SÜWEX
DB Regio Mitte (until January 1, 2017 DB Regio Südwest ) has been operating under the brand name SÜWEX (long Südwest-Express ) since 14 December 2014 on behalf of the transport authorities for regional rail transport in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland as well as parts of Baden -Wuerttemberg and Hesse through the fast regional traffic . These include connections between Koblenz , Trier , Kaiserslautern , Saarbrücken , Ludwigshafen am Rhein and Mainzas well as the connection to the cities of Frankfurt am Main , Karlsruhe , Mannheim and Luxembourg . New electric multiple units will be used , which will differ from the existing railways on these lines and elsewhere in Germany through new interior concepts.
history
The presentation drive took place on November 29, 2014. In addition to selected guests, the Prime Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate , Malu Dreyer, was also present on the maiden voyage . The official commissioning took place with the timetable change on December 14, 2014.
Line network
The SÜWEX network consists of five lines. The RE 1 line connects Mannheim and Koblenz via Saarbrücken and Trier . This line runs mostly every hour. Some trains from Koblenz only end in Kaiserslautern every two hours during off- peak times . At times when the ICE on the Paris - Frankfurt route runs on the Saarbrücken - Mannheim section , the RE 1 trains usually end in Homburg (Saar) or Saarbrücken. During rush hour, the Mannheim - Saarbrücken (- Trier) section is partially reinforced with a second railcar.
The RE 11 line connects Koblenz with Luxembourg . The trains of the Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois (CFL) from Luxembourg are integrated into the network on the RE 11 line to Trier with Stadler Kiss multiple units and run from Trier as a double unit combined with the SÜWEX trains from Mannheim to Koblenz. In peripheral locations, these trains sometimes only run from Luxembourg to Trier and back.
On the Moselle route , the SÜWEX has taken over the function of long-distance traffic with the exception of a connection of the CFL .
Line RE 2 runs from Frankfurt Hbf via Mainz Hbf , i. H. on the left bank of the Rhine to Koblenz. The RE 4 line connects Frankfurt via Mainz with Karlsruhe every two hours . The RE 14 line runs every two hours from Frankfurt via Mainz to Mannheim. The RE 4 and RE 14 together form an hourly service on the Frankfurt - Ludwigshafen section . At the end of 2018, the RE 4 and RE 14 lines, which had previously ended in Mainz, were extended over the North Main line to Frankfurt. When traveling from Frankfurt to Mainz, this results in a 10-minute travel time saving compared to the RE 2 trains, which travel south Main via Frankfurt Airport .
The following lines are part of the SÜWEX network:
| line | Train run | Tact |
|---|---|---|
| RE 1 | Koblenz Hbf - Bullay - Wittlich Hbf - Trier Hbf - Saarburg - Merzig (Saar) - Saarbrücken Hbf - Homburg (Saar) Hbf - Landstuhl - Kaiserslautern Hbf - Neustadt (Weinstraße) Hbf - Ludwigshafen Mitte - Mannheim Hbf | hourly |
| RE 11 | Luxembourg - Wasserbillig - Trier Hbf (- Wittlich - Koblenz Hbf) | almost hourly |
| RE 2 | Koblenz Hbf - Boppard Hbf - Bingen (Rhein) Hbf - Mainz Hbf - Frankfurt (Main) Airport - Frankfurt (Main) Hbf | every two hours |
| RE 4 | Frankfurt (Main) Hbf - Frankfurt-Höchst - Hochheim (Main) - Mainz Hbf - Worms Hbf - Frankenthal Hbf - Ludwigshafen Hbf - Speyer Hbf - Germersheim - Karlsruhe Hbf | every two hours |
| RE 14 | Frankfurt (Main) Hbf - Frankfurt-Höchst - Hochheim (Main) - Mainz Hbf - Worms Hbf - Frankenthal (Pfalz) Hbf - Ludwigshafen Mitte - Mannheim Hbf | every two hours |
Two pairs of trains on the RE 2 line are operated by the Vlexx company.
From Monday to Friday a train of the RE 1 stops in Ludwigshafen Hbf instead of Ludwigshafen Mitte and is extended to Heidelberg Hbf. A train in the opposite direction stops in Ludwigshafen Hbf in the afternoon.
The front train section of RE 2 4262, departure 17:08 from Frankfurt Hbf, continues from Koblenz Hbf as RE 1 (4126) to Mannheim Hbf.
vehicles
For the SÜWEX routes, the DB Regio purchased five-part articulated multiple units of the third generation FLIRT 160 from the Swiss company Stadler Rail , which also differ in their paintwork from other DB vehicles.
The trains offer stepless access to platforms with a standard height of 76 cm, possibly facilitated with sliding steps. They are continuously accessible with areas 2 steps higher only at the two ends of the train and small elevations at the car crossings, which can also be mastered by wheelchair users with short flat ramps.
Each vehicle also has:
- 270 seats
- Face-to-face and row seating
- Air conditioning
- improved passenger information system
- Sockets
- Video surveillance of the interiors
- 24 bicycle parking spaces, expandable to 36 spaces
- two toilets, one of which is barrier-free
- WLAN with 50 megabytes of data volume per day since August 2018
The design of the vehicles was given by the contracting authorities; on the express network, the triangles at the head of the multiple units are decorated with red. The basic color for both SÜWEX and vlexx is lilac white (RAL 290 93 05) from the RAL DESIGN plus color system .
Service and Marketing
A mobile cleaning team and a permanent staff of one or two train attendants should ensure more service, cleanliness and quality on the train. In addition, mobile provision of drinks and snacks is available on selected trains. In addition, new wagon level indicators were installed in connection with the SÜWEX.
As part of a pilot project for subscription customers, the DB Regio Mitte offers in the area of the regional rail passenger transport association Rhineland-Palatinate North to permanently reserve a seat in a designated area free of charge. The implementation takes place via an app .
On the SÜWEX trains, the regular tariff of the relevant transport association or the in-house tariff of Deutsche Bahn AG applies for trips beyond the boundaries of the association. There are also special offers for commuters and leisure travelers.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Tanja Welter: Fast direct connections between the regions. (PDF; 619 KiB) September 17, 2014, accessed on August 11, 2016 .
- ↑ a b c d Süwex presentation trip from Koblenz to Trier ( Memento from May 29, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ a b c d The main thing is that you are well “networked”! Your SÜWEX lines and improvements at a glance. Retrieved September 11, 2015 .
- ↑ Martin Randelhoff: DB 4.0 - The digitization strategy of Deutsche Bahn. In: future mobility. Martin Randelhoff, June 8, 2015, accessed on September 11, 2015 .
- ↑ Inexpensive for work and leisure time. Retrieved September 11, 2015 .