Darmstadt tram

Darmstadt tram
Willy-Brandt-Platz stop
Basic information
Country	Germany
city	Darmstadt
opening	August 25, 1886
electrification	from November 23, 1897
operator	HEAG mobiTram
Transport network	Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV)
Infrastructure
Route length	42 km
Track length	94.6 km
Gauge	1000 mm ( meter gauge )
Power system	600 volt DC overhead line
Operating mode	Furnishing operation
Stops	75, of which 56 are barrier-free, 3 partially barrier-free, 16 not barrier-free
Depots	2 depots 1 museum depot
business
Lines	9
Line length	104.9 km
Cruising speed	21.7 km / h
vehicles	48 railcars , 30 sidecars
Top speed	70 km / h
statistics
Mileage	3.008 million km / year
Line network of the Darmstadt tram

The Darmstadt tram is one of three tram networks in the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV) with a route network of 42 km on which 9 lines are operated. The 75 stops are primarily in the urban area of Darmstadt , but some are also in the cities and municipalities of the Darmstadt-Dieburg district, such as Griesheim , Malchen , Seeheim-Jugenheim and Alsbach . The tram operator is the transport company HEAG mobiTram on behalf of the Darmstadt-Dieburger local transport organization (DADINA) as a member of the RMV . It is popularly known as the Ellebembel .

Lines

Track plan (as of 2012)

9 lines operate on the four main routes of the Darmstadt tram. The central junction is Luisenplatz , which is served by all lines (except for line 1).

The main routes are structured as follows:

• Arheilgen -> Alsbach, route length approx. 23 km, fully or partially served by lines 1, 6, 7 and 8
• Böllenfalltor -> Griesheim, route length approx. 10 km, fully or partially served by lines 2, 4 and 9
• Main station -> Lichtenbergschule, route length approx. 5 km, served by line 3
• Main station -> Kranichstein, route length approx. 7 km, fully or partially served by lines 4 and 5

With the exception of two shorter sections in Griesheim and Bessungen , the network is consistently double- tracked, many sections of the route (except for line 3) are laid out like a tram on their own track with low-floor platforms. On lines 2 and 4 to 9 come on weekdays sporadically older high-floor - railcars of ST series 12 from the early nineties to use, but a generally low floor sidecar to allow carry around a barrier-free entry to the appropriately equipped stations . The abolition of these vehicles is planned for 2020. They are currently running particularly often on lines 2, 6, 7 and 9. On lines 4 and 5, you can only see them occasionally during rush hour and when line 2 is running. They are also used on Saturdays. On Sundays they serve as a reserve. (As of May 19, 2015)

line	route	Stops	Remarks
1	Central station - Eberstadt Frankenstein	17th	Mon – Fri, 30-minute intervals, 5 am–7pm, individual entry journeys until closing time
2	Hauptbahnhof - Böllenfalltor	11	only during peak hours on school days
3	Central station - Lichtenberg school	15th	in peak hours on school days every 10 minutes
4th	Griesheim Platz Bar-le-Duc - Kranichstein train station	25th	only during peak hours on school days
5	Hauptbahnhof – Kranichstein train station	16	during peak hours when line 4 does not run: every 7/8 minutes
6th	Arheilgen Dreieichweg – Alsbach Am Hinkelstein (express line)	29	Mon – Fri, 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., express line - does not stop at all stops
7th	Arheilgen Dreieichweg – Eberstadt Frankenstein	28	Every 30 minutes if line 8 runs
8th	Arheilgen Dreieichweg – Alsbach Am Hinkelstein	37	only runs when line 6 is not running
9	Griesheim Platz Bar-le-Duc –Böllenfalltor	20th
24	Congress Center - Frankenstein - Maulbeerallee (special line for Advent)	19th	Only runs on the Saturdays in Advent with old wagons every 90 minutes.

All routes 7- or 15-minute clock (evenings and Sunday mornings at 30-minute intervals). The overland route to Alsbach is driven every 30 minutes, which is compressed to a 15-minute cycle during rush hour (HVZ). Details can be found in the following table:

history

Fiery Elias, around 1890

Steam tram in Rheinstrasse, around the turn of the century

Steam tram on Luisenplatz, 1899

The historical "Fiery Elias" on a special trip in May 2004

Steam tram

The development of the Darmstadt area by rail was initially carried out by the also meter gauge Darmstadt steam tram . On May 5, 1886, a consortium around Herrmann Bachstein received the concession for a line from Griesheim to Darmstadt and a little later another concession for the line Darmstadt-Eberstadt. Because of the topographically undemanding route, the railways could already be opened on August 25, 1886. In 1889 the concession for another line to Arheilgen was granted, which was opened on April 30, 1890. In 1895 the steam trams were transferred to the Süddeutsche Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (SEG), newly founded by Herrmann Bachstein and others . Plans to electrify the routes were blocked by the city of Darmstadt as it was planning its own electric tram.

Extensions were considered, such as an extension of the steam tram from Griesheim via Büttelborn , Groß-Gerau , Wallerstädten , Geinsheim am Rhein and a new bridge over the Rhine from Kornsand to Oppenheim in 1896 . The project was not implemented. To what extent such and other projects were realistic or pure wishful thinking can no longer be determined with certainty today.

Route chronicle of the steam tram

• Aug 25, 1886: Castle -Rhein- / Neckarstrasse
• 25 Aug 1886: Rhein- / Neckarstrasse – Griesheim
• 25 Aug 1886: Rhein- / Neckarstrasse – Eberstadt
• April 30, 1890: Luisenplatz – Arheilgen
• April 30, 1914: Rhein- / Neckarstrasse – Eberstadt ceased operations
• 31 Mar 1922: Griesheim - Luisenplatz / Castle - Arheilgen ceased operations

Electric

1885 to 1945

Because the inner-city traffic was insufficiently served by the steam trains, the city council decided in 1895 to build and operate an urban electric tram. However, the planned route of the Darmstadt municipal tram caused discussions with the SEG, which initially rejected a route in the streets used by the steam train. The city received the concession in 1897 and opened the first two routes on November 23. The company was initially run by Siemens & Halske , which had built the tram, but was taken over by the city in November 1898. In 1903 a third line was added. From 1944-1963 supplemented trolley buses to transport in Darmstadt .

The lines were marked by colors:

• white : train stations - castle - Böllenfalltor
• blue : Taunusstraße - Schloss - Hermannstraße (today Freiberger Platz), later extended at both ends to Fasanerie or Ludwigshöhstraße / Landskronstraße
• green : Fasanerie - Schloss - Ernst-Ludwig-Straße - Elisabethenstraße - Saalbau - Heinrichstraße / Heidelberger Straße (partly in competition with the steam tram)

In the years that followed, there were repeated plans to expand the route network, even after the new main train station went into operation, in which the city and the SEG often blocked each other. After tough negotiations, the two operators finally agreed in January 1912 to merge both companies into a newly founded stock corporation . The Hessische Eisenbahn-Aktiengesellschaft (HEAG) was founded on April 15, 1912 . HEAG is now steadily expanding the line network. In 1914 the steam train route to Eberstadt was electrified, and the remaining routes to Griesheim and Arheilgen by 1926.

The Second World War ended further expansion plans and led to massive damage to the rolling stock and infrastructure. After the destruction of Darmstadt on the night of September 11, 1944, there were initially no more trams. However, the tram depot at the Böllenfalltor survived the war undamaged.

1945 to 1975

After the end of the Second World War, tram operations were resumed in the largely destroyed city. When HEAG was founded, the line colors were initially retained, later line numbers were introduced, which were still marked with identification colors. In 1951 the following line network existed, on which a 15- or 30-minute cycle was run:

• 1 Rodensteinweg - Hauptbahnhof - (Moosbergstraße only on weekdays - (Frankenstein only during peak hours ))
• 2 Central Station - Rheinstrasse - Luisenplatz - Böllenfalltor
• 3 Direction Ludwigshöhstraße: Hauptbahnhof - Bismarckstraße - Luisenplatz - Ludwigshöhstraße Direction Hauptbahnhof: Ludwigshöhstraße - Luisenplatz - Rheinstraße - Hauptbahnhof
• 5 Heinheimer Strasse - Bismarckstrasse - Luisenplatz - Ostbahnhof
• 6 Direction Oberwaldhaus: Hauptbahnhof - Rheinstraße - Luisenplatz - Regerweg - (Fasanerie only in the afternoon - (Oberwaldhaus every hour in summer )) Direction to Hauptbahnhof: ((Oberwaldhaus every hour in summer ) - Fasanerie only in the afternoon ) - Regerweg - Luisenplatz - Bismarckstraße - Hauptbahnhof
• 7 Arheilgen - Luisenplatz - Moosbergstrasse - Frankenstein
• 8 Arheilgen - Luisenplatz - Moosbergstraße - Frankenstein - Jugenheim train station
• 9 Griesheim - Rheinstrasse - Castle ( every quarter of an hour during peak hours )

In the period from 1960 to 1976, line 9A also ran between Griesheim / Wagenhalle and the school (today: Platz Bar-le-Duc), only then was the continuous use of articulated cars on line 9 possible thanks to the construction of a turning loop .

Nevertheless, in the course of the reconstruction of German cities, there was a trend towards the “ car-friendly city ”, which led to the closure of tram companies in many cities. In Darmstadt, the pursuit of a car-friendly city did not result in the end of the tram, but the network was downsized and investments kept low. In 1960 the line through the Johannesviertel to Heinheimer Straße (old line 5) was closed, and a few years later the line from Rodensteinweg to Oberwaldhaus (old line 6) was closed.

1976 to 1990

At the end of the 1970s, investments were made in a new line for the first time. Line 8 was extended from Jugenheim to Alsbach, which was originally planned for 1939, using part of the route from the disused Bickenbach – Seeheim line . The newly built tram workshop on the Böllenfalltor premises was also put into operation.

In 1979, a new line 6 was also put into operation. This served the rush hour between Merck and Eberstadt. In 1983, line 2 was downgraded to a line that only ran in rush hour and line 9 took over the route to Böllenfalltor as the main line. The route to the Ostbahnhof was served by line 4 (Hauptbahnhof – Rheinstrasse – Ostbahnhof) until the tram traffic between the palace and Ostbahnhof was discontinued in October 1986. In 1986, the trips on line 2 were further reduced, it was renamed line 2E and only served a few individual trips between Böllenfalltor – Luisenplatz – Merck. Soon after, it was completely discontinued.

1991 until today

The overhead line of the Darmstadt tram is de-iced with a historic vehicle after heavy freezing rain (2013)

At the beginning of the 1990s, the tram experienced a renaissance as the mainstay in local transport, including in Darmstadt. It all started in 1991 with the introduction of Schnelllinie 6 ( red line number , also called "Schnell 6") between Eberstadt and Merck, which covered the distance between the center of the southern district of Eberstadt and the city center significantly faster, with the omission of smaller stops. For the express trains on line 6, the traffic lights were also switched to green, which led to a further increase in travel speed. Following the same pattern, a new express line 10 was built in 1993 between Böllenfalltor and Griesheim Wagenhalle, which was discontinued in 2000 in favor of a more frequent service on line 9.

This was followed by a strong expansion of the line network with the commissioning of the line to Kranichstein in December 2003 and the line extensions in Alsbach and Arheilgen in the years thereafter. At the same time, numerous stops were reconstructed for barrier-free operation (platforms were built to enable stepless entry into the low-floor cars) and the tram infrastructure was upgraded (new railcars, passenger information systems, digital stop displays, etc.).

The year 2003 also brought a restructuring of the line system, which resulted in the reintroduction of line 2 on its historic route (Hauptbahnhof – Böllenfalltor), as well as the introduction of line 5 as the main line (Hauptbahnhof – Kranichstein) and a secondary line 4 (Kranichstein – Griesheim ). For the first time in many years, the vehicles used changed lines at various end stations. At the main station, line 2 switched to line 5 (and vice versa), in Griesheim line 4 to line 9. Due to changes in later timetable periods, line 4 is currently operating in isolation, lines 2, 5 and 9 in a common circuit. Line change 2/9 takes place at Böllenfalltor, line change 2/5 at the main station. With the extension of the line in Alsbach in December 2008, the network was reorganized on working days. Since then, rapid line 6 has been running during the day instead of line 8 to Alsbach. After the resumption of tram operations to Arheilgen, line 6 was also extended at its northern end point during rush hour and now runs to the Arheilgen Dreieichweg terminus.

From June 2013 to December 2016, Bismarckstraße west of the old train stations was completely renovated. To a large extent, a separate track was built. During this time, line 3 was diverted from the main train station via Rheinstrasse to Luisenplatz. Due to the tram-like expansion with the relocation of the tracks on a special track body and level platforms, the Feldbergstraße stop has "migrated" west to Kirschenallee and is now also called Kirschenallee.

Route chronicle of the electric

The Griesheim route, which has been in operation from the very beginning, still runs partly through undeveloped areas

The terminus at Kranichstein Bahnhof on lines 4 and 5, which was opened in 2003, has a passing track

Modern column at the Eberstadt Kirche stop

2009: Lord Mayor Walter Hoffmann , Head of Construction Dieter Wenzel and others at the reopening of the route to Arheilgen

Tw 9860 shortly before the Otto-Hesse-Straße stop

• Nov. 23, 1897: Böllenfalltor - Castle - Luisenplatz - Rhein- / Neckarstraße - Rheintor - old train stations (white line)
• Nov 23, 1897: Hermannstrasse - Castle - Stiftstrasse - Taunusstrasse (blue line)
• 30 Aug 1902: Taunusstraße – Fasanerie (blue line)
• Feb. 14, 1903: Palace - Ludwigsplatz - Saalbaustraße (green line)
• 0April 1, 1903: Ludwigshöhstrasse – Hermannstrasse (blue line)
• 0October 1, 1903: Old train stations - Bismarckstraße - Wilhelm-Leuschner-Straße - Pallaswiesenstraße - Schlossgartenplatz (white line)
• 0November 1, 1903: Saalbaustraße – Heinrichstraße (green line)
• 0May 1, 1912: Rheintor - Berliner Allee - Central Station (white and blue line - first section was electrified)
• 0May 1, 1913: Schloss – Woog / Beckstrasse (red line)
• 0May 1, 1913: Rhein- / Neckarstraße – Landskronstraße (green line - was electrified - steam trains from Eberstadt continued to run)
• May 16, 1913: Closing of operations at Saalbaustraße – Heinrichstraße (yellow line)
• May 16, 1913: Saalbaustraße – Rhein- / Neckarstraße (yellow line)
• 0October 1, 1913: Woog / Beckstrasse – Ostbahnhof (red line)
• 0Dec. 1, 1913: Closure of operations at the Rheintor - old train stations - Lagerhausstrasse (red line)
• 0Dec. 1, 1913: Luisenplatz - Bismarckstraße /gericht - Wilhelm-Leuschner-Straße (red line - first section was electrified)
• 0Dec. 1, 1913: Central Station - Goebelstrasse - Lagerhausstrasse (yellow and blue lines)
• 0April 1, 1914: Stiftstrasse – Mathildenhöhe (yellow line)
• 0May 1, 1914: Landskronstrasse - Eberstadt waiting hall - Eberstadt cemetery (green line - first section was electrified - 1200 volts)
• 0August 1, 1914: Closing of operations at the castle - Ludwigsplatz - Saalbaustraße - Rhein- / Neckarstraße (yellow line)
• 0August 1, 1914: Operation Stiftstrasse – Mathildenhöhe (yellow line) is closed
•   1918: Goebelstraße – Rodensteinweg (regular service only from July 1, 1929)
• 29 Mar 1923: Berliner Allee – Waldfriedhof (lines 4 and 9)
• December 18, 1924: Bismarckstraße - Rhönring - Merck (line 8)
• May 12, 1926: Fasanerie-Oberwaldhaus (line 7 - line 6 was only a repeater with a shortened route at the time)
• October 13, 1926: Waldfriedhof – Griesheim Wagenhalle (line 9)
• October 26, 1926: Merck – Arheilgen Hofgasse (line 8)
• Nov. 30, 1926: Griesheim Wagenhalle – Griesheim Schule (today: Platz Bar-le-Duc - Line 9)
• Aug. 20, 1927: Schlossgartenplatz – Heinheimer Strasse (line 5)
• May 15, 1936: Eberstadt Friedhof – Seeheim (Line 8 - 1200 volts)
• May 25, 1936: Seeheim – Jugenheim (Line 8 - 1200 volts)
• 0Feb. 3, 1946: The 1200-volt external line (Landskronstrasse – Jugenheim) was brought into line with the city network (600 volts)
• 0May 5, 1960: Closure of operations at Wilhelm-Leuschner-Strasse - Pallaswiesenstrasse - Schloßgartenplatz - Heinheimer Strasse (line 5)
• 19 Mar 1966: Ludwigshöhstraße – Lichtenbergschule (line 3)
• June 10, 1968: Goebelstraße – Rodensteinweg (line 6) is closed
• 22 Aug 1970: Closure of operations at Schloss - Stiftstrasse - Taunusstrasse - Fasanerie - Oberwaldhaus (line 6)
• Aug. 18, 1979: Jugenheim – Alsbach Beuneweg (line 8)
• October 12, 1986: Closure of operations at Schloss - Woog - Ostbahnhof (line 4)
• 0July 1, 2002: Central station – Mozart tower connecting curve at the intersection of Berliner Allee / Rheinstrasse / Goebelstrasse (this made it possible to reroute the Griesheimer lines)
• Dec. 13, 2003: Rhönring – Kranichstein train station (lines 4 and 5), first test drives from Nov. 17, 2003
• Dec. 17, 2006: Merck – Arheilgen Hofgasse loop track closed due to renovation work (lines 7 and 8)
• Dec. 14, 2008: Alsbach Beuneweg – Alsbach Am Hinkelstein (lines 6 and 8)
• June 22, 2009: Merck – Arheilgen Hofgasse track loop after renovation work (lines 6, 7 and 8)
• 07 Aug 2011: Arheilgen Löwenplatz – Arheilgen Dreieichweg (lines 6, 7 and 8); first test drives from July 1, 2011
• 0June 3, 2013: Temporary cessation of operations at Willy-Brandt-Platz – Hauptbahnhof due to renovation work (line 3)
• Dec 11, 2016: Reopening of Willy-Brandt-Platz main station after renovation work

Renaming of stops

The sorting takes place from the city center to the ends of the respective route:

• Louisenplatz → Luisenplatz → Adolf-Hitler-Platz (1933) → Luisenplatz (1945)

Luisenplatz – Böllenfalltor:

• Holzstrasse / Justus-Liebig-Haus canceled (July 25, 2005), this stop was used as a replacement stop during the new construction period from September 19 to November 12, 2005
• Jahnstrasse → University Stadium (December 12, 2010)
• Steinberg / Stadion → Merck Stadium (December 13, 2015)

Luisenplatz – Hauptbahnhof (- Rodensteinweg):

• Rheintor lifted
• Otto-Wolfskehl-Strasse → Berliner Allee
• Goebelstrasse canceled (March 17, 2003)

Schulstrasse – Lichtenberg School:

• Hermannstrasse → Freiberger Platz (May 29, 1994)
• Landskronstrasse → Ludwigshöhstrasse

(Heinheimer Straße -) Klinikum - Hauptbahnhof (Goebelstraße):

• Wendelstadtstraße → Sudetengaustraße → Wilhelm-Leuschner-Straße → Klinikum (June 1, 1997)
• Feldbergstrasse → Kirschenallee (December 11, 2016, relocated from the junction of Feldbergstrasse to the junction of Kirschenallee)

Castle (- Ostbahnhof):

• Beckstrasse → Woog (1953) → Elisabethenstift / Woog (December 11, 2016)
• Congress center → Congress center darmstadtium (December 13, 2015)

Luisenplatz – Arheilgen:

• Bismarckstrasse / Court → Willy-Brandt-Platz (May 29, 1994)
• Public utilities → Rhönring
• Track loop Merck → Maulbeerallee (December 11, 2011)
• Hofgasse → Löwenplatz (July 12, 2011)

Rhein- / Neckarstrasse – Alsbach:

• Moosbergstraße → Landskronstraße (relocated from the junction of Moosbergstraße to the junction of Landskronstraße)
• Waldfriede → Carl-Ulrich-Straße (relocated from the junction of Friedrich-Naumann-Straße to the junction of Carl-Ulrich-Straße)
• Jugenheim → (Jugenheim) Ludwigstrasse (August 18, 1979)

Berliner Allee – Griesheim:

• Richthofenbunker → Mozart Tower → TZ Rhein / Main (December 11, 2016)
• Rabenaustraße → Robert-Bosch-Straße → Maria-Goeppert-Straße (May 28, 2000)
• Hofmannstrasse → Griesheimer Markt (May 29, 1988) → Am Markt (May 29, 1994) → Hans-Karl-Platz / Am Markt (June 1, 1997)
• Municipal House → School → Bar-le-Duc Square (September 26th 1976)

vehicles

Railcar 37 of the ST 2 series, built in 1913

Railcar 57 of the ST 3 series with sidecar 132 of the SB 3 series

Railcar 12 of the ST 6 series with sidecar 197 of the SB 6 series as "Datterich-Express"

Railcar 25 of the ST 7 series

Railcar 66 of the ST 9 series in the Bergisches Tram Museum

Railcar 7608 of the ST 10 series

Railcar 9121 of the ST 12 series

Railcar 9862 of the ST 13 series

Railcar 0777 of the ST 14 series

Side car 9433 of the SB 9 series

Designation scheme

The trams used in Darmstadt are named according to their design as ST (for tram multiple units) or SB (for tram sidecar), followed by a serial number for each series. The first railcar series (1-18 from 1897) and the first sidecar series (101-106 from 1899) were no longer taken into account when this ST and SB designation was introduced (presumably in 1946) because they no longer exist or only as Work cars were in use. The railcars were either working railcars or sidecars of the SB 4 series, the sidecars (from 1899) were retired in 1935. The construction serial number is not always consecutive, especially when purchasing used vehicles. This was the case with the ST 0 (formerly Marburg 1951) and ST 6 'and SB 6' (formerly Regensburg 1964) series. This meant that the series of multiple units and sidecars of the same type could have the same number ( war tram cars : ST 5 / SB 5 - 1948, type II : ST 6 / SB 6 - 1951/55 and the first articulated multiple units and large sidecars : ST 7 / SB 7 - 1961 / 65). Since the acquisition of the Remscheid railcars (1969 as ST 9), the designation has been continuous, as the move away from sidecar operation was planned (but has not yet happened). But an ST-9 railcar (retired in 1992) never pulled an SB 9 sidecar (built in 1994).

1st system: 1897-1945

Until 1944, the railcars received one to two-digit numbers consecutively from number 1-79 and the sidecar three-digit numbers in the 100 range (101-156). Work cars were given 90 numbers (93–98), the work and market sidecars had 300 numbers.

2. System: 1946–1969 (sidecar 1987)

1946–1969 (sidecar 1987) the numbers for passenger traffic remain basically the same, only one always started with a 1 in the number (1948: the ST 5-Tw 81 - 85 and the SB 5-Bw 171 - 179). Exception: In 1964 the ex-Regensburg twos were given the numbers 86 - 89. So there was a gap between numbers 80 and 90. This was also the beginning of the time of the second occupancy: ST 0 "1" and "2", ST 6 "11" - "19", ST 7 "21" - "33", ST 9 "61" - "66", SB 7 "151" - "156" (series went up to "162") and SB 8 "171" - "178". The ST 8 railcars replaced the work railcars, which then had single-digit numbers (ST 8 "91", "92", "93" - "97" in the second or even third occupancy. The work railcars number "4", "6" and "7"). The work sidecars had to give up their 300 number to the diesel buses in 1946 and have been in the 500 range ever since.

• 0xx, tram cars. However, the number 0 was not placed in front of the two-digit wagon numbers (exception: vehicles of the ST 7 series converted to other driving switches). Special features within this number range: The 90s numbers were intended for and in use for utility vehicles. When the ST 8 series went into operation, the few work cars (most recently Tw 4) were designated with single-digit numbers.
• 1xx, tram sidecar
• 2xx, trolleybuses
• 3xx, diesel buses
• 4xx, bus trailer
• 5xx, work sidecar
• 6xx and even higher, other vehicles from the HEAG group.

The numbering scheme was later broken. The former Regensburg sidecars were given the numbers 199–202 (1964) and were thus included in the numbering scheme of the former trolleybuses (abandoned in 1963). Diesel buses were also later included in the number ranges 200 and 400.

3rd system: 1976 (sidecar 1994) to 2007

Since 1976 (sidecar 1994) four-digit car numbers have been assigned, the first two digits of which consist of the respective year, followed by a serial number. The year, however, does not always match the delivery of all vehicles in a series. The ST 10 series was given the numbers 7601-7608, although only the first vehicle was delivered in 1976, the rest in 1977. Conversely, the ST 12 series received the numbers 9115–9124, although the first vehicle was delivered in December 1990 (and thus the series could have been numbered as 9015–9024 analogous to the ST 10 series). A distinction between motor coaches and sidecars is no longer made.

Vehicle use

Only the series ST12 , ST13 and ST14 railcars and the sidecars of the SB9 series are in regular service .

Railcar

• (no designation), number 1–18, new vehicles 1897, MAN / Siemens
• ST 1, number 19–34, new vehicles 1903, MAN / Siemens
• ST 2, number 35–49, new vehicles 1913, Gastell / Siemens, number 37 and 49 received
• ST 3, number 50–67, new vehicles 1925, Gastell / Siemens, number 57 (operational), 66 and 67 received
• ST 4, number 68–79, new vehicles 1929, MAN / Gastell / Siemens, number 74 received
• ST 5, Tw 81–85, new vehicles 1948, Waggonfabrik Fuchs, from Augsburg, Tw 507, a similar vehicle was taken over
• ST 0, Tw 1–2, used vehicles 1927, Credé / Kiepe, taken over from Marburg in 1951
• ST 6, number 11-19, new vehicles 1954/55, Rathgeber / Siemens ( association type ), number 11 (ATw, operational), 12 (Datterich-Express, operational) and 15 received, as well as 13 since 1983 as 291 "Schoppen-Express “In Würzburg
• ST 6 ', number 86–89, used vehicles 1956 (largely identical to the ST 6), Rathgeber / Siemens, taken over from Regensburg in 1964 , number 88 returned there in 1990 as a memorial
• ST 7, Tw 21–33, new vehicles 1961, DWM / Siemens / AEG, Tw 25 and 31 in working order, 26 not in working order, rest of 1998 to Iași / Romania. There except for Tw 23 (as Iasi 103) all scrapped from 2009 to June 2013.
• ST 8, number 91–97, new vehicles 1963, DWM / AEG / Kiepe, number 91, 93–95 and 97 1998 to Iași / Romania. No. 92 (August 2007 in Iași / Romania) and No. 96 (May 17, 1994 after the depot fire in Darmstadt) were scrapped. Remainder of May / June 2013 scrapped in Iasi / Romania.
• ST 9, Tw 61–66, used vehicles 1960, Westwaggon / Siemens, taken over from Remscheid in 1969 , Tw 66 (formerly Remscheid 106, preserved in the Bergisches Tram Museum)
• ST 10 , number 7601–7608, new vehicles 1976, Waggon-Union / AEG, number 7608 kept operational, the rest in Iași / Romania
• ST 11 , number 8209–8214, new vehicles 1982, Waggon-Union / AEG, number 8210 preserved in working order, 8209 and 8214 scrapped, the rest in Iași / Romania
• ST 12 , number 9115–9124, new vehicles 1991, Waggon-Union / AEG, all available
• ST 13 , Tw 9855–9874, new vehicles 1998, LHB / Adtranz, all available
• ST 14 , Tw 0775-0792, new vehicles 2007, Alstom (LHB) / Bombardier, all available
• Type M8C , so far without a designation in Darmstadt, taken over from Augsburg in 2012 , formerly Tw 8001 and 8011, manufactured by MAN in 1985, converted 8001 into a grinding train and in operation under the new number 1501, 8011 was a spare parts dispenser and was scrapped in 2014.
• ST 15 , In January 2020, 14 new railcars were ordered from Stadler Rail . Delivery of the railcars is planned for 2022 and 2023. There is also an option to purchase up to 30 additional railcars of the same type.

sidecar

• (no name), Bw 101–106, new vehicles 1899
• SB 1, Bw 107–116, new vehicles 1913, Fuchs wagon factory
• SB 2, Bw 117-131, new vehicles 1920, MAN
• SB 3, Bw 132-143, new vehicles 1927, Gastell, Bw 132 preserved in working order
• SB 4, Bw 144–156, converted in 1927 from railcars of the first series
• SB 5, Bw 171–179, new vehicles 1948, Waggonfabrik Uerdingen, Bw 171 preserved
• SB 6, Bw 181–198, new vehicles 1951–1954, Rathgeber ( association type ), Bw 182, 184 (Datterich-Express) and 197 (Datterich-Express) kept operational, and 183 since 1989 as 292 "Schoppen-Express" in Würzburg
• SB 6 ', Bw 199–202, used vehicles 1956 (largely identical to SB 6), Rathgeber, taken over from Regensburg in 1964 , Bw 202 preserved, 201 returned to Regensburg in 1990 as a memorial
• SB 7, Bw 151–162, new vehicles 1965, Düwag, Bw 154 preserved
• SB 8, Bw 171–178, used vehicles 1956/61, Düwag, taken over from Bielefeld in 1988
• SB 9 , Bw 9425-9454, new vehicles 1994, LHB, all available

Current projects

Lichtwiesenbahn

A route that will open up the grounds of the TU-Lichtwiese (Lichtwiesenbahn) is currently being built. From the Hochschulstadion stop (lines 2 and 9 in Nieder-Ramstädter Straße) the route will branch off to the east to TU Lichtwiese. Two new stops will be created: the climbing hall and the final stop at TU-Lichtwiese / Mensa . The Lichtwiesenbahn is to be served by line 2 in the future. The existing route to the Böllenfalltor is therefore only served by line 9.

Redevelopment

Further renovation projects are planned well into the 2020s. This includes the remainder of Bismarckstrasse up to Willy-Brandt-Platz, the barrier-free conversion of the same, as well as Frankfurter Strasse continuing north to the Rhönring.

Extension line 3

With the withdrawal of the US armed forces from Darmstadt, various plots of land are intended for civil use again. The area south of the previous end point of line 3, the so-called Cambrai-Fritsch barracks, is to be developed by extending the aforementioned line. Several routes are possible, and a link to the route to Eberstadt further west is also being considered.

Route to Groß -zimmer

→ Main article : Darmstadt Ost – Groß-Zimmer railway line

The Lord Mayor of Darmstadt, Jochen Partsch , supports the reactivation of the Darmstadt Ost – Groß -zimmer line as a tram starting in Darmstadt Mitte, via Ostbahnhof, Roßdorf , Gundernhausen , Groß -zimmer , to Dieburg . Alternatively, a branch of the Odenwaldbahn is under discussion, which should run from Ostbahnhof instead of the previous railway ring (Ostbahnhof-Nordbahnhof-Hauptbahnhof) on the route of tram line 4, which was closed in 1986, as a tram to the final stop Schloss.

Route to Weiterstadt

There have also been plans for a new line to Weiterstadt for many years, but the plans are stagnating.

Steam-powered trains

Fiery Elias at the Frankenstein stop at Seeheimer Strasse 70 in Darmstadt-Eberstadt

Fiery Elias at the Am Hinkelstein stop in Alsbach-Hähnlein

The Fiery Elias is a steam tram operated by the ARGE Historische HEAG vehicles in the Eisenbahnmuseum Darmstadt-Kranichstein e. V. , which is pulled by a two-axle steam locomotive. Steam-powered trains run on designated Sundays and public holidays in the spring season without a scheduled stop from the Frankenstein stop at Seeheimer Straße 70 in Darmstadt-Eberstadt to the Am Hinkelstein stop in Alsbach-Hähnlein and run on the route from the Kongresszentrum to Schloß-Griesheim in the summer season , Wagenhalle and back.

vehicles

• 

  Steam locomotive no.7 and wagon no.4

• 

  Car No. 100

• 

  Car No. 101

• 

  Car No. 301

Steam locomotive No. 7

The two-axle Bn2t steam locomotive No. 7 was built in 1919 with a gauge of 900 mm, which was not unusual for industrial narrow-gauge railways at the time, at Henschel & Sohn in Kassel with the serial number 17218 for the construction company Philipp Holzmann . It was saved from scrapping by the railway engineer Rudolph Langeloth and given a general overhaul. The locomotive was retraced to a gauge of 1000 mm so that it can be operated on the Darmstadt tram network.

Car No. 4

Car No. 4 was originally built as a rail transport car for the SEG- Bahn Mannheim - Heidelberg - Weinheim and delivered there. A replica of a closed passenger car was built on its chassis from the year 2000 according to the original plans and was completed in December 2003.

Car No. 100

Car no. 100 is based on the chassis of a former Mainz work car that had been in the Darmstadt-Kranichstein Railway Museum a long time ago. When building the car, the semi-open summer car of the Darmstädter Bahnen served as a model.

Car No. 101

Car no. 101 was originally delivered as an open freight car to the SEG-Bahn Mannheim-Heidelberg-Weinheim, which later became the OEG. Identical wagons were also used as market wagons by SEG Darmstadt until around 1959. The car came to the Darmstadt-Kranichstein Railway Museum in 1998, where it was converted into a half-open passenger car.

Car No. 301

Car No. 301 was an open passenger car from the start and is the only original vehicle of the former steam tram that has been preserved . Over time it was converted into a market and work car. Today it is owned by HEAG mobilo .

gallery

• 

  Temporarily closed track and switch with advanced switch device on Langen Ludwig

• 

  Central station with turning loop and diverted ST 13 from Arheilgen

• 

  Four-rail track in Kirschenallee and ST 13 (doorless side) in Bismarckstraße

• 

  Series ST 12 railcar from Kranichstein turns into Bismarckstrasse due to a construction site diversion, 2009

• 

  ST 13 in the narrow town through Eberstadt

• 

  Special trip of a historic tram leaving Luisenplatz, railcar 57 and sidecar 132

• 

  Special trip of the steam tram near Frankfurter Straße 55 coming from the north in June 2009

• 

  Catenary construction prototype

See also

• Tram Museum Darmstadt-Kranichstein

literature

• HEAG mobilo GmbH: "I always enjoyed driving". Darmstadt tram drivers through the ages . Büchner-Verlag: Darmstadt 2014. ISBN 978-3-941310-41-4 .
• Hermann Bürnheim, Jürgen Burmeister: Trains and buses around the long Ludwig . 4th ed., Alba Publication, 1997. 128 pp. ISBN 3-87094-357-2 .
• First love line 5. 120 years of Darmstadt tram history (s) . Wartberg publishing house. Large format illustrated book. 64 pp. ISBN 3-8313-1666-X . Darmstadt: 2006.
• Karl Knapp : The steam tram to Griesheim . In: The railway and its history = series of publications of the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg 2 (Ed .: Georg Wittenberger / Förderkreis Museen und Denkmalpflege Darmstadt-Dieburg), Darmstadt 1985, pp. 40–44.
• Hans Buchmann: The Darmstadt-Eberstadt steam suburban railway and its later extension to Alsbach . In: The railway and its history = series of publications of the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg 2 (Ed .: Georg Wittenberger / Förderkreis Museen und Denkmalpflege Darmstadt-Dieburg), Darmstadt 1985, pp. 45–50.

Web links

Commons : Trams in Darmstadt  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Commons : Feuriger Elias (Darmstadt)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Commons : Bn2t Steam Locomotive No. 7  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• HEAG mobilo GmbH website
• Route network plans for Darmstadt and the Darmstadt-Dieburg district
• Websites of the Working Group on Historic HEAG Vehicles e. V.
• Current and historical pictures of the tram in Darmstadt
• Photos of the current tram types
• Special trip with car 12 in August 1987

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} HEAG facts and figures 2016. In: heagmobilo.de , accessed on October 1, 2017
2. ↑ Netzplan 2017. In: dadina.de , accessed on October 1, 2017
3. ↑ https://www.heagmobilo.de/sites/default/files/media/presse/Plakat%20A3_Wagen%2057_2015_11_19.pdf
4. ↑ Information on Line 24 (PDF file)
5. ^ Franz flat: Gerauer stories. 600 years of city and market rights. Groß-Gerau 1997, p. 58 f.
6. ^ History of the Darmstadt tram. ( Memento of the original from October 23, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. HEAG Mobilo, accessed on October 23, 2014 
7. ^ History of the Darmstadt tram - tram in crisis. ( Memento of the original from October 23, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. HEAG Mobilo, accessed on October 23, 2014 
8. ↑ HEAG Mobilo press release on the renaming of the Hofgasse stop ( Memento of the original from January 14, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
9. ↑ bif. In: Darmstädter Echo, Tuesday, January 7, 2020, p. 9.
10. ↑ bif. In: Darmstädter Echo, Thursday, January 30, 2020, p. 10.
11. ↑ lichtwiesenbahn.de: Planning , accessed on May 30, 2020
12. ↑ A tram instead of the northeast bypass? ( Memento from April 16, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) In: Echo online
13. ↑ Concept City-Land-Bahn Darmstadt Ost. In: bund-darmstadt.de , accessed on October 24, 2014 (PDF file)
14. ↑ Tram to Weiterstadt remains on hold ( Memento from February 18, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) In: Darmstädter Echo , February 15, 2012
15. ↑ Car No. 301. Website of the Working Group on Historic HEAG Vehicles