Plittersdorf – Seltz Rhine ferry

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The Saletio ferry in 2010

The Rhine ferry Plittersdorf - Seltz (in France: Bac Seltz - Plittersdorf or Bac de Seltz ) is a yaw ferry across the Rhine south of Karlsruhe . It connects the French community of Seltz on the left bank of the Rhine with the German town of Plittersdorf , a district of Rastatt , on the right bank of the Rhine. The operator is the French department of Bas-Rhin in Alsace , the use of the ferry is free.

After the connection was interrupted for five years as a result of an accident, operations began again in September 2010 with the newly built Saletio ferry . From October 2010 to July 2011 the ferry stood still due to technical problems. Since then, it has transported around 100,000 cars, 60,000 bicycles and 30,000 pedestrians per year.

The Saletio ferry

The Saletio ferry, which went into service in 2010, consists, similar to a trimaran , of three floating bodies connected by two platforms. It is made of aluminum and weighs 31 tons, is 25.50 meters long and 14.70 meters wide. It is designed for up to six cars, 28 bicycles and 70 people. On a safety rope stretched high above the Rhine between two masts (pylons), the ferry glides over the river in normal operation only by setting the rudder through the force of the current and without its own drive. For safety reasons, the Saletio is also equipped with a motor drive.

The ferry is primarily designed for cyclists and pedestrians. It therefore has two fewer car spaces than the previous ferry. However, it translates faster, which partially compensates for this. The construction of the ferry is a kind of prototype and so far unique in France. It caused the first problems soon after the start of operations. Due to the low current of the Rhine and strong winds, the safety rope was no longer tensioned, which impaired maneuverability and posed a potential danger to passengers. The problems are to be solved with two metal profiles that were installed in February 2011 and subjected to initial tests. The conversion cost 40,000 euros. After 140 test drives, the green light was given at the beginning of July 2011 to restart operations on July 9, 2011.

Surroundings

In addition to the ferry's access pontoons, which extend like a bridge into the river, there is a jetty on the German side, where occasionally larger Rhine passenger ships moor for shore excursions. A restaurant and a large playground are in the immediate vicinity. After the border controls were dismantled as a result of the Schengen Agreement, the customs station stood empty for a few years and was demolished for lack of suitable subsequent use. On the French side there is a smaller restaurant and an information center of the Baden-Alsatian-Palatinate tourism and regional planning association PAMINA with a tourist office and a quarry pond with a campsite. The German ferry terminal is about one kilometer from Plittersdorf. It is around two kilometers from the French pier to the center of Seltz. Between the places and the ferry there are alluvial forests in the area of ​​the old Rhine arms .

history

The old ferry in 2004

Between Plittersdorf and Seltz there was a ferry service across the Rhine that was first mentioned in 1310. The current did not run in a single river bed, but in several arms, the course of which changed several times. The vineyards were located on an island on the Rhine between 1310 and 1464. The reed was only finally located on the right bank of the Rhine (i.e. east of the Rhine and thus part of Baden ) as a result of the straightening of the Rhine in the 19th century .

On March 18, 1872, instead of a ferry, a ship bridge was opened for better transport connections to the so-called Reichsland Alsace-Lorraine , which at that time was the only Rhine crossing between Karlsruhe and Kehl . During the First World War , German troops marched across the bridge towards France and returned to Germany via it in 1918. After the armistice was signed on November 11, the pontoon crossing was closed for retreat on November 21, 1918 and the bridge became the property of France. The structure was completely destroyed in World War II on October 3, 1939. Ferry service followed again.

Old high wire yaw ferry

In the event of high water, the ferry service is stopped. Markings of historical flood levels on the French side.

The operation of a high-wire yaw ferry started in September 1956 under French leadership. The ferry at the time could carry a maximum of twelve cars and, depending on the volume of traffic and the density of shipping, which also had to be taken into account, drove with considerable waiting times. It was used to cross around 2000 cyclists per week in the summer months alone. The crossing, which can be used free of charge, was particularly popular with weekenders, especially as it connected the right and left parts of the PAMINA cycle path. This has its southern end at the Iffezheim barrage and its northern end downstream at the ferry Neuburg ( Pfalz ) - Neuburgweier (Baden).

In March 1961, spring 1983 and October 1986 operations had to be temporarily suspended due to accidents with ships.

On August 27, 2005, the ferry, which had been overhauled and rebuilt several times over the past 50 years, collided again with a ship and had to be taken out of service due to considerable damage. Repairing and eliminating security defects would have cost over a million euros. Therefore, the final task of the transition or the use of a motor ferry were initially discussed. Proponents of the Gierseilfähre cited the tourist importance of the picturesque transition as a destination. PAMINA in particular saw disadvantages for tourism in northern Alsace due to the loss of the connection. In addition, an interrupted cycle path and the associated Rheinpark (nature reserve) are ultimately uninteresting and meaningless.

New high wire yaw ferry

Ultimately, the supporters of the cable ferry prevailed. With European funding as well as grants from Paris and funds from regional agencies, the Alsatian shipping department (Strasbourg) had a new ferry prefabricated for final assembly on the Rhine at a French shipyard on the Atlantic. However, because of the nearby Wintersdorf bridge over the Rhine and the Iffezheim barrage crossing ( Bundesstrasse 500 ) only a little above, the transport of passenger cars was no longer seen as a priority. The new funicular ferry will only take a maximum of six cars and will primarily transport pedestrians and cyclists.

The old ferry was brought to the port of Lauterbourg , where it sank in mid-April 2008. It should now either be recovered with a crane or dismantled by divers. Her whereabouts were unclear. An exhibition on the bank, a donation to a technology museum and scrapping were all considered. Ultimately, the old ferry was scrapped. The cost of the new ferry should amount to three million euros and it will go into operation in autumn or winter 2008. However, there have been further delays. Construction of the new ferry went according to plan, but by November 2008 the costs had risen to four million euros. Only one company submitted an offer for the work on the bridges on both sides of the Rhine that was around 70 percent above the expected costs. Therefore the contract was put out to tender again. The commissioning, which had meanwhile been postponed to spring 2009, could not be maintained. Spring 2010 was targeted. The ferry should then be put into operation with a cross-border inauguration party.

The ferry was built in a shipyard near Nantes in Brittany and was ready for use there in October 2009. In 2010 it was transported in three parts, assembled in Lauterbourg and towed to Seltz in July. The cost of the ferry, modifications to the pontoon access bridges and other work amounted to 5.8 million euros. The inauguration ceremony took place on September 11th and 12th, 2010. The ferry runs approximately from sunrise to sunset; longer into the night in summer on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.

Right from the start, the connection was an unexpected success with motorists. 350 cars crossed over daily, more than before with the old ferry. At times the cars jammed up to the Plittersdorf sports field. The competent French authorities point out that the ferry is not primarily intended for cars. Thought is being given to putting up a sign indicating whether the ferry is operating or not. Such a sign already exists on the French side, with the display being made by manually screwing interchangeable panels.

In September 2011, sediment deposits were dredged from the Rhine to ensure safety even at low water levels.

In 2013, 98,975 cars, 51,290 bicycles and 29,824 pedestrians were transported in a total of 23,422 crossings. In the previous year, there were 103,779 cars, 61,506 bicycles and 35,058 pedestrians with 24,575 trips, as the ferry stood still for some time in the summer of 2013 due to high water .

Web links

Commons : Rheinfähre Plittersdorf - Seltz  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Badisches Tagblatt, "Ferry service 'at the earliest from March'", December 2, 2010
  2. ↑ a b Badisches Tagblatt, “Rhine ferry takes test drives again”, February 4, 2011
  3. ↑ a b Badisches Tagblatt, “New start for the ferry after 140 test drives”, July 9, 2011
  4. ↑ Information on the ferry from the website created on the occasion of the ferry festival 2010: http://www.faehrenfest.de/dierheinfaehre/informationenzurneuenfaehre/index.html, accessed on September 11, 2010 (offline)
  5. ↑ a b Badisches Tagblatt, “New ferry should be improved”, October 12, 2010
  6. ^ Badisches Tagblatt, "Ferry out of service for an indefinite period of time", October 15, 2010
  7. ^ A b Badisches Tagblatt, cable ferry as an important link, May 12, 2012
  8. ^ Badisches Tagblatt, "Rheinfähre sunk", April 22, 2008
  9. ^ Badisches Tagblatt, "Ferry will not leave until spring 2010", November 6, 2008
  10. ↑ Badisches Tagblatt, “Ferry waiting on the Atlantic to be used”, October 29, 2009
  11. ↑ Blue trimaran connects the banks. In: Fährfest Plittersdorf , special publication in Badischer Tagblatt No. 209 of September 10, 2010
  12. ↑ Seltz ferry: travel times
  13. ↑ More depth for the Rhine ferry , Badisches Tagblatt, September 6, 2011
  14. ↑ Badisches Tagblatt, "Ferry crosses about 24,000 times", April 24, 2014

Coordinates: 48 ° 53 '14.6 "  N , 8 ° 8' 8.1"  E