almost three quarters of a year, is 2200 meters and it has a daily capacity of about 25 loaded double wagons (railway wagons). The teacher Heinrich Hallein from Bockenrod wrote in his school chronicle: On October 1st, 1900 the local manganese ore mine was closed after it had existed for 17 years. The cause was the low manganese yield. The de Wendel company in Saarbrücken took the equipment and machines to Wald-Michelbach and tackled the manganese ore stores there.

Reichelsheim train station (km 17.9): Reichelsheim was the seat of the RRE administration and train formation station, including the locomotive shed and workshop, was the center of operations; the station building was bought in 1969 by Volksbank Gersprenztal eG and demolished in September 1980. The Reichelsheim dispatcher also acted as train manager for the entire route, excluding the Reinheim station. Reichelsheim was the only train station to have two platforms. However, there were no signals here either, instead the usual trapezoidal board instead of an entry signal. The last railway administrator in Reichelsheim was Werner Orth.

Locomotives and wagons

The former RRE 146 ( ELNA 2 , Henschel 1941) was retained as a museum by the DGEG

In 1926 the SEG procured a series of 23 3rd class cars from the Gastell wagon factory , of which the RRE received 13 pieces. Of that, u. a. EFB Ci 38 on the museum steam train Rebenbummler Kaiserstuhlbahn get

Steam locomotives (B n2t) :

SEG 107 and 108

Steam locomotives Prussian T 3 (C n2t) :

SEG 333, 339, 341, 342, 343, 344, 345, 346, 347, 349.

Mallet steam locomotives (B'B n4vt) :

SEG 310 (RRE61), SEG 350 (RRE62), SEG 351, SEG 353 (RRE 63), SEG 356.

Steam locomotives type ELNA 2 (1'C h2t) :

RRE 140 and RRE 146.

Diesel locomotives :

DEG V 21 , OHI V 36 .

Railcar :

SEG T6 and SEG T23 with sidecar VB 122.

Rail mail

The Reinheim-Reichelsheimer Eisenbahn was also included in the rail post network and had a baggage car with a built-in post compartment , in which an employee of the Post carried out the cancellation with the oval rail postmark 8 between 1888 and 1928. There was a slot for letters and postcards at the rail mail compartment. The railway postmark has the following text: Reinheim (Hess.) - Reichelsheim (Odw.) Railway post, train number, date. The train numbers 1 to 9 and the indication of the day, month and year have been changed by insert types made of steel. The period of use of the railway postmark has so far been documented from 1888 to March 25, 1928 by postcards and letters. The rail mail service was initially subordinate to the Reichelsheim post office and after the First World War it was transferred to the Reinheim post office. The chief post conductor Friedrich Hörr was responsible for the rail mail service at the Reichelsheim post office.

Three railway posts ran in both directions on working days. There was only one connection on Sundays. The 1st rail mail leaves Reichelsheim at 7 a.m. Return to Reichelsheim at 10 a.m. Second rail mail leaves Reichelsheim at 11 a.m. Return to Reichelsheim at 6 p.m. Departure of the 3rd rail mail at 6 p.m. from Reichelsheim. Return to Reichelsheim at 10 p.m.

Until November 30, 1953, the incoming mail for the post offices in the Gersprenztal was mainly carried with the "Lieschen". Afterwards the transport took place with land motor mail cars. The consignments that were taken over from the Darmstadt - Eberbach rail mail car in Reinheim were last transferred to the train going at 6.40 in the direction of Reichelsheim. In the mail compartment of the baggage cart, the mail was sorted by the post office worker before the mail was handed over to the post office staff waiting en route with their iron-tired mail carts.

Museum and historical documents

In the Regional Museum Reichelsheim Odenwald (in the old town hall from 1554) a section on the history of this railway has been set up. In addition to pictures, documents, uniforms, models and objects from the RRE, there is also a remarkable collection of national and international rail mail cars as models.

Historical documents: There are many photographs of this railway. In addition, there are privately owned film recordings from the years 1943, 1961 to 1964 as well as tape recordings and the like. a. of train reports, conversations by railway employees and works meetings from 1960–1962.

In 2006, the model railroad manufacturer Märklin brought out a three-part “Odenwald-Lieschen” car set in H0 gauge.

literature

Klaus-Peter Quill: The Reinheim-Reichelsheimer Railway and its connection with the South German Railway Company SEG. = Böttchers Kleine Eisenbahnschriften 60. Dortmund 1970.
Gerd Wolff: German small and private railways. Volume 1: Rhineland-Palatinate / Saarland . EK-Verlag, Freiburg 1989, pp. 218-229. ISBN 3-88255-651-X .
Friedrich Eckstein: From ore transport to gravel railway - the history of the small railway in the Gersprenztal. Ed. Förderverein Museumsstrasse Odenwald-Bergstrasse e. V., Franconian Crumbach. Franconian Crumbach 1997.
Friedrich Eckstein: One hundred years of Odenwälder Lieschen - the small train in the Gersprenztal. In: The Odenwald. Zeitschrift des Breuberg-Bundes 34/1, 1987, pp. 3–22.
Andreas Christopher and Gerd Wolff: German small and private railways. Volume 8: Hesse . EK-Verlag, Freiburg 2004, pp. 18-27. ISBN 3-88255-667-6 .
Georg Dascher, Wolfgang Kalberlah, Sabine Kepper and Frank Steckenreuter: The Gersprenztal Railway: With the "Odenwälder Lieschen" from Reinheim to Reichelsheim . Ed. ArGe Drehscheibe e. V., Cologne 2007, ISBN 978-3-929082-27-2 .
Georg Dascher, Wolfgang Kalberlah: 100 years of the railway in the Gersprenztal 1887–1987 . Published by the community of Reichelsheim (Heimatmuseum Reichelsheim) in cooperation with the Heimatmuseen Fränkisch-Crumbach and Reinheim 1986.
40 years of the Süddeutsche Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft, edited by Dr. W. Borchmeyer Essen 1935: Reprint of the Türmer Media, Darmstadt February 11, 1995.

Web links

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

Individual evidence

↑ https://www.eisenbahn-tunnelportale.de/lb/inhalt/tunnelportale/9350.html
^ Walter Kuhl: Fragments on the edge of the Riedbahn from Darmstadt to Goddelau. Two tracks that never came about through the Odenwald around Lindenfels - documentation .
↑ RGBl. 1922, p. 773.
^ Reichsbahndirektion in Mainz (ed.): Official Gazette of the Reichsbahndirektion in Mainz of August 19, 1922, No. 49. Announcement No. 919, p. 558.
^ Süddeutsche Eisenbahn Gesellschaft AG: 58th Annual Report for the 56th Annual General Meeting of Shareholders for the 1951 Financial Year, p. 11
↑ Approval from Odenwälder Hartstein-Industrie AG, Darmstadt, to operate a public transport railway from Reinheim to Groß-Bieberau from October 1, 1964 . In: The Hessian Minister for Economics and Transport (ed.): State Gazette for the State of Hesse. 1964 No. 41 , p. 1267 , item 1184 ( online at the information system of the Hessian state parliament [PDF; 3.3 MB ]).
↑ Portrait O&K 26718. rangierdiesel.de, accessed on October 12, 2019 .
^ Regional rail alliance Darmstadt-Dieburg . June 27, 2017. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^ ^A ^b Echo Newspapers GmbH: Discussion about the railway line between Groß-Bieberau and Reinheim continues - Echo Online. Retrieved October 12, 2019 .
↑ Post Museum Shop - Odenwald-Lieschen car set in H0 . In: Model Railroaders Magazine . 56th volume, issue 1, January 2007, p. 94 ( archive.org ).

[1] ttps://www.eisenbahn-tunnelportale.de/lb/inhalt/tunnelportale/9350.html

[2] Walter Kuhl: Fragments on the edge of the Riedbahn from Darmstadt to Goddelau. Two tracks that never came about through the Odenwald around Lindenfels - documentation .

[3] RGBl. 1922, p. 773.

[4] Reichsbahndirektion in Mainz (ed.): Official Gazette of the Reichsbahndirektion in Mainz of August 19, 1922, No. 49. Announcement No. 919, p. 558.

[5] Süddeutsche Eisenbahn Gesellschaft AG: 58th Annual Report for the 56th Annual General Meeting of Shareholders for the 1951 Financial Year, p. 11

[6] Approval from Odenwälder Hartstein-Industrie AG, Darmstadt, to operate a public transport railway from Reinheim to Groß-Bieberau from October 1, 1964 . In: The Hessian Minister for Economics and Transport (ed.): State Gazette for the State of Hesse. 1964 No. 41 , p. 1267 , item 1184 ( online at the information system of the Hessian state parliament [PDF; 3.3 MB ]).

[7] Portrait O&K 26718. rangierdiesel.de, accessed on October 12, 2019 .

[Regionales_Schienenbündnis_Darmstadt-Dieburg_2017-8] Regional rail alliance Darmstadt-Dieburg . June 27, 2017. Retrieved January 23, 2019.

[:0-9] A ^b Echo Newspapers GmbH: Discussion about the railway line between Groß-Bieberau and Reinheim continues - Echo Online. Retrieved October 12, 2019 .

[10] Post Museum Shop - Odenwald-Lieschen car set in H0 . In: Model Railroaders Magazine . 56th volume, issue 1, January 2007, p. 94 ( archive.org ).