In Mainz the line crosses the Rhine at its confluence with the Main and continued to Bischofsheim, where the Main Railway branches off towards Frankfurt am Main, and turns to the southeast towards Gross-Gerau. It then proceeds in an easterly direction to Darmstadt and reaches the north end of the track field of Darmstadt Hauptbahnhof (central station). Passenger trains generally run on the Main-Neckar line to Darmstadt Hbf, before reversing to continue their journey on the Rhine-Main line. Nevertheless, the line’s tracks continue under the station's track field, allowing trains to run directly towards Aschaffenburg. This route is almost exclusively used by freight trains. East of Darmstadt the line runs through a contiguous forested area through Messel station to Dieburg, which is also served by trains on the Rodgau line and the Dreieich line to Dreieich-Buchschlag and Frankfurt am Main. The route then runs in a northeasterly direction via Babenhausen, crosses the Main between Stockstadt and Mainaschaff and ends in Aschaffenburg. The whole line is double track and electrified. The Rhine-Main line has the unusual distinction of being served by regional trains that operate through three German states: Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and Bavaria.
The Rhine-Main line was designed, built and operated by the private Hessian Ludwig Railway. It came to compete with the North Main route (the Frankfurt-Hanau and Taunus Railways) between the Rhine and the Bavarian Ludwig's Western Railway at Aschaffenburg. In contrast to this route, the Rhine-Main line offered an uninterrupted line, while the Taunus and Frankfurt-Hanau lines in the early days still terminated at two different train stations in Frankfurt, which were not linked by rail. The disadvantage of the Rhine-Main line was that at first the crossing of the Rhine to Mainz depended on a train ferry. Apart from the Rhine and Main there were no significant physical obstacles for the railway to overcome.
The basis for the construction of the line was a treaty between the Grand Duchy of Hesse and the Kingdom of Bavaria on 28 March 1852. The concession to build the line in Hesse-Darmstadt was granted on 3 March 1856 and construction began after the harvest of 1856. In February 1856, the section between Mainspitze ("Main spit" on the Rhine opposite Mainz) and Darmstadt was completed. On 19 April 1858 the Grand Duke Louis III visited the construction site at Mainspitze and used a train. Test runs were operated on the line from 18 July. The Rhine-Main line finally opened on 1 August 1858 between Mainspitze and Darmstadt. It was first released for freight trains and a little later for the first passenger trains. The eastern section to Aschaffenburg was opened on 15 November 1858, with scheduled passenger trains operating on 27 December 1858. At the beginning there were three trains each way, each day; a few years later there were eight. The construction of the railway infrastructure cost 3.9 million guilders. The duplication of the line began in 1871. It was praised by passengers for having glass windows in its third class carriages—in contrast to the adjacent Main-Neckar Railway.
The Hessian Ludwig Railway Company, including the Rhine-Main Railway, was nationalised during the formation of the Prussian-Hessian Railway Company (Königlich Preußische und Großherzoglich Hessischen Staatseisenbahnen) in 1897.
The line was electrified in 1958/59 and since 9 May 1960 electric trains have operated on it.
Regionalbahn train hauled by class 143 electric locomotive in Mainz-Bischofsheim station on its way to Darmstadt
The line is operated in passenger transport as route number 651 and is managed by the Rhine-Main Transport Association (Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund, RMV) and served by Regionalbahn line 75. A contract for the operation of the line was awarded for 10 years from December 2008 to DB Regio, which has gradually converted operations since the end of July 2008 from old Silberling sets to modern double-deckers. Trains also run via Mainz to Wiesbaden Hauptbahnhof. Services on the line run every hour; at peak hours from Monday to Friday, between 6 and 9 AM and between 4 and 7 PM services operate every half-hour, with only an hourly train operating via Darmstadt Hauptbahnhof.
Referencesedit
^Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland (German railway atlas). Schweers + Wall. 2009. pp. 76–78, 151, 154. ISBN978-3-89494-139-0.
Beckmann, Franz (1985). "Die Bahnpost von Mainz nach Aschaffenburg". In Wittenberger, Georg (ed.). Die Bahn und ihre Geschichte = Schriftenreihe des Landkreises Darmstadt-Dieburg 2 (in German). Darmstadt: Förderkreis Museen und Denkmalpflege Darmstadt-Dieburg. pp. 58f.
National Heritage Board of Hesse, ed. (2005). Eisenbahn in Hessen. Kulturdenkmäler in Hessen. Denkmaltopographie Bundesrepublik Deutschland (in German). Vol. 2. Stuttgart: Theiss Verlag. pp. 230ff (line 014). ISBN3-8062-1917-6.
Wittenberger, Georg (1985). "Die Main-Rhein-Bahn". In Wittenberger, Georg (ed.). Die Bahn und ihre Geschichte = Schriftenreihe des Landkreises Darmstadt-Dieburg 2 (in German). Darmstadt: Förderkreis Museen und Denkmalpflege Darmstadt-Dieburg. pp. 51–57.
External linksedit
January 01, 1970
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The Rhine Main Railway German Main Rhein Bahn is a railway line in southern Germany from Mainz via Darmstadt to Aschaffenburg It was built by the Hessian Ludwig Railway Hessische Ludwigsbahn and opened on 1 August 1858 and is one of the oldest railways in Germany Until 1862 when the railway bridge over the Rhine river constructed and assembled by MAN Werk Gustavsburg was finished 2 a train ferry operated on the river Rhine Main RailwayOverviewNative nameRhein Main BahnLine number3520 Mainz Mainz Bischofsheim 3530 Mainz Bischofsheim Darmstadt 3540 Weiterstadt Stockschneise Darmstadt Nord 3557 Darmstadt AschaffenburgLocaleBavaria and Hesse GermanyServiceRoute number651TechnicalLine length77 7 km 48 3 mi Number of tracks2 throughout Electrification15 kV 16 7 Hz AC overhead catenaryOperating speed160 km h 99 mph max Route mapLegend West Rhine Railway from Boppard from freight diversion lineand Wiesbaden Hbf line from Alzey to port of Mainz 0 000 Mainz Hbf Mainz Hbf Tunnel northbound line New Mainz Tunnel southbound line Mainz South Tunnel northbound line 1 800 Mainz Romisches Theater formerly Mainz Sud line to the former Mainz Hauptbahnhof line to Ludwigshafen 3 076 South Bridge at Mainz RhineRP Hesse state border former terminus transfer to the ferry 4 580 Mainz Gustavsburg 5 600 Mainz Gustavsburg port siding Freight diversion line to the Taunus Railway 7 780 Mainz Bischofsheim to Mz Bischofshm We see rail bypass Main Railway to Frankfurt from Mz Bischofshm O see rail bypass 11 100 Mainz Bischofsheim crossover I station part 16 475 Nauheim b Gross Gerau 19 739 Gross Gerau to Mannheim Mannheim Frankfurt railway Klein Gerau Eichmuhle branchfrom Mannheim Frankfurt railway 22 013 Klein Gerau 26 646 Weiterstadt 29 652 Weiterstadt Stockschneise junction former Riedbahnfrom Riedstadt Goddelau Griesheim Rohm siding 30 668 Darmstadt Bergschneise junction former Riedbahn toDarmstadt freight yard Main Neckar Railway from Frankfurt Main Neckar Railwayfrom Frankfurt 34 950 31 861 Darmstadt freight yard 33 960 33 360 Darmstadt Hbf Main Neckar Railway to Heidelberg from Darmstadt Arheilgen Darmstadt Hbf Darmstadt Nord line to former Hbf until 1912 37 850 Darmstadt Nord Odenwald Railway to Hochst former link to the Odenwald Railway 40 374 Darmstadt KranichsteinDarmstadt Kranichstein Railway Museum 45 594 Messel Messel mine Rodgau Railway from Reinheim 53 200 Dieburg Rodgau Railway to Offenbach 57 647 Altheim Hess 59 876 Hergershausen Sickenhofen planned 63 1 Odenwald Railway from Hochst 63 711 Babenhausen Hesse 64 8 Odenwald Railway to Hanau 71 685 Stockstadt Main 72 202 Main 73 232 Mainaschaff junctionto the Main Spessart Railway 73 54 Mainaschaff Main Spessart Railway from Hanau 76 100 Aschaffenburg Hbf exit station part 77 7 Aschaffenburg Hbf Main Spessart Railway to Gemunden Source German railway atlas 1 Contents 1 Route 2 History 3 Operations 3 1 Freight 3 2 Passengers 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksRoute editIn Mainz the line crosses the Rhine at its confluence with the Main and continued to Bischofsheim where the Main Railway branches off towards Frankfurt am Main and turns to the southeast towards Gross Gerau It then proceeds in an easterly direction to Darmstadt and reaches the north end of the track field of Darmstadt Hauptbahnhof central station Passenger trains generally run on the Main Neckar line to Darmstadt Hbf before reversing to continue their journey on the Rhine Main line Nevertheless the line s tracks continue under the station s track field allowing trains to run directly towards Aschaffenburg This route is almost exclusively used by freight trains East of Darmstadt the line runs through a contiguous forested area through Messel station to Dieburg which is also served by trains on the Rodgau line and the Dreieich line to Dreieich Buchschlag and Frankfurt am Main The route then runs in a northeasterly direction via Babenhausen crosses the Main between Stockstadt and Mainaschaff and ends in Aschaffenburg The whole line is double track and electrified The Rhine Main line has the unusual distinction of being served by regional trains that operate through three German states Rhineland Palatinate Hesse and Bavaria History edit nbsp Old railway station of the Hessian Ludwig Railway in Darmstadt ca 1875 The Rhine Main line was designed built and operated by the private Hessian Ludwig Railway It came to compete with the North Main route the Frankfurt Hanau and Taunus Railways between the Rhine and the Bavarian Ludwig s Western Railway at Aschaffenburg In contrast to this route the Rhine Main line offered an uninterrupted line while the Taunus and Frankfurt Hanau lines in the early days still terminated at two different train stations in Frankfurt which were not linked by rail The disadvantage of the Rhine Main line was that at first the crossing of the Rhine to Mainz depended on a train ferry Apart from the Rhine and Main there were no significant physical obstacles for the railway to overcome The basis for the construction of the line was a treaty between the Grand Duchy of Hesse and the Kingdom of Bavaria on 28 March 1852 The concession to build the line in Hesse Darmstadt was granted on 3 March 1856 and construction began after the harvest of 1856 In February 1856 the section between Mainspitze Main spit on the Rhine opposite Mainz and Darmstadt was completed On 19 April 1858 the Grand Duke Louis III visited the construction site at Mainspitze and used a train Test runs were operated on the line from 18 July The Rhine Main line finally opened on 1 August 1858 between Mainspitze and Darmstadt It was first released for freight trains and a little later for the first passenger trains The eastern section to Aschaffenburg was opened on 15 November 1858 with scheduled passenger trains operating on 27 December 1858 At the beginning there were three trains each way each day a few years later there were eight The construction of the railway infrastructure cost 3 9 million guilders The duplication of the line began in 1871 It was praised by passengers for having glass windows in its third class carriages in contrast to the adjacent Main Neckar Railway The Hessian Ludwig Railway Company including the Rhine Main Railway was nationalised during the formation of the Prussian Hessian Railway Company Koniglich Preussische und Grossherzoglich Hessischen Staatseisenbahnen in 1897 The line was electrified in 1958 59 and since 9 May 1960 electric trains have operated on it Operations editFreight edit The track is important for long distance freight transport as it bypasses the Frankfurt am Main rail node It connects the Left and Right Rhine line with the Main Spessart Railway and also to the north to Hanau and the Frankfurt Bebra railway the Friedberg Hanau line and the Main Weser Railway The line is also used by Motorail trains and occasionally used for military and nuclear waste transport Passengers edit nbsp Regionalbahn train hauled by class 143 electric locomotive in Mainz Bischofsheim station on its way to Darmstadt The line is operated in passenger transport as route number 651 and is managed by the Rhine Main Transport Association Rhein Main Verkehrsverbund RMV and served by Regionalbahn line 75 A contract for the operation of the line was awarded for 10 years from December 2008 to DB Regio which has gradually converted operations since the end of July 2008 from old Silberling sets to modern double deckers Trains also run via Mainz to Wiesbaden Hauptbahnhof Services on the line run every hour at peak hours from Monday to Friday between 6 and 9 AM and between 4 and 7 PM services operate every half hour with only an hourly train operating via Darmstadt Hauptbahnhof References edit Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland German railway atlas Schweers Wall 2009 pp 76 78 151 154 ISBN 978 3 89494 139 0 MAN Maschinenfabrik Augsburg Nurnberg Bridges Historical advertisementFurther reading editBeckmann Franz 1985 Die Bahnpost von Mainz nach Aschaffenburg In Wittenberger Georg ed Die Bahn und ihre Geschichte Schriftenreihe des Landkreises Darmstadt Dieburg 2 in German Darmstadt Forderkreis Museen und Denkmalpflege Darmstadt Dieburg pp 58f Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland German railway atlas 2007 2008 edition Schweers Wall 2007 ISBN 978 3 89494 136 9 National Heritage Board of Hesse ed 2005 Eisenbahn in Hessen Kulturdenkmaler in Hessen Denkmaltopographie Bundesrepublik Deutschland in German Vol 2 Stuttgart Theiss Verlag pp 230ff line 014 ISBN 3 8062 1917 6 Wittenberger Georg 1985 Die Main Rhein Bahn In Wittenberger Georg ed Die Bahn und ihre Geschichte Schriftenreihe des Landkreises Darmstadt Dieburg 2 in German Darmstadt Forderkreis Museen und Denkmalpflege Darmstadt Dieburg pp 51 57 External links editHistoric document about the Rhine Main Railway Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rhine Main Railway amp oldid 1099827892, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
