Baden-Baden tram and mountain railway

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Baden-Baden tram and mountain railway - also Baden-Baden municipal tram and mountain railway - was the former common name for the former Baden-Baden tram (1910 to 1951) and the Merkurbergbahn, which still exists today (opened in 1913).

Both railways were previously operated by the Baden-Baden tram and mountain railway, which in turn was a subsidiary of the Baden-Baden public utility . The successor company was the Baden-Baden-Linie, today's transport company , which was also a subsidiary of the Baden-Baden public utility company.

History of the tram

The city center of the world-famous spa town of Baden-Baden is located in the valley of the river Oos, off the main railway line from Karlsruhe to Offenburg, which has been in the Rhine valley since 1844 . The train station in the village of Oos , which was not incorporated until 1928, was called "Baden-Oos" from 1908, "Baden-Baden West" from 1928 to 1937, then again "Baden-Oos" and from 1977 "Baden-Baden" .

The Baden State Railroad opened the 4.3-kilometer branch line from Oos station to Baden-Baden station on July 25, 1845, which was called "Baden-Baden Stadt" from 1932 to 1937. However, this was still 800 m away from the center of the health resort; In addition, spa guests and residents demanded convenient means of transport to all parts of the city.

The city therefore opened a meter-gauge electric tram 5.1 kilometers in length on January 24, 1910. The “valley line” began in the western part of the city near the city station, led through the center via Leopoldsplatz and Augustaplatz and ended in Lichtental , where the depot was also built.

From July 15, 1912, a 3.7 kilometer long section of the “mountain line” ran from Leopoldplatz in large curves up to the Merkurwald east of the city, the end point of the mountain railway.

After the 2.1 km long stretch from Augustaplatz to the west to the zoo could also be used from June 22, 1914, the "mountain line", which used a short stretch in the center together with the "valley line", was 6.2 km long.

The further expansion of the network, which was planned as far as Geroldsau and Gernsbach in the Murgtal , did not take place as a result of the First World War . Only in the twenties were there two extensions. From April 15, 1926, the valley line began at the Baden-Oos station of the Reichsbahn, and on July 10, 1929, Oberbeuern was also connected to the rails from Lichtental. The valley line was now 8.6 km long; With this increase of 3.6 kilometers, the route network covered a length of 14.6 kilometers, of which only 5.5 km were double-tracked.

In the years since the First World War, the necessary repairs and renewals could only be partially carried out. A fundamental renovation was necessary after the Second World War .

Conversion to trolleybus operation

See main article trolleybus Baden-Baden

For reasons of cost and the desire to have a modern means of transport, the decision was made to completely replace the tram with a trolleybus service as soon as possible.

The first section was the section from Leopoldsplatz to Baden-Oos station on June 26, 1949 - just one year after the currency reform - with trolleybuses. In the following December 1949 the tram to the Merkurwald was discontinued. The trolleybus was put into operation from December 15, 1949 to Friedrichshöhe and reached the valley station of the mountain railway on April 1, 1950.

From May 15, 1950, the trolleybus could drive a large loop in the city center, from Leopoldsplatz via Augustaplatz and Bertholdsplatz back to Leopoldsplatz. In autumn 1950 the trolleybuses ran from October 28 to Lichtental (Frühlingstrasse) and from November 26 to the Tiergarten. The last tram rides between the Lichtental depot and Oberbeuern took place until the end of February 1951. Then the trolleybus had replaced the entire rail network. Since July 31, 1971, only buses have been running in Baden-Baden.

Omnibuses

See main article Verkehrsbetriebe Baden-Baden

The first urban bus route opened in March 1948. Ten years later, 22 buses with 3 trailers were on the move on routes with a total length of 130 kilometers. Today all city bus traffic is provided by the public transport company.

Others

It must also be mentioned that the railway connection from the Baden-Oos train station to the "Stadtbahnhof" was closed on September 24, 1977. Plans to bring the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn into the city center have not yet been implemented due to the negative attitude of the city of Baden-Baden.

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