Chemnitz tram

Chemnitz tram
Variobahn articulated multiple units at the main station
Basic information
Country	Germany
city	Chemnitz
operator	CVAG and CB
Transport network	Central Saxony transport association
Infrastructure
Route length	34.0 km
Gauge	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system	600 volts =
business
Lines	9
Route network of the Chemnitz tram (lines 1 to 5 in different colors) including the four city-surrounding lines (lines C11-C15 all green)

The Chemnitz tram is part of the rail-based local public transport in the city of Chemnitz in Saxony . The infrastructure is owned by Chemnitzer Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft (CVAG), which also operates inner-city bus services. A special feature is the connection of the tram network with the railway lines to the surrounding area based on the so-called Chemnitz model . The first link of this type was established in Altchemnitz with the railway line to Stollberg in 2002 , followed by the connection to the railway network at the main station in 2016. As of 2020, five inner-city lines of the CVAG and four lines of the City-Bahn Chemnitz to the surrounding area will operate on the Chemnitz tram network .

Route network

The tram network operated according to BOStrab covers 34.0 kilometers as of the end of 2018, is consistently double-tracked and is largely laid out on its own track. The central transfer station between all nine lines is the central stop . For 2015 and 2016, the total length of the route network was given as 30.4 km.

Line network

As of March 1, 2020

line	route	Stations	operator	Remarks
1	Schönau ↔ central stop	9	CVAG	From the central stop as scheduled, continue as line 2 to Bernsdorf
2	Bernsdorf ↔ central stop	8th	CVAG	From the central stop, continue as planned as line 1 to Schönau
3	Technopark ↔ Central Station	12	CVAG
4th	Hutholz (via Stollberger Straße) ↔ Central Station	21st	CVAG
5	Gablenz ↔ Hutholz (via Annaberger Straße)	27	CVAG
C11	( Stollberg ↔) Altchemnitz ↔ Central Station ↔ Central Station	16 (+10)	CB	Immediately south of the turning loop Altchemnitz, transition to the Zwönitz – Chemnitz Süd railway line with operation according to EBO , ten stations in the railway network
C13	( Burgstädt ↔) Hauptbahnhof ↔ Central Station ↔ Technopark	11 (+5)	CB	In the main train station, there is a transition to the Neukieritzsch – Chemnitz line with operations in accordance with EBO , five stations in the railway network
C14	( Mittweida ↔) Hauptbahnhof ↔ Central Station ↔ Technopark	11 (+5)	CB	In the main train station, there is a transition to the Riesa – Chemnitz line with operation according to EBO , five stations in the railway network
C15	( Hainichen ↔) Hauptbahnhof ↔ Central Station (↔ Technopark)	11 (+7)	CB	In the main train station, there is a transition to the Dresden – Werdau railway line, operating according to EBO , seven stations in the railway network

For the lines operated by CVAG, a total length of 35.1 km was specified for 2016 and 32.6 km for 2018 (now without line 6, but with line 3). The City-Bahn Chemnitz specifies the length of the line sections it serves in the route network of the CVAG for the line C11 with 6.3 km between the main station and Altchemnitz and for the C13 to C15 with 4.3 km each between the main station and Technopark. The total length of the lines operated by City-Bahn Chemnitz on the CVAG network is 19.7 km; the total length of the lines operated jointly by CVAG and CBC in Chemnitz according to BOStrab is 52.3 km.

The tram routes operated by CVAG according to BOStrab are all oriented towards the south-west, south and south-east, the northernmost point of the network is in the city center near the bus station in the connecting arc between the Strasse der Nations and the main train station. With the lines C13, C14 and C15, which were created as part of the successive implementation of the Chemnitz model , northern districts of Chemnitz are also connected to the city center with trams without changing trains.

Operational flow

Departure and return journeys from and to the Altchemnitz and Adelsberg depots are usually carried out as scheduled journeys and are sometimes also recorded in the timetables. Until 2004, these were also marked with a green crossed-out destination sign to make passengers aware of the deviating route.

In-house, each individual course has a unique number (called "train number"). Courses are the wagon trains that are in use on a line within one operating day. There are no trip numbers for individual trips from one terminal to another. In 1980, for example, tram routes were identified by a number made up of a line number and a counting digit. Courses that were only used during rush-hour traffic had the number of the following full-day course with the addition "-1" for morning and "-2" for afternoon, so that there is a course 24-1, a course 24- 2 and also gave a course 24. The course numbers of the two-digit lines 13 and 16 (in 1980) were correspondingly three-digit, for example 131-1 etc.

history

Horse tram

On July 15, 1879, the English engineer W. Roebuck received the " Concession to build and operate a horse-drawn railway in Chemnitz ". With the opening of the horse-drawn tram route between Centralbahnhof (now the main train station) and Nicolaibrücke (now Falkeplatz ) via Carolinenstrasse (now Carolastrasse), Königstrasse (now part of the Street of Nations), Johannisplatz and Poststrasse (now part of Bahnhofstrasse) on April 22nd In 1880, the beginning of a rail-based local means of transport in downtown Chemnitz was set. The initially single-track line had a gauge of 3  English feet (almost 915 mm) and was the narrowest in Germany.

The first expansion of the network followed on May 16, 1880. The “yellow” line now operated between Neustädter Markt (today Theaterplatz ) and Wilhelmplatz (today Wilhelm-Külz-Platz). The center ring was closed on July 17, 1880, after the tracks from the Nikolaibrücke via Theaterstraße to Johannisplatz were put into operation that day.

Kappel depot

After the city limits of Kappel (around Zwickauer / Goethestrasse) had been reached on August 14, 1880, the first depot was opened on Zwickauer Strasse in Kappel, equipped with a wagon shed, horse stable, feed store and service building. Before that, the horses and wagons were housed in a temporary depot at the main station.

On October 14, 1884, the extension from Wilhelmplatz followed via Wettiner Straße (today August-Bebel-Straße) to the slaughterhouse on today's Thomas-Mann-Platz. On May 15, 1892, the horse-drawn tram reached its greatest extent with a route length of 7.15 kilometers. On this day the Kappel route was extended to Schönau, where it ended at the "Wintergarten" (about Zwickauer Str./Guerickestrasse).

The tram before the First World War

Tram, between 1860 and 1926 Carolinenstraße / Neustädter Markt

Tram, on the market between 1860 and 1926

Tram, between 1860 and 1926 Neustädter Markt / Petrikirche

On December 19, 1893, electric trams began operating on the route between the city limits near Altendorf across the market to the main train station. Four days later, on December 23, 1893, the line followed between Holzmarkt (today the eastern part of the Rosenhof) and Rosenplatz. The highly industrialized city of Chemnitz was the ninth city in the German Empire with an electric tram. After it was possible to drive electrically between Schönau and Nikolaibrücke from January 6, 1894, the “yellow” line (Schönau ↔ Schlachthof) was operated completely electrically on January 12, 1894. With the commissioning of the catenary on Theaterstrasse on February 6, 1894, all electrification work was completed. Until 1898, horse-drawn tram trains still ran in times of low traffic.

Route extensions followed:

June 24th, 1894 extension of the route from Rosenplatz to Bernsdorfer Strasse / Wartburgstrasse ("New Cemetery")

06/30/1898 Extension of the Altendorf route from the city limits to the “Wiesenburg”, where a new depot was built

October 2nd, 1898 Extension of the Schönau route via Neustadt, Siegmar to Reichenbrand Church

November 19, 1899 Commissioning of the new line from Brückenstraße to Mühlenstraße / Hermannstraße

November 19, 1899 Commissioning of the new line from Poststrasse / Annaberger Strasse to Treffurthbrücke.

11/25/1899 Extension of the Mühlenstrasse line to the "Scheibe" in Furth (e.g. at the Cammann high-rise in Furth)

25.11.1899 Extension of the Altchemnitz line to the Altchemnitz church

09.01.1900 Extension of the Holzmarkt route via Roßmarkt, Nikolaibrücke, Stollberger Straße to the Nikolaibahnhof (now the Mitte stop)

April 26, 1900 Commissioning of the new line from Johannisplatz to Ost- / Martinstraße (today Augustusburger Str./ Martinstraße)

May 31, 1900 Extension of the Altchemnitz line to the "Linde" (where the Altchemnitz terminus is still today)

October 16, 1900 Extension of the Oststrasse line (today Augustusburger Strasse) to the city limits

October 31, 1900 commissioning of the new line from Johannisplatz to Hilbersdorf, Waisenhaus (e.g. Frankenberger / Dresdner Strasse) through Dresdner Strasse, Sonnenstrasse, Hainstrasse - it had to be changed at Dresdner Platz until August 1, 1909, as the railway tracks were still in use at the time were at street level, were not allowed to be crossed

11/28/1901 Extension of the slaughterhouse route through Planitzstrasse (today Heinrich-Schütz-Strasse) to the "New Barracks" (terminus on Zeisigwaldstrasse)

12/13/1901 Extension of the Oststraße route to Gablenzplatz

May 17, 1902 Commissioning of the new route from Limbacher / Leipziger Strasse to Borna, school plant garden (today Botanical Garden)

01.10.1903 Extension of the Hilbersdorfer line via Frankenberger Str. And Margarethenstrasse to "Waldschlösschen" (around Margarethenstrasse / Dresden Strasse)

10/17/1903 new street breakthrough “Friedrich-August-Straße” in the western extension of Königstraße from Johannisplatz to the town hall, which will be provided with tracks - the line in Innere Johannisstraße (today built over) is used as an operating line until the 1930s

In the spring of 1904, the marking of the lines was changed from color symbols to letters, with the letter R being used twice. Ten different lines operated over a total route length of 43.24 kilometers. Their routes were as follows:

A  Altchemnitz , "Linde" ↔ Poststrasse ↔ Furth , "Scheibe"

B  Borna , school plant garden ↔ market ↔ new cemetery

F  Altendorf , "Wiesenburg" ↔ Market ↔ New Cemetery

G  Gablenz , Gablenzplatz ↔ Theaterstraße ↔ Nikolaibrücke

H  Hilbersdorf , "Waldschlößchen" ↔ Theaterstrasse ↔ City Theater

L Altchemnitz, Gasthaus "Lohse" ↔ Poststrasse ↔ Mühlenstrasse / Hermannstrasse

N Nikolaibahnhof ↔ Markt ↔ Hauptbahnhof

R  Reichenbrand , church ↔ Nikolaibrücke

R  Schönau , Wintergarten ↔ Poststrasse ↔ Slaughterhouse

S Schönau, Wintergarten ↔ Poststrasse ↔ New Barracks

It had meanwhile been found that the 915 millimeter gauge was impractical. Therefore it was decided to change the gauge to standard gauge . The planned Kaßberg line should be built in the new gauge right away. But it turned out differently. The company took a stand and only agreed to a gradual widening of the track in the course of the track renewals by ten millimeters at a time. In this way, the track width of the entire network could be expanded to 925 mm by the outbreak of the First World War. Thereafter, the re-gauging plans were in the drawer until the 1950s and the last 925 millimeter route was not shut down until 1988.

On January 1, 1908, the tram became the property of the city, with a total of 129 motor vehicles and 108 sidecars.

Until the outbreak of war in 1914, some lines could still be put into operation:

November 1st, 1908 Commissioning of the new route from Theaterstrasse via Kaßbergauffahrt to Weststrasse / Ulmenstrasse

01.11.1908 Closure of the main station loop through Georgstrasse

December 21, 1912 Extension of the Gablenz route to Augustusburger / Eubaer Strasse

October 11, 1913 Extension of the Bernsdorfer route to Bernsdorfer Str./Pappelstrasse

July 1, 1914 Extension of the Kaßberg route to West / Kochstrasse

The tram in the First World War, in the Weimar Republic and in the time of National Socialism (1914–1945)

On February 14, 1916, a line was shut down for the first time: The 15-year-old branch line from the Nikolaibrücke to the Nikolaibahnhof (today Bahnhof Mitte) was no longer used from that day, the tracks were removed in 1939. It was not until 2004 that the route was opened up again by a tram route (line 4).

The end lines in Hilbersdorf (between Frankenberger Str. / Margarethenstrasse and "Waldschlößchen") and in Borna (between Leipziger / Bürgerstrasse and the school plant garden) were shut down and dismantled on February 1, 1918, the latter being reopened on May 13, 1921 on its own track.

On April 1, 1920, the route to Furth-Glösa, Gasthof "Weilburg" (now the Rosental stop on bus line 22), which was completed in December 1915, was opened. The Borna route was extended on August 26, 1921 to the “Grünen Hof” (around Leipziger / Bornaer Strasse). The Hilbersdorf route, which was shortened in the First World War, was also extended again, this time on Frankenberger Strasse to the corner of Krügerstrasse in Hilbersdorf. Up to the ravine, the tracks were laid on a separate track.

On June 1, 1927, the tram lines in Chemnitz were marked with numbers. The following lines have operated since then:

line	route
01	Reichenbrand, Church - Siegmar - Schönau - Falkeplatz - Market - Königstraße - Wettiner Platz - New Barracks
02	Schönau, Wandererwerke - Falkeplatz - Poststraße - Königstraße - Schlachthof (Wettiner Platz) - Planitz- / Dietzelstraße (today Hofer Straße)
	(on summer Sundays until Reichenbrand)
03	Altendorf, "Wiesenburg" - Hartmannstrasse - Markt - Bernsbachplatz - New Cemetery - Bernsdorf, Pappelstrasse
04th	Borna, "Grüner Hof" - Hartmannstrasse - Markt - Bernsbachplatz - New Cemetery (temporarily to Bernsdorf, Pappelstrasse)
05	Furth-Glösa - Zöllnerplatz - Johannisplatz - Poststrasse - Annaberger Strasse - Altchemnitz, "Reichels Neue Welt" (previously "Linde")
06th	Zöllnerplatz - Johannisplatz - Poststrasse - Annaberger Strasse - Altchemnitz, "Reichels Neue Welt"
07th	Central station - Königstraße - Johannisplatz - Oststraße - Gablenz, Eubaer Straße
08th	West- / Kochstraße - Theaterstraße - Johannisplatz - Hainstraße - Hilbersdorf, Krügerstraße
09	West- / Kochstraße - Theaterstraße - Johannisplatz - Hainstraße - Frankenberger Str./Margarethenstraße
10	West- / Kochstraße - Theaterstraße - Falkeplatz - Markt - Königstraße - Central Station

Only a few days later, the trips on line 9 were counted as line 8, and line 9 was no longer available.

Lines 5 and 6 were routed from October 1, 1927 to January 24, 1931 between Johannisplatz and Annaberger Strasse in a south direction via Markt, Falkeplatz and Falkestrasse; A single-track operating line was built in Falkestrasse in 1915, which was the first time that a line was used. The track was removed around 1941.

On October 26, 1928, the Hilbersdorfer route was extended again to Herweghstraße in Ebersdorf. The extension of the Altendorf line to the Rottluff terminal on April 14, 1929 was the last extension of the narrow-gauge tramway. The turning loop there is now used by bus routes 32 and 72. In 1929 there were 226 multiple units and 238 sidecars for passenger transport in the Chemnitz tram fleet.

As in other large cities, at the end of the 1920s there were considerations to expand the tram into the surrounding area. However, there was only planning ready for the project for the line to Limbach . The main station or Brückenstraße were planned as the starting point. At the Promenadenstrasse or at the Küchwaldring the connection to the Bornaer line was envisaged, which should be extended via Röhrsdorf , KÄNDER to Dorotheenstrasse to Limbach. The gauge and operating voltage should be identical to the Chemnitz network. A separate track outside of built-up areas and large distances between stops would have allowed a high travel speed. The 15-kilometer route should be completed in 47 minutes. A hangar was planned for six to eight multiple units and eight to twelve sidecars in Kändler. However, since the Chemnitz suburbs were approached by motorized buses and the post office , these plans were dropped in 1929.

At the end of the 1930s, terminal systems were mainly used. From November 4, 1938, line 4 in Borna was able to use a new loop, and line 1 in Siegmar-Reichenbrand from May 28, 1939. Both routes were shortened by around 150 meters.

Between March 6 and March 23, as well as between April 16 and May 17, 1945, due to the constant acts of war in the city, the tram had to be shut down.

The tram in the GDR

The Lowa-Tw 1102 (now 801) was taken over from Dresden in 1986 and served as a work car until 1997.

From May 18, 1945, tram operations were gradually resumed. On April 1, 1949, the transport company was incorporated into the municipal business enterprise (KWU); On May 1, 1951, the VEB Verkehrsbetriebe der Stadt Chemnitz took over the tram operation. The renaming of the city of Chemnitz to Karl-Marx-Stadt was accompanied by another name change. In 1960 the company was finally renamed VEB Nahverkehr Karl-Marx-Stadt .

The first new line after the Second World War went into operation on December 19, 1953, the 60th anniversary of the electric tram. In order to avoid the winding and narrow route between Markt and Fritz-Heckert-Platz (today again Falkeplatz), a separate straight track was built in the Rosenhof, which ended in Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße (today again Theaterstraße) in a triangular track. The old route across the Roßmarkt was dismantled and the area was later built over with prefabricated buildings. Four days later, the Altchemnitz turning loop went into operation.

From December 16, 1957, lines 3 and 4 had to travel via Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße and Rosenhof, as the route through Innere Klosterstraße was closed on that day. A re-gauging program began on June 10, 1958. Available standard traction motors could not be installed in a pawl bearing arrangement because of their width with the existing track width. With the state of the art at the time, expensive special designs would have been required in the long run. The first plan was to convert all narrow-gauge lines to standard gauge by 1965 . All lines should run every six minutes during rush hour. The following route network was planned:

Central stop 1983

1 Reichenbrand - Gablenz

2 Zeisigwaldstraße / Bayernring - Sportforum

3 Rottluff - Bernsdorf

4 Borna - Wilhelm-Külz-Platz

5 Altchemnitz - Ebersdorf

6 West- / Kochstraße - Glösa train station

and in addition in rush hour traffic :

11 Schönau (industrial works) - Gablenzplatz

13 Limbacher Str./Erzbergerstraße - Bernsdorfer Str./Wartburgstraße

14 Leipziger Str./Bürgerstrasse - Lessingplatz

15 Annaberger Str./Scheffelstrasse - Frankenberger Str./Margarethenstrasse

115 Annaberger Str./Scheffelstrasse - main station

For this purpose, the narrow-gauge line 5 (Altchemnitz - Hauptbahnhof) was first gradually shut down.

05.01.1959 Altchemnitz- Harthau church closed down

August 3rd, 1959 Closing down of Altchemnitz Church - Uhlestrasse

May 13, 1960 closure of Uhlestrasse - Heinrich-Lorenz-Strasse

September 22, 1960 closure of Heinrich-Lorenz-Strasse - Apollostrasse

November 9, 1960 closure of Apollostrasse - Annaberger Str./Poststrasse

07/27/1963 Closure of the station loop, the tracks end bluntly

August 1st, 1963 Closure of the line between Johannisplatz and Theaterplatz

For this, the standard gauge line was opened accordingly:

May 8th, 1960 opening of Altchemnitz-Harthau - Uhlestrasse

September 14, 1961 Opening of Uhlestraße - Brüder-Grimm-Straße, at the same time the opening of the Wendeschleife Annaberger / Scheffelstraße

December 22nd, 1961 Opening of Brüder-Grimm-Strasse - Annaberger Str./Poststrasse (a triangle of tracks with a provisional terminus was created here)

December 29, 1967 Opening of Annaberger Str./Annenstrasse - Annenstrasse - Ernst-Thälmann-Strasse (today Reitbahnstrasse again) - Strasse der Nations - Hauptbahnhof

In addition to the ambitious re-gauging plans, the inner city of Chemnitz, which was called Karl-Marx-Stadt since May 1953, was rebuilt. Due to the large fallow land in the city center after the Second World War, there was a lot of building space for a new, large-meshed city center. Many narrow-gauge lines therefore had to be relocated:

October 1, 1962 Closure of Johannisplatz - Markt - Rosenhof and Markt - Ernst-Thälmann- / Poststrasse

01.11.1962 Closure Wilhelm-Pieck-Str./Klosterstraße - Johannisplatz

07/17/1963 Opening of the new Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße between Klosterstraße and Brückenstraße, but the line in Brückenstraße was closed

August 1st, 1963 Closure of Johannisplatz (incl.) - Theaterplatz

October 13, 1963 Opening of the new Helmut-Just-Strasse (today Hartmannstrasse) between Klosterstrasse and “Gleisdreieck”. The intersection "Gleisdreieck" is still called that today, but the Gleisdreieck itself has long since disappeared.

02/05/1964 Closure of Theaterplatz - Strasse der Nations / Färberstrasse

December 11, 1964 Closure of the road from Nations / Färberstrasse - Schillerplatz

December 13/14, 1968 opening of the new central bus stop, so that new narrow-gauge tracks go from Wilhelm-Pieck- / Klosterstraße parallel to Ernst-Thälmann-Straße (today Rathausstraße) and Otto-Grotewohl-Straße (formerly Poststraße, today Bahnhofstraße) to Fritz-Heckert-Platz (today Falkeplatz) in operation. The center ring is closed again, albeit on a different route. At the same time, the Bernsdorf narrow-gauge line from the central station to Bernsdorf, Ulbrichtstrasse (a track triangle was only created here in 1958) was shut down.

Tatra T3D

From February 25, 1969, T3D railcars from ČKD Tatra from Prague were used on the standard gauge lines.

The re-gauging plans had meanwhile been scaled back to a smaller level, as it had been recognized that many lines in the standard gauge would not be profitable and, due to the larger clearance profile, a lot of demolition work would have to be carried out to build some of the lines. Therefore, in 1972 the following route network was still planned:

1 Siegmar - Gablenz

2 Bernsdorf - Raw, Emilienstraße (at that time already under construction between Bernsdorf and the main train station)

3 Schönau (Industriewerk) - Central Station (only during rush hour)

4 Residential area Markersdorf-Helbersdorf - Annaberger Straße - Sonnenberg - Hilbersdorf

5 Altchemnitz - Hauptbahnhof (already in operation at that time)

Front end of a narrow-gauge vehicle

In 1975 the Stollberger Straße route was added . With the exception of the routes to Raw, Hilbersdorf and the Schönau - Siegmar section, all of these routes were built until 2004.

The narrow-gauge network has now been gradually reduced:

02/21/1972 Closure Furth-Glösa - "Gleisdreieck" and street station Leninstraße (today Heinrich-Schütz-Straße) - Zeisigwaldstraße (line 7 changed to bus operation)

11/17/1975 closure of Schillerplatz - Palm- / Hainstraße (line 9 closed)

December 20, 1975 closure of Leipziger / Limbacher Straße - Borna (line 4 closed) and Hain- / Palmstraße - Ebersdorf (line 8 only runs Weststraße - central stop)

January 6th, 1976 closure of Augustusburger / Dresdner Strasse - Leninstrasse tram station (since December 20, 1975 only operating line)

19.04.1976 closure of the central stop - Gablenz, Eubaer Straße (line 1 only runs Siegmar - central stop, in 1977 lines 1 and 3 were connected to the new line 3 Rottluff - Siegmar)

May 17, 1980 Closure of the industrial plant (Zwickauer Str./Guerickestraße) - Siegmar-Reichenbrand (Line 3 only runs from Rottluff - Industriewerk)

09.05.1981 Closure of the Kappel tram station - Industriewerk (line 3 only runs from Rottluff - central stop, the route to the Kappel tram station becomes an operating line)

October 15, 1983 closure of Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße / Kaßbergauffahrt - West- / Kochstraße (line 8 closed)

December 14, 1983 shutdown of Fritz-Heckert-Platz - Kappel tram station (since May 9, 1981, only operating line)

11/06/1988 shutdown of Rottluff - Zentrumsring (line 3 closed; general cessation of narrow-gauge operation)

In return, the standard track network was expanded:

August 15, 1972 opening of Ernst-Thälmann-Str. / Annenstrasse - Bernsdorfer Str./ Wartburgstrasse (line 2)

December 15, 1973 opening of Bernsdorfer Str./Wartburgstrasse - Bernsdorf (Sommerbad) (line 2)

October 30, 1976 opening of Annaberger Str./Otto-Grotewohl-Straße - Gablenz, Hans-Beimler-Straße (today Geibelstraße again) (lines 6 and 16)

December 30, 1977 opening of Hans-Beimler-Strasse - Carl-von-Ossietzky-Strasse (today's terminal in Gablenz) (line 6, from 1978 also line 16)

07.10.1979 Opening Annaberger Straße / Südring - Südring - Wladimir-Sagorski-Straße - Stollberger Straße (today's stop Morgenleite) (line 5)

05.10.1982 Opening of Stollberger / Wladimir-Sagorski-Strasse - residential area "Fritz Heckert" (the end point should first be called "Neukirchner Kuppe", but was then called "Residential area Fritz Heckert, final stop (building area VIII)", today it is called "Hutholz" ) (Line 5)

08/01/1988 Opening Annaberger Str./Otto-Grotewohl-Straße - Fritz-Heckert-Platz - Zwickauer Straße - Schönau / Popowstraße (lines 1 and 8)

On the occasion of the centenary of the tram on April 19, 1980, the traditional operation with the historic railcar 69 was started.

At the end of 1988 the following lines were in operation - now exclusively on the standard gauge

1 Schönau, Popowstraße - Fritz-Heckert-Platz - central stop - Gablenzplatz - Carl-von-Ossietzky-Straße

2 Bernsdorf, Sommerbad - Bernsbachplatz - central stop - main station

5 Fritz Heckert WG - Wladimir-Sagorski-Strasse - Altchemnitz School - Annenstrasse - Central Station - Central Station

6 Altchemnitz - Altchemnitz School - Central Stop - Gablenzplatz - Carl-von-Ossietzky-Straße

7 Wladimir-Sagorski-Straße - Altchemnitz School - Central Stop - Gablenzplatz (Hans-Beimler-Straße) (only during rush hour )

8 Wladimir-Sagorski-Straße - Altchemnitz School - Fritz-Heckert-Platz - Schönau, Popowstraße (only during rush hour )

On June 26, 1990, the local transport company was transferred to a stock corporation, the Chemnitzer Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft, or CVAG for short .

Modernization of the vehicle fleet and the route network

Tatra T3D-M in 2018

The prototype of the »Variobahn« at the "Südring" stop

Rush hour lines 7 and 8 were discontinued on March 4, 1991 and July 3, 1992, respectively. Between September 1992 and December 1993 part of the Tatra T3D railcars and -B3D sidecars were technically refurbished by DWA Bautzen (from now on referred to as T3D-M) and repainted in the colors of the city of Chemnitz, blue and yellow , while the rest of the vehicles drove in red and ivory until they were parked. The Variobahn prototype was delivered in December 1993 . This one -way low-floor train has been operating in Chemnitz since May 17, 1994 . Only in 1999 the first production vehicles were put into operation, including ten two- and 14 mover carriage . In 1998 CVAG sold 14 T3D cars from Chemnitz to Wladikawkas , over 40 T3D cars in red and ivory were sold to Ufa from 2000 , the last 14 cars in 2005. Several cars were also handed over to Almaty .

There are currently 11 Tatra T3D M trains (each consisting of two railcars) in use. The last Tatra large trains, consisting of two multiple units and one sidecar, ran on line 4 until 2010.

City-Bahn Chemnitz also acquired six bidirectional vehicles for the Chemnitz – Stollberg line, equipped according to the Railway Construction and Operating Regulations (EBO). The tram depot in Chemnitz-Adelsberg was opened on October 8, 1995.

Conversion of the central stop by 1999

The central stop in 2004

The ambitious plans for socialist urban development in Karl-Marx-Stadt were only partially implemented, so that Chemnitz had the largest urban wasteland in Europe. In the mid-1990s, Chemnitz still did not have a classic city center. There was an oversized central stop, which had to give up drastically large areas for inner-city development as part of the inner-city redevelopment of Chemnitz. From 1998 the central stop was modernized with 25 departure stands for buses and trams, which was completed after several steps at the end of 1999. Also in 1999, a mobility center, a central information point for public transport in Chemnitz, was set up immediately afterwards. Since 2003, LED displays have been informing passengers about the departure times of the next buses and trains. Today the central stop is one of the most frequented places in the city with around 100,000 people every day.

For the purpose of this renewed reconstruction of the track system in the city center, a new connecting line, connected on both sides with triangular tracks, was opened through Brückenstraße between Straße der Nations and Bahnhofstraße.

Pilot route for the Chemnitz model

→ Main article : Chemnitz model

Train the City-Bahn to Stollberg at the stop Hauptbahnhof (May 2006)

As early as 1990, the first considerations and plans for the continuation of the tram to the greater Chemnitz area began, which became known as the "Chemnitzer Model". In March 1997, CVAG and Autobus GmbH Sachsen founded the subsidiary City-Bahn Chemnitz GmbH , which is located in Chemnitz main station.

On December 15, 2002, the pilot route of the Chemnitz model between Chemnitz main station and Stollberg (Sachs) was inaugurated. The inner-city tracks of the tram are used up to the Altchemnitz station. In Altchemnitz, an approximately 150 meter long transition track connects the double-track tram and the single-track branch line to Stollberg . This link between trams and trains is known as the regional light rail or tram train. The previously non-electrified railway line was electrified with 750 volts DC - the Chemnitz tram network, on the other hand, is operated with 600 volts.

This first route of the Chemnitz model is very successful: While the earlier bus connections to Stollberg recorded around 1000 passengers per day, the tram connection built for this purpose had 6000 travelers per day, the previous expectations were around 2500 users per day.

The route along Stollberger Straße

Lines 4 and 5 at the final stop Hutholz, May 13, 2013

After around 30 years of planning and over ten years of construction, the shortest connection between the residential area "Fritz Heckert", located southwest of the city center, and the center was opened continuously on March 20, 2004. This line had previously been released from November 2, 1998 from Hutholz to the “Am Flughafen” station and on December 15, 2001 to “Goetheplatz”. At the provisional terminals, the tracks ended bluntly and bidirectional trains should have been used. However, these had not yet been delivered. Until it was commissioned, two Tatra T3Ds operated rear-to-rear coupled, whereby only the front one could be used by the passengers. Finally, the newly delivered two-way trains of the City-Bahn were used.

Reconstruction of the Chemnitz main station

Tram tracks with »Variobahn« multiple units within the platform hall, February 2015

In order to enable the previous regional train and regional express lines to be integrated into the tram network in the north and east of the Chemnitz region , the idea was taken of using the city railways to drive through Chemnitz main station at ground level. After passing through the station hall, the light rail vehicles should either return to the urban tram network or the Deutsche Bahn railway network via an interface . This project is to take place in two construction stages.

The drafts and approval planning for the first construction stage were completed in the first quarter of 2004. The plan approval procedure was initiated from August 2004, which was concluded in November 2005 with a plan approval decision.

In the meantime, between August 29 and November 25, 2005, part of the inner-city route between the central station and the main train station was renewed as an advance payment . In 2009, the renovations at the main station itself began. Platforms 1 to 4 and the associated tracks were dismantled, relocated on a slope and according to tram standards and connected to the tram network. In May 2011, the construction of the tram route through the Straße der Nations from Schillerplatz to Heinrich-Zille-Straße, where the new loop branches off to the main train station, began. Extensive changes to the tram network therefore took effect on May 1, 2011. The single-track line in Georgstrasse was shut down and the terminus at Hauptbahnhof, Bahnhofstrasse became an end point for the time being . Line 2 between Bernsdorf and the main train station was served exclusively by low-floor, bidirectional multiple units. From Schönau to Straße der Nations / Freie Presse via the Roter Turm, a line 1 with wagons ran again to line 4 to Hutholz, which was taken back here. Lines 5, 6 and 522 ran unchanged. A total of 250 meters of rail siding and 900 meters of double-track tram were built.

From February 18, 2013, trams then entered the platform hall, initially from the direction of Heinrich-Zille-Straße without a connection to the station forecourt. Since June 16, 2014, trams have been traveling through the platform hall in both directions, using platforms 1 and 2, which are exclusively intended for tram operations, and once again serving the Hauptbahnhof, Bahnhofstraße stop. This created a better link between urban and regional traffic. Line 4 is currently running on track 1, lines 6 and C11 on track 2, the latter only operating to BOStrab. Platforms 3 and 4, which were built at the same time, including the connecting track to the long-distance railway network, however, may only be used by vehicles with both BOStrab and EBO approval. The Citylink dual-motor vehicles of the City-Bahn Chemnitz operate here in the direction of the city center (platform 3) and the surrounding area (platform 4), i.e. H. to Burgstädt, Mittweida and Hainichen. While the vehicle is on the platform, the operating procedure is switched to continue the journey. The light rail system, now known as the ChemnitzBahn, started operating for the EBO part of the timetable change on December 13, 2015. Due to delays in the approval of the vehicles according to BOStrab, the connection to the city center was delayed and finally took place on October 10, 2016.

Campus route

Turning loop Technopark, straight ahead the connection to the railway line to Aue will follow.
August 1, 2017

In 2016, the construction of the tram route to the campus of the Technical University on Reichenhainer Straße and the research facilities behind it began. In the medium term, a link to the railway line towards Aue is to be created here as part of the Chemnitz model, so that the CityLink railcars can travel to Thalheim or Aue. The planning approval procedure for the new line began in December 2014 ; the planning approval decision was issued on December 10, 2015. The start of construction for the first section took place in connection with the renovation of the tram route of line 2 in the Reitbahnviertel (Annenstraße to the Turnstraße junction) in March 2016 (preparatory work from February 2016) and was completed in spring 2017. On May 2, 2017, the first section of the new line to Stadlerplatz was opened with lines C13 and C14. Line C15 followed on June 11, 2017.

The first test drives took place on November 21, 2017 on the most recently built section between Stadlerplatz and Campusplatz and further on the route to the Wendeschleife at Technopark (which was completed in early 2017). From November 28, 2017, instruction trips for the drivers from CVAG and City-Bahn Chemnitz were carried out. After the grand opening on December 8, 2017, the entire route has been in regular service since the timetable change on December 10, 2017. In addition to lines C13, C14 and C15 of the Chemnitz model, tram line 3 of the CVAG now also provides a direct connection between the main station and the technology campus. The latter was linked to tram line 4 in the direction of Hutholz on working days at the main station. After it became clear in the first two weeks after the timetable change that this would lead to operational problems at the main train station, the link was canceled on December 23, 2017 until further notice. As of December 10, 2017, the previous tram line 6 between Altchemnitz and the main train station was discontinued. In the future, only the ChemnitzBahn line C11 will run on this route every half hour.

vehicles

Narrow gauge wagons

At the time of the horse-drawn tram, carriages made by Peter Herbrand ( Cologne-Ehrenfeld ) and Noell ( Würzburg ) were used on the network.

First electric tram cars

The first electric vehicles in Chemnitz come from Cologne, just like the first horse-drawn carriages. From 1893/1894 the railcars also used in Gera, Halle and other cities were procured. From 1897 and 1898, further vehicles of this type were put into service. The number of units in 1901 totaled 119 railcars.

With the expansion of the tram network in the growing industrial metropolis, new vehicle purchases became necessary. From 1907, based on the positive experience with the Cologne company Waggonfabrik AG Köln (formerly P. Herbrand), these railcars were delivered in a new design with larger windows. 28 vehicles were available from 1908. A final series was delivered by a consortium of Siemens-Schuckert-Werke , MAN and the wagon factory Robert Liebscher Dresden.

The workshops in Chemnitz also tried their hand at home-made vehicles that were built on the basis of existing technical concepts.

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  Historic carriages at Falkeplatz ...

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  ... and on the station forecourt

New vehicles of the 1920s

From 1924 a large series of new tram vehicles were delivered for the Chemnitz tram. They largely replaced the railcars from the early days of electrical operation. In various designs, the stock grew to 118 cars by 1929. For this purpose, design-like sidecars were created. In operational terms, mostly two or three-car trains were driven.

After the Second World War, eight additional superstructures using bogies and floor frames from war-damaged railcars were delivered by the Werdau wagon factory.

These vehicles formed the basis for tram operation until the end of narrow-gauge tram operation in 1988, as no further railcars were delivered during the GDR era. For decades they shaped the Chemnitz / Karl-Marx-Städter cityscape.

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  Train consisting of railcars and sidecars in 1962 at the Theaterplatz stop in front of the Moscow Hotel

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  In 1962, a single multiple unit on line 8 turns off Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße (now Theaterstraße) coming from Gleisdreieck onto Kaßbergauffahrt

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  1960 narrow-gauge train on Wilhelm-Pieck-Strasse (today Theaterstrasse)

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  Narrow-gauge train of line 8 in 1979 after turning at the terminus Weststraße (Kaßberg)

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  Front view of a museum vehicle 2009

Standard track vehicles

Gotha railcar T57

The basic stock of regular-gauge vehicles for the new tram system was to form two-directional railcars from VEB Waggonbau Gotha . The first vehicles arrived in Karl-Marx-Stadt in 1959 and were supplemented by one-way vehicles until 1964. Thus, in the mid-1960s, 36 multiple units and 55 sidecars were available. They were in the service of the Karl-Marx-Stadt transport company until 1967 and were then given to other tram companies in the GDR.

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  Gotha railcar on line 5 in 1960 on Annaberger Strasse in front of the machine tool manufacturing research center

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  Gotha train on line 5 in 1961 on Annaberger Strasse at the corner of Erdmannsdorfer Strasse

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  Gotha railcar as a museum vehicle when leaving the Kappel depot

Tatra T3D

Since the Gotha railcars were not suitable for modern tram operation, the transport companies ordered large-capacity railcars and sidecars from ČKD Tatra in Prague in the 1960s . Due to their high capacity, these were suitable for the standard track network. The cars were based on the Tatra T3 type , one of the most built tram cars in the world, and were adapted accordingly for operation in the GDR. The first vehicles were used from 1969. 130 railcars and 62 sidecars made it to Karl-Marx-Stadt.

At the beginning of the 1990s, the newly founded CVAG decided to modernize 36 Tatra trains by Waggonbau Bautzen. They received a new design and a technical modernization. With the introduction of the Škoda ForCity Classic vehicles, the cars will be withdrawn from regular service. However, an operating reserve will remain in the inventory to cover the additional demand for vehicles and the failure of low-floor vehicles, especially in winter. Vehicles that have not been modernized are no longer in use. Most of it was sold to Kazakhstan and Russia. Four work cars with the road numbers 403 and 405 (winter service and rail grinding cars) and 409 and 410 (shunting cars) are currently in stock. Two engine (road numbers 401 and 402) and one sidecar (713) remained as museum cars.

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  Center Karl-Marx-Stadt with a new line

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  Road of Nations with two Tatra trains

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  Tatra train at the Morgenleite

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  Modernized Tatra train at the main train station

Variobahn

After the political change in Germany and reunification, the newly founded CVAG only had an outdated vehicle fleet at its disposal. The company procured new low-floor vehicles from ADtranz . From 1994 the prototype with the car number 601 was used and extensively tested. Series delivery followed at the end of the 1990s. The Variobahn articulated cars are all low-floor and consist of five car bodies. A vehicle is 31.38 m long and 2.65 m wide.

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  CVAG Variobahn multiple units with full advertising

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  CVAG Variobahn car at the central stop

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  Vehicles in the Adelsberg depot

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  CB Variobahn car at the main train station

Škoda ForCity Classic

On June 14, 2016, CVAG signed a contract with the Czech manufacturer Škoda for the construction of 14 low-floor trams of the ForCity Classic type , according to which a test vehicle from a delivery for Prague had already been tested in 2012 . The first railcar (TW 912) arrived in Chemnitz on the night of November 29th to 30th, 2018, the remaining vehicles are to be delivered by the end of 2019. The first vehicles started regular service on September 25, 2019. From 2020 all vehicles should be ready for use, so that the Tatra trolleys can then be dispensed with.

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  CVAG 912 at InnoTrans 2018 in Berlin

outlook

Further planned network expansions

Expansion of the Chemnitz light rail

After the renovation of the main train station and the construction of the campus route, further construction projects are to be implemented. On the one hand, the construction of a route from Chemnitz-Zentrum via the Leipziger Strasse, which is heavily frequented by motor vehicle traffic, and via Chemnitz-Röhrsdorf and Kändler to Limbach-Oberfrohna is planned. Parts of the Limbach – Oberfrohna railway line, which was closed in 2000, are to be reactivated if possible. In 2003, the city council of Limbach-Oberfrohna favored a corresponding variant, the cost of which is estimated at 16 million euros. The implementation is currently not scheduled. The cost of the project was estimated at around 100 million euros. The first section from Falkeplatz and Brückenstraße to the Hartmannstraße / Leipziger Straße intersection is to be completed between 2025 and 2027.

On the other hand, the construction of the often requested westward extension of the current line 1 from Schönau to Reichenbrand is considered likely, as the current end of the line in Schönau still requires a strong bus shuttle service. Corresponding routes were kept free. There were already plans for this when the route was reopened in 1988. The bridge structures required for this route had already been built when the A72 motorway was built in front of Chemnitz-Süd and the KBS 510/511 Zwickau-Chemnitz-Dresden was renovated. On the other hand, the city of Chemnitz has currently built over the area of ​​the originally planned turning loop on Nevoigtstrasse with a car park for visitors to the zoo.

literature

• Gerhard Bauer, Norbert Kuschinski: The trams in East Germany. Volume 1: Saxony. Verlag Schweers + Wall, Aachen 1993, ISBN 3-921679-79-6 .
• Peter Dönges: Pictures of the Chemnitz tram. 2nd Edition. Verlag Röhr, Krefeld 1992, ISBN 3-88490-197-4 .
• Manfred Fischer, Heiner Matthes: Omnibus traffic in and around Chemnitz. Regional bus and coach transport, urban bus and coach transport. Bildverlag Böttger, Witzschdorf 2005, ISBN 3-937496-09-2 .
• Lutz Habrecht: 50 years of the standard track in Chemnitz. In: Verkehrsgeschichtliche Blätter , Volume 37, Issue 3 (May / June 2010), pp. 78–81.
• Heiner Matthes: Trams in Karl-Marx-Stadt. Transpress VEB Verlag for Transport, Berlin 1986, ISBN 3-344-00309-7 .
• Heiner Matthes: On the move. 110 years of trams and omnibuses in Chemnitz. Published by CVAG , Chemnitz 1990.
• Heiner Matthes: The Chemnitz tram. Local transport in Saxony's industrial metropolis. GeraMond-Verlag, Munich 1998, ISBN 3-932785-01-0 .

Web links

Commons : Trams in Chemnitz  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• CVAG website
• City-Bahn Chemnitz GmbH website
• Website of the Straßenbahnfreunde Chemnitz e. V.
• History of the Chemnitz tram at www.altes-chemnitz.de
• Pictures of the Chemnitz tram

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} management report. (PDF) In: Annual Report CVAG 2018. Chemnitzer Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft , 2019, p. 66 , accessed on March 1, 2020 . 
2. ↑ Our lines. City-Bahn Chemnitz , 2020, accessed on March 1, 2020 . 
3. ^ VEB Nahverkehr Karl-Marx-Stadt: Service and timetable for railcar drivers, summer 1980.
4. ↑ Heiner Matthes: On the move. 110 years of trams and omnibuses in Chemnitz. Published by CVAG, Chemnitz 1990. Pages 69ff.
5. ↑ Construction progress on the Chemnitz model. CVAG, May 2, 2011, accessed on February 22, 2019 . 
6. ↑ Chemnitz model: We are in (from Friday) ... Verkehrsverbund Mittel Sachsen , February 12, 2013, accessed on November 22, 2017 . 
7. ↑ VMS press releases
8. ↑ Chemnitz model: Commissioning of stage 1 of the Chemnitz model. Central Saxony transport association , October 10, 2016, accessed on October 26, 2016 . 
9. ↑ Information page on the Chemnitz model
10. ↑ Information page on the Chemnitz model . Retrieved February 15, 2016.
11. ↑ Information sheet on the opening ( Memento from April 22, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
12. ↑ From June 11th, line C15 will also run to Chemnitz city center. VMS, June 7, 2017, accessed December 10, 2017 . 
13. ↑ Chemnitzer Modell - News: Tram reaches university campus for the first time: Successful “ironing ride” on Reichenhainer Straße. Central Saxony Transport Association , November 21, 2017, accessed on November 22, 2017 . 
14. ↑ CVAG-Journal 2/2015, page 15
15. ↑ Martin Wiegers: Take a seat, now I'm coming! In: bild.de. November 30, 2018, accessed December 4, 2018 . 
16. ^ Chemnitzer Verkehrs-AG (CVAG) | The first Škoda trams go into passenger service! Retrieved September 25, 2019 . 
17. ↑ The train should go to Oberfrohna. In: Free Press. Retrieved May 14, 2010 . 
18. ↑ By train to LO! Chemnitz model level 4 in the starting blocks. In: vms.de. February 26, 2020, accessed March 4, 2020 .