Westfalenbahn

WestfalenBahn GmbH
Basic information
Company headquarters	Bielefeld
Web presence	www.westfalenbahn.de
owner	Abellio GmbH
Managing directors	Thomas Kopp
Transport network	Westphalian tariff GVH VRB
Employee	about 300
Lines
Gauge	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
railroad	3
number of vehicles
Railcar	15 Stadler FLIRT-3 EMU 4 13 Stadler KISS-3 EMU 6
statistics
Passengers	20.0 million per year
Mileage	5.4 million km / year
Length of line network
Railway lines	600 km
Operating facilities
Depots	2

The Westphalia course GmbH (WFB) is a founded in 2005 by German railway company based in Bielefeld , which is wholly owned by the Berlin Abellio GmbH located.

Shareholder

When the company was founded, four companies each had a 25 percent stake, with the exception of Abellio all of the partners being municipal companies.

Abellio GmbH, Berlin
Mindener Kreisbahnen GmbH, Minden
moBiel GmbH, Bielefeld
Verkehrsbetriebe Extertal GmbH, Extertal

On July 12, 2017, it was announced that the company had been completely taken over by Abellio, as otherwise there would be an obligation to tender for urban traffic for municipal companies.

When the WestfalenBahn was founded in 2005, Abellio was still a subsidiary of the Essener Versorgungs- und Verkehrsgesellschaft mbH (EVV), making the Westfalenbahn a purely municipal company, which was partially sold in the same year.

business

Westfalenbahn network (since December 2017)

Emsland Express

In December 2015, the Westfalenbahn took over the Regional Express previously operated by DB Regio on the Emsland route between Emden and Münster for fifteen years . Fifteen Flirters are used , which were manufactured by Stadler Pankow GmbH

line	Surname	Train run	KBS	Contract term
RE 15	Emsland Express	Emden - Leer - Papenburg - Lingen - Rheine - Münster	395	Dec. 2015– Dec. 2030

Mittelland

In December 2015, Westfalenbahn also took over the Regional Express trains from Braunschweig via Hanover to Rheine and Bielefeld, which were previously operated by DB Regio, for fifteen years. Thirteen six- car double - decker multiple units are used , which were manufactured by Stadler Pankow GmbH.

line	Surname	Train run	KBS	Contract term
RE 60	Ems-Leine-Express	Braunschweig - Peine - Lehrte - Hanover - Minden - Löhne - Osnabrück - Rheine		Dec. 2015 - Dec. 2030
RE 70	Weser-Leine-Express	Braunschweig - Peine - Lehrte - Hanover - Minden - Löhne - Herford - Bielefeld		Dec. 2015 - Dec. 2030

Former company

Westfalenbahn network (2012)

line	Surname	KBS	Train run	Contract term	New operator
RB 61	Wiehengebirgs-Bahn	375, 368, 370	Bielefeld - Osnabrück - Rheine - Bad Bentheim	Dec 2007 - Dec 2017	eurobahn
RB 65	Ems railway	410	Rheine - Munster	Dec 2007 - Dec 2017	eurobahn
RB 66	Teuto-Bahn	385	Osnabrück - Münster	Dec 2007 - Dec 2017	eurobahn
RB 72	East Westphalia Railway	405	Herford - Detmold - Altenbeken - Paderborn	Dec 2007 - Dec 2017	eurobahn

vehicles

ET 414 multiple unit of the Westfalenbahn as RE15

ET 603 multiple unit of the Westfalenbahn as RE70

Electric multiple units from the manufacturer Stadler Rail are used on the Westfalenbahn network. 15 four-part FLIRT 3s with 215 seats each and a top speed of 160 km / h operate on the Münster - Emden route . The vehicles are mostly used in double traction on the route. On the Bielefeld or Rheine - Braunschweig route, the Westfalenbahn operates a total of 13 six-car double-decker trains of the Stadler Kiss type , each with 627 seats. Both vehicle types have multi-purpose areas for bicycle parking spaces, the capacity of which can be increased in summer if necessary.

The new operator Eurobahn has taken over the 14 three- and 5 five-part Stadler FLIRT multiple units, which were used in the Teutoburg Forest network until the timetable change in December 2017 and were procured in 2007 by the leasing company Angel Trains (now AlphaTrains ). The interior and exterior design of the trains will now be gradually adapted.

Associations / tariffs

Westfalenbahn ticket machine

The Westfalenbahn network is fully covered by the Lower Saxony tariff and, with the exception of the Bielefeld Hbf station (and a single stop on the WFB 95820 in Brake ) in the Lower Saxony ticket . The Lower Saxony tariff, which allows the use of a Bahncard , is only used if the journey is not entirely on the Minden – Rheine or Münster – Rheine section and thus within the Westphalian tariff , in which no Bahncards are recognized. For longer journeys, the NRW tariff , which includes the aforementioned Westphalian tariff routes from the Westfalenbahn network, or the nationwide DB tariff may apply.

Depots

The railway depot (Bw) of the Westfalenbahn is located in Rheine on the premises of the Windhoff company . The hall was built by Windhoff and rented out to Westfalenbahn for ten years.

The Westfalenbahn shareholder Mindener Kreisbahnen built a maintenance hall in Minden for traffic on the Mittelland line from Braunschweig to Rheine and Bielefeld . The general cargo hall, which is no longer required, was extended and expanded so that a 173 m long hall with two tracks was created. This hall, known as "Bahnbetriebswerk Minden II", is operated by the Mindener Kreisbahnen and rented to the Westfalenbahn and cost around 10 million euros. The 13 new six-part double-decker railcars of the type KISS from the manufacturer Stadler Pankow GmbH have been serviced here since late 2015 .

The vehicles are also parked in Bielefeld , Braunschweig , Detmold , Emden , Hanover , Meppen , Minden (Westf) , Münster (Westf) , Osnabrück , Paderborn and Rheine .

useful information

logo

The stylized horse appearing in the logo of the Westfalenbahn and on the vehicles is supposed to represent the Westphalia horse, but is more similar to the Lower Saxony horse due to the lowered tail .

Incidents

On May 16, 2015, the worst accident in the history of the Westfalenbahn occurred in Ibbenbüren-Laggenbeck. A tractor had lost its slurry trailer on a railroad crossing . The approaching Westfalenbahn could not brake sufficiently early and rammed the trailer. Two people were killed in the accident: the driver and an 18-year-old passenger.