1.
Essen Hauptbahnhof
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Essen Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the city of Essen in western Germany. It is situated south of the old centre, next to the A40 motorway. It was opened in 1862 by the Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn, however, the station was not the first in Essen, as the station called Essen on the Köln-Mindener Eisenbahn was opened in 1847. The station suffered extensive damage in World War II and was almost completely rebuilt in the 1950s and 1960s, during the following years, the Essen Stadtbahn and the A40 were other construction projects affecting the station. Trains of all call at the station, from long distance to local services. It used to be one of the Metropolitan stops on the Hamburg to Cologne line before the service was discontinued in 2002, there are night services by EuroNight trains to cities such as Moscow and Brussels, and DB NachtZug trains to Zurich and Vienna, among others. Some 400 trains pass through the station each day, making Essen Hauptbahnhof the third busiest railway station in the Ruhr Area after Dortmund Hauptbahnhof, Essen Hauptbahnhof is a separation station, where trains divide to run on several different routes. Its platforms have individual platform canopies, in addition to through platforms, the station has some bay platforms for trains on the line towards Gelsenkirchen and Münster and lines to Hagen and Borken. A centrally located concourse runs across and under the tracks on two levels, and are connected by stairs and escalators. On the lower there are shops and, south of the entrance hall. The lower level allows passage from central Essen to the north of the station to Essen-Südviertel in the south, the upper level serves as the circulation level giving access to the tracks. Direct access to the platforms is possible via lifts from the lower level, a pedestrian tunnel at the eastern end of the platforms also allows passage from central Essen to Südviertel. Below the station there is a station on two levels serving the trams and the Essen Stadtbahn, which are operated by Essener Verkehrs-AG. It has an appearance with its pervasive blue light. On 1 March 1862 the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company opened the section of the Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg railway between Bochum and Mülheim an der Ruhr, the station that developed into Essen Hauptbahnhof, but was known until 1897 as Essen BME station, was opened on this line. It was not the first station in Essen, in 1846 Berge-Borbeck station was opened on the Duisburg–Dortmund railway of the Cologne-Minden Railway Company as the first station in the current city of Essen. In 1847, the CME opened the then major station of Essen CME on the Duisburg–Dortmund railway, construction began in 1900 and the station was opened at the end of 1902. Indicative of this new building was that the entrance hall completed on 15 November 1959 no longer exists, but lies under the railway tracks
2.
Essen
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Essen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Its population of approximately 589,000 makes it the ninth-largest city in Germany and it is the central city of the northern part of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan area and seat to several of the regions authorities. Founded around 845, Essen remained a town within the sphere of influence of an important ecclesiastical principality until the onset of industrialization. The city then — especially through the Krupp family iron works — became one of Germanys most important coal and steel centers. Essen, until the 1970s, attracted workers from all over the country, following the region-wide decline of heavy industries in the last decades of the 20th century, the city has seen the development of a strong tertiary sector of the economy. Although it is the most indebted city in Germany, Essen continues to pursue its redevelopment plans, notable accomplishments in recent years include the title of European Capital of Culture on behalf of the whole Ruhr area in 2010 and the selection as the European Green Capital for 2017. In 1958, Essen was chosen to serve as the seat to a Roman Catholic diocese, in early 2003, the universities of Essen and the nearby city of Duisburg were merged into the University of Duisburg-Essen with campuses in both cities and a university hospital in Essen. Essen is located in the centre of the Ruhr area, one of the largest urban areas in Europe, comprising eleven independent cities and four districts with some 5.3 million inhabitants. The city limits of Essen itself are 87 km long and border ten cities, five independent and five kreisangehörig, the city extends over 21 km from north to south and 17 km from west to east, mainly north of the River Ruhr. The Ruhr forms the Lake Baldeney reservoir in the boroughs of Fischlaken, Kupferdreh, the lake, a popular recreational area, dates from 1931 to 1933, when some thousands of unemployed coal miners dredged it with primitive tools. Generally, large areas south of the River Ruhr are quite green and are quoted as examples of rural structures in the otherwise relatively densely populated central Ruhr area. According to the Federal Statistical Office of Germany, Essen with 9. 2% of its covered by recreational green is the greenest city in North Rhine-Westphalia. The city has been shortlisted for the title of European Green Capital two consecutive times, for 2016 and 2017, winning for 2017, the city was singled out for its exemplary practices in protecting and enhancing nature and biodiversity and efforts to reduce water consumption. Essen participates in a variety of networks and initiatives to reduce gas emissions. The lowest point can be found in the borough of Karnap at 26.5 m. The average elevation is 116 m, Essen comprises fifty boroughs which in turn are grouped into nine suburban districts often named after the most important boroughs. Each Stadtbezirk is assigned a Roman numeral and has a body of nineteen members with limited authority. Most of the boroughs were originally independent municipalities but were annexed from 1901 to 1975
3.
North Rhine-Westphalia
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North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with a population of approximately 18 million, and the fourth largest by area. Its capital is Düsseldorf, the most populous city is Cologne, four of Germanys ten largest cities—Cologne, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, and Essen—are located within the state, as well as the largest metropolitan area on the European continent, Rhine-Ruhr. North Rhine-Westphalia was formed in 1946 as a merger of the provinces of North Rhine and Westphalia, the state has been run by a coalition of the Social Democrats and Greens since 2010. The Ubii and some other Germanic tribes such as the Cugerni were later settled on the west side of the Rhine in the Roman province of Germania Inferior, North of the Sigambri and the Rhine region were the Bructeri. By the 8th century the Frankish dominion was established in western Germany. But at the time, to the north, Westphalia was being taken over by Saxons pushing south. The Merovingian and Carolingian Franks eventually built an empire which controlled first their Ripuarian kin, the Ottonian dynasty had both Saxon and Frankish ancestry. As the central power of the Holy Roman Emperor weakened, the Rhineland split into small independent principalities, each with its separate vicissitudes. Such struggles as the War of the Limburg Succession therefore continued to create military, Aachen was the place of coronation of the German emperors, and the ecclesiastical principalities of the Rhine bulked largely in German history. Prussia first set foot on the Rhine in 1609 by the occupation of the Duchy of Cleves and about a century later Upper Guelders and Moers also became Prussian. At the peace of Basel in 1795 the whole of the bank of the Rhine was resigned to France. In 1920, the districts of Eupen and Malmedy were transferred to Belgium, around 1 AD there were numerous incursions through Westphalia and perhaps even some permanent Roman or Romanized settlements. The Battle of Teutoburg Forest took place near Osnabrück and some of the Germanic tribes who fought at this came from the area of Westphalia. Charlemagne is thought to have spent considerable time in Paderborn and nearby parts and his Saxon Wars also partly took place in what is thought of as Westphalia today. Popular legends link his adversary Widukind to places near Detmold, Bielefeld, Lemgo, Osnabrück, Widukind was buried in Enger, which is also a subject of a legend. Along with Eastphalia and Engern, Westphalia was originally a district of the Duchy of Saxony, in 1180 Westphalia was elevated to the rank of a duchy by Emperor Barbarossa. The Duchy of Westphalia comprised only an area south of the Lippe River. Parts of Westphalia came under Brandenburg-Prussian control during the 17th and 18th centuries, the Peace of Westphalia of 1648, signed in Münster and Osnabrück, ended the Thirty Years War
4.
Germany
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Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
5.
Light rail
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Light rail, light rail transit or fast tram is urban public transport using rolling stock similar to a tramway, but operating at a higher capacity, and often on an exclusive right-of-way. A few light rail networks tend to have closer to rapid transit or even commuter rail. Other light rail networks are tram-like in nature and partially operate on streets, Light rail systems are found throughout the world, on all inhabited continents. They have been popular in recent years due to their lower capital costs. The term light rail was coined in 1972 by the U. S, Urban Mass Transportation Administration to describe new streetcar transformations that were taking place in Europe and the United States. In Germany the term Stadtbahn was used to describe the concept, and many in UMTA wanted to adopt the direct translation, however, UMTA finally adopted the term light rail instead. Light in this context is used in the sense of intended for light loads and fast movement, the infrastructure investment is also usually lighter than would be found for a heavy rail system. The Transportation Research Board defined light rail in 1977 as a mode of urban transportation utilizing predominantly reserved, electrically propelled rail vehicles operate singly or in trains. LRT provides a range of passenger capabilities and performance characteristics at moderate costs. Light rail is a generic international English phrase for these types of rail systems, the use of the generic term light rail avoids some serious incompatibilities between British and American English. The word trolley is used as a synonym for streetcar in the United States. A further difference arose because, while Britain abandoned all of its trams except Blackpool after World War II, when these cities upgraded to new technology, they called it light rail to differentiate it from their existing streetcars since some continued to operate both the old and new systems. Conventional rail technologies including high-speed, freight, commuter/regional, and metro/subway/elevated urban transit systems are considered heavy rail, people movers and personal rapid transit are even lighter, at least in terms of capacity. Monorail is a technology that has been more successful in specialized services than in a commuter transit role. Due to varying definitions, it is hard to distinguish between what is called light rail, and other forms of urban and commuter rail, a system described as light rail in one city may be considered to be a streetcar or tram system in another. Conversely, some lines that are called light rail are in very similar to rapid transit, in recent years. Some light rail systems, such as Sprinter, bear little similarity to urban rail, in the United States, light rail has become a catch-all term to describe a wide variety of passenger rail systems. There is a significant difference in cost between these different classes of light rail transit, tram-like systems are often less expensive than metro-like systems by a factor of two or more
6.
Stadtbahn
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Most Stadtbahn systems are now a mixture of tramway-like operations in suburban and peripheral areas and a more metro-like mode of operation in city centres, with underground stations. This Stadtbahn concept eventually spread from Germany to other European countries, the term Stadtbahn first arose in the first half of the 20th century as a name for the cross-city lines in Berlin and Vienna. The Berlin Stadtbahn line is a heavy rail line linking the East. Long distance, regional, suburban, and urban services are operated on it, the Wiener Stadtbahn was in the beginning a system of heavy rail lines circling the city, free of level crossings, operated by steam trains. After World War I the Wiental, Donaukanal and Gürtel lines were converted into a light rail system with tram-like two-axle cars. In the 1970s to 1990s the infrastructure was updated, and the lines were relocated, they are now part of the Vienna U-Bahn services U4. The Vorortelinie line remained heavy rail and is now part of the Vienna S-Bahn, post-World War II transport policies in West German cities aimed for a separation of public and private transport. The conflicts that arose between increasing car usage and the tramway systems led to the so-called second level concept for future light rail schemes. This concept focused on the separation, i. e. elevation and/or tunneling of tram lines. Munich and Nuremberg decided to build pure, full-scale U-Bahn systems, for both the interim and the long-term based concepts, the following terms came into use, U-Straßenbahn or Untergrund-Straßenbahn, Schnellstraßenbahn and finally Stadtbahn. The numbering scheme for Stadtbahn services was prefixed with a U, except in the Cologne Stadtbahn, Bielefeld Stadtbahn, by the 1980s conventional tramways had been seen by decision-makers as overloaded systems for almost two decades. However, public attention focused on them at this time for two reasons, the Stadtbahn cities second level plans faced unexpected complications in the form of lengthy construction work, budgetary problems for tunnel projects, and protests against elevated sections. At the same time, the cities which had not started Stadtbahn plans reassessed their options in relation to their existing tram systems. The Stadtbahn term has now come to have the meaning of modern tramway or modernized tramway. It has become impossible to differentiate between Straßenbahn and Stadtbahn, among the first cities to use the Stadtbahn term to mean their upgraded tramway systems with no link to appreciable second level infrastructure were Würzburg and Mannheim. East German cities had no 1960s-style Stadtbahn plans in place, and the fleets, after the reunification of Germany in 1990, the use of the Stadtbahn term became popular in the former East Germany as well, as in Erfurt and Dresden. In 1992 Karlsruhe started a new service, using both heavy and light rail infrastructure, to link the wider region to the city. The vehicles were designed to comply with specifications for the heavy railway
7.
Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr
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The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr is the public transport association covering the area of the Rhine-Ruhr conurbation in Germany. In 2004, roughly 1 billion trips were made by way of the VRR network, with the introduction of the VRR in 1980 a new line numbering systems for all bus, tram and Stadtbahn lines in the VRR area was introduced. The VRR was dividied into ten sections getting a key number, the last two numbers are the actual identifying numbers. The key numbers 2,5,8,9 and 0 are not used for Stadtbahn lines, the Wuppertal Schwebebahn is officially called line 60, but because it does not run underground, the U prefix is not used. After the integration of the Niederrhein area north of Duisburg, a new section for key numbers was introduced, the buses have a one- or two-digit number with no key number for identification. There are several exceptions of that system, also, there some extra line numbers e. g. for express buses, none of these numbers is a key number. Semi-fast buses are called City-Express and have the prefix CE followed by a two-digit-number, as with the Schnellbusse none of these numbers is a key number
8.
Track gauge
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In rail transport, track gauge is the spacing of the rails on a railway track and is measured between the inner faces of the load-bearing rails. All vehicles on a network must have running gear that is compatible with the track gauge, as the dominant parameter determining interoperability, it is still frequently used as a descriptor of a route or network. There is a distinction between the gauge and actual gauge at some locality, due to divergence of track components from the nominal. Railway engineers use a device, like a caliper, to measure the actual gauge, the nominal track gauge is the distance between the inner faces of the rails. In current practice, it is specified at a distance below the rail head as the inner faces of the rail head are not necessarily vertical. In some cases in the earliest days of railways, the company saw itself as an infrastructure provider only. Colloquially the wagons might be referred to as four-foot gauge wagons, say and this nominal value does not equate to the flange spacing, as some freedom is allowed for. An infrastructure manager might specify new or replacement track components at a variation from the nominal gauge for pragmatic reasons. Track is defined in old Imperial units or in universally accepted metric units or SI units, Imperial units were established in United Kingdom by The Weights and Measures Act of 1824. In addition, there are constraints, such as the load-carrying capacity of axles. Narrow gauge railways usually cost less to build because they are lighter in construction, using smaller cars and locomotives, as well as smaller bridges, smaller tunnels. Narrow gauge is often used in mountainous terrain, where the savings in civil engineering work can be substantial. Broader gauge railways are generally expensive to build and require wider curves. There is no single perfect gauge, because different environments and economic considerations come into play, a narrow gauge is superior if ones main considerations are economy and tight curvature. For direct, unimpeded routes with high traffic, a broad gauge may be preferable, the Standard, Russian, and 46 gauges are designed to strike a reasonable balance between these factors. In addition to the general trade-off, another important factor is standardization, once a standard has been chosen, and equipment, infrastructure, and training calibrated to that standard, conversion becomes difficult and expensive. This also makes it easier to adopt an existing standard than to invent a new one and this is true of many technologies, including railroad gauges. The reduced cost, greater efficiency, and greater economic opportunity offered by the use of a common standard explains why a number of gauges predominate worldwide
9.
Standard gauge
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The standard gauge is a widely used railway track gauge. Approximately 55% of the lines in the world are this gauge, all high-speed rail lines, except those in Russia, Uzbekistan, and Finland, are standard gauge. The distance between the edges of the rails is defined to be 1435 mm except in the United States. It is also called the UIC gauge or UIC track gauge, as railways developed and expanded, one of the key issues was the track gauge to be used. The result was the adoption throughout a large part of the world of a gauge of 1435 mm. In North East England, some lines in colliery areas were 4 ft 8 in. All these lines had been widened to standard gauge by 1846, parts of the United States, mainly in the Northeast, adopted the same gauge, because some early trains were purchased from Britain. However, until well into the half of the 19th century, Britain. The American gauges converged as the advantages of equipment interchange became increasingly apparent, notably, all the 5 ft broad gauge track in the South was converted to standard gauge over the course of two days beginning on 31 May 1886. See Track gauge in the United States, snopes categorized this legend as false, but commented that. It is perhaps more fairly labelled as True, but for trivial, the historical tendency to place the wheels of horse-drawn vehicles approximately 5 feet apart probably derives from the width needed to fit a carthorse in between the shafts. Others were 4 ft 4 in or 4 ft 7 1⁄2 in, the English railway pioneer George Stephenson spent much of his early engineering career working for the coal mines of County Durham. He favoured 4 ft 8 in for wagonways in Northumberland and Durham, the Hetton and Springwell wagonways also used this gauge. Stephensons Stockton and Darlington railway was primarily to transport coal from mines near Shildon to the port at Stockton-on-Tees. The initial gauge of 4 ft 8 in was set to accommodate the existing gauge of hundreds of horse-drawn chaldron wagons that were already in use on the wagonways in the mines. The railway used this gauge for 15 years before a change was made to 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in gauge, George Stephenson used the 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in gauge for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, authorised in 1826 and opened 30 September 1830. The success of this led to Stephenson and his son Robert being employed to engineer several other larger railway projects. Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway, authorised 1824 and opened 1825, used 4 ft 6 in, Dundee and Newtyle Railway, authorised 1829 and opened 1831, used 4 ft 6 1⁄2 in
10.
German language
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German is a West Germanic language that is mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Tyrol, the German-speaking Community of Belgium and it is also one of the three official languages of Luxembourg. Major languages which are most similar to German include other members of the West Germanic language branch, such as Afrikaans, Dutch, English, Luxembourgish and it is the second most widely spoken Germanic language, after English. One of the languages of the world, German is the first language of about 95 million people worldwide. The German speaking countries are ranked fifth in terms of publication of new books. German derives most of its vocabulary from the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, a portion of German words are derived from Latin and Greek, and fewer are borrowed from French and English. With slightly different standardized variants, German is a pluricentric language, like English, German is also notable for its broad spectrum of dialects, with many unique varieties existing in Europe and also other parts of the world. The history of the German language begins with the High German consonant shift during the migration period, when Martin Luther translated the Bible, he based his translation primarily on the standard bureaucratic language used in Saxony, also known as Meißner Deutsch. Copies of Luthers Bible featured a long list of glosses for each region that translated words which were unknown in the region into the regional dialect. Roman Catholics initially rejected Luthers translation, and tried to create their own Catholic standard of the German language – the difference in relation to Protestant German was minimal. It was not until the middle of the 18th century that a widely accepted standard was created, until about 1800, standard German was mainly a written language, in urban northern Germany, the local Low German dialects were spoken. Standard German, which was different, was often learned as a foreign language with uncertain pronunciation. Northern German pronunciation was considered the standard in prescriptive pronunciation guides though, however, German was the language of commerce and government in the Habsburg Empire, which encompassed a large area of Central and Eastern Europe. Until the mid-19th century, it was essentially the language of townspeople throughout most of the Empire and its use indicated that the speaker was a merchant or someone from an urban area, regardless of nationality. Some cities, such as Prague and Budapest, were gradually Germanized in the years after their incorporation into the Habsburg domain, others, such as Pozsony, were originally settled during the Habsburg period, and were primarily German at that time. Prague, Budapest and Bratislava as well as cities like Zagreb, the most comprehensive guide to the vocabulary of the German language is found within the Deutsches Wörterbuch. This dictionary was created by the Brothers Grimm and is composed of 16 parts which were issued between 1852 and 1860, in 1872, grammatical and orthographic rules first appeared in the Duden Handbook. In 1901, the 2nd Orthographical Conference ended with a standardization of the German language in its written form
11.
Gelsenkirchen
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Gelsenkirchen is a city in the North Rhine-Westphalia state of Germany. It is located in the part of the Ruhr area. Its population in 2015 was c, Gelsenkirchen was first documented in 1150, but it remained a tiny village until the 19th century, when the Industrial Revolution led to the growth of the entire area. In 1840, when the mining of coal began,6,000 inhabitants lived in Gelsenkirchen, in the early 20th century, Gelsenkirchen was the most important coal mining town in Europe. It was called the city of a thousand fires for the flames of mine gasses flaring at night, in 1928, Gelsenkirchen was merged with the adjoining cities of Buer and Horst. The city bore the name Gelsenkirchen-Buer, until it was renamed Gelsenkirchen in 1930, during the Nazi era Gelsenkirchen remained a centre of coal production and oil refining, and for this reason it was bombed in Allied air raids during World War II. There are no longer colliers in Gelsenkirchen with the city searching for a new image, today Germanys largest solar power plant is located in the city. In Gelsenkirchen-Scholven there is a power station with the tallest chimneys in Germany. Gelsenkirchen is home of the football club Schalke 04, which is named after the borough Schalke, while the clubs stadium. They did not live in houses as such, but in small yards gathered together near each other, later, the Romans pushed into the area. In about 700, the region was settled by the Saxons, a few other parts of town which today lie in Gelsenkirchens north end were mentioned in documents from the early Middle Ages, some examples being, Raedese, Middelvic, Sutheim and Sculven. Many nearby farming communities were identified as iuxta Bure. It was about 1150 when the name Gelstenkerken or Geilistirinkirkin appeared up for the first time, at about the same time, the first church in town was built in what is now Buer. This ecclesia Buron was listed in a directory of churches by the sexton from Deutz. This settlement belonged to the Mark, however, in ancient times and even in the Middle Ages, only a few dozen people actually lived in the settlements around the Emscher basin. Up until the middle of the 19th century, the area in and around Gelsenkirchen was only thinly settled and almost exclusively agrarian. In 1815, after belonging to the Grand Duchy of Berg, the land now comprising the city of Gelsenkirchen passed to the Kingdom of Prussia. This arrangement came to an end only in 1928, in 1868, Gelsenkirchen became the seat of an Amt within the Bochum district which encompassed the communities of Gelsenkirchen, Braubauerschaft, Schalke, Heßler, Bulmke and Hüllen
12.
Rhine-Ruhr Stadtbahn
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It does not include the independent Cologne Stadtbahn and Bonn Stadtbahn systems. At the beginning of the 1960s, road traffic in the Rhine-Ruhr area increased like in other German metropolitan areas, existing trams were regarded as obstacles for car-oriented cities. Therefore, these trams should be relocated to underground sections below city centers if they were not replaced by bus lines, Düsseldorf and Hattingen joined in 1972, since then, the cooperation has been called Stadtbahngesellschaft Rhein-Ruhr. Witten joined in 1981, Recklinghausen left in 1982, original Stadtbahn plans proposed upgrading up to 300 kilometers of tram lines step by step. Most of these lines were planned in north-south direction and would have branched off of a main line that would have run more or less east-west. Due to financial constraints and the downturn of the economy in the region, as a result, there are isolated standard gauge Stadtbahn lines inside of metre gauge tram systems – one example would be the U35 line in Bochum. All Stadtbahn lines have been electrified with overhead catenary and are powered with direct current like former trams, however, most of Rhine-Ruhr tram lines still use metre gauge. Combined Stadtbahn and tram tracks use three-rail tracks or even four-rail tracks, since the start of Rhine-Ruhr Stadtbahn, existing tram routes were integrated and partly developed as pilot routes. Most of todays Stadtbahn lines were developed out of former tram lines, by 2011, the only full independent lines in the Rhine-Ruhr area are the Dortmund H-Bahn, Düsseldorf SkyTrain and Wuppertal Schwebebahn hanging and suspended monorails. The very ambitious plans have not paid enough attention to financial restrictions. So, the schedule for opening the planned sections has been delayed with some routes even cancelled. The next step to transform Stadtbahn routes to metro standards is not anymore foreseen, to use of constructed sections, existing tram lines have been operated further on the new alignments including temporary use of tram gauges and low-floor platforms. Some stations even contain both low-floor and high-floor platforms in case of mixed tram and Stadtbahn operation, for the Rhine-Ruhr Stadtbahn, new standardised Stadtbahn trains named Stadtbahnwagen B were developed. However, Stadtbahn companies ordered them with different lengths, layout of doors etc, tram lines still use former rolling stock and new low-floor trams where Stadtbahn projects were stopped or severely delayed. In Bochum the B80D-wagen are currently being replaced by the new high-floor Variotram on the U35, Bochum Stadtbahn Dortmund Stadtbahn Düsseldorf Stadtbahn Essen, Public Transport Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr Urbanrail
13.
Frankfurt U-Bahn
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The Frankfurt U-Bahn, together with the Rhine-Main S-Bahn and the Frankfurt Straßenbahn, forms the backbone of the public transport system of Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. Its name derives from the German term for underground, Untergrundbahn, since 1996, the U-Bahn has been owned and operated by Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt, the public transport company of Frankfurt, and is part of the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund transit association. The U-Bahn opened in 1968, and has expanded several times. It consists of three inner-city tunnels and above-ground lines in the suburbs, about 59% of the track length is underground. The network consists of 86 stations on nine lines, with a length of 64.85 kilometres. Eight of the nine lines travel through the city center, in 2012, the U-Bahn carried 117.3 million passengers, an average of approximately 321,000 passengers per day. Planning began in the 1950s to replace the overburdened streetcars with a more robust public transit system, the various local political parties put forward plans for a full U-Bahn, a streetcar system with an underground section downtown, and an elevated railway, respectively. The U-Bahn opened on 4 October 1968, with the route from Hauptwache to Nordweststadt. net
14.
Dual gauge
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A dual-gauge railway is a line of track that provides for trains of two separate track gauges. A mixed-gauge railway provides for more than two gauges, but is also a term sometimes used to denote dual-gauge. A dual-gauge track configuration usually consists of three rails, two rails, one for each gauge, plus a common rail--although at times, commonality is not possible. In an ordinary three-rail dual-gauge configuration, the two adjacent outer rails give provide each of the gauges, while the outer rail is common to trains of both gauges operating over it. This configuration is not to be confused with the electric current traction rail or a check or guard rail, in railways, the most important specification is that of rail gauge, the distance between the inner surfaces of the heads of the travel rails. A problem arises when different gauges outside of this tolerance meet one another, in allowing railway tracks of different gauges to share the same alignment, costs can be reduced, and infrastructure shared, e. g. platforms, bridges and tunnels etc. Dual gauge can replace two separate tracks by sharing one common running rail and one of the two outer rails which determine the gauge. However, there are complications and costs involved that may offset the savings. One issue is that points are more complex, and therefore more expensive, arrangements are necessary to ensure trains of both gauges can be safely signalled, track circuits and mechanical interlocking where provided must be operated through the common rail. Also, the rail will have an increased wear and tear over the other separate gauge rails. The following pairs of gauges can be dual-gauged without problem, standard gauge and 1,676 mm,3 ft and 3 ft 6 in, and 5 ft and 6 ft. Standard gauge and 1,600 mm can also be dual-gauged, albeit with lighter, narrow-footed rails and this last combination is of particular historical interest, as it was of strategic significance during World War II. If three-rail dual gauge is impossible, four-rail gauntlet track dual-gauge has to be used, the complications and difficulties outlined illustrate the benefits of standardised railway gauges, where possible. Alternatively the rails may be too light for the loads imposed by broader-gauge railcars, such potential problems can rule out dual-gauge as a feasible option, unless heavier rails are installed. Dual-gauge lines in Java were regauged from 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in to 3 ft 6 in during the Japanese administration in 1942-1943, regauging occurred only on the relatively short Brumbung-Kedungjati-Gundih main line and the Kedungjati-Ambarawa branch line, as the rest of the line was already dual-gauge. In Los Angeles the 3 ft 6 in Los Angeles Railway, the Colorado and Southern Railway had both standard and narrow gauge trackage, and had dual-gauge track between Denver, Colorado and Golden, until 1941. Similarly, a section of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroads Alamosa-Durango Line from Alamosa, the East Broad Top Railroad and Coal Company formerly had considerable dual-gauge trackage in its Mount Union, Pennsylvania yard. Alaska and British Columbia are proposing dual gauge,1,435 mm standard gauge and 914 mm, track so that a narrow gauge tourist train and standard gauge ore trains can share the right of way
15.
Bundesautobahn 40
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Bundesautobahn 40, is one of the most used Autobahns in Germany. It has officially been named Ruhrschnellweg, but locals call it Ruhrschleichweg or the Ruhr areas longest parking lot. According to Der Spiegel, it is the most congested motorway in Germany, in the city of Essen, a Stadtbahn service operates on the median of the A40 between Tunnel Ruhrschnellweg and Mülheim-Heißen. Between the Essen-Huttrop and the Essen-Kray junctions, there is a bus system called Spurbus. Ambach, Markus, ed. B1-A40, die Schönheit der grossen Strasse / The Beauty of the Grand Road, bundesautobahn 40 – Detailed route plan
16.
Rapid transit in Germany
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Rapid transit in Germany consists of five U-Bahn systems and fourteen S-Bahn systems. There are also eighteen premetro or Stadtbahn systems that are rapid transit in the city center, the U-Bahn consists of five systems, in Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Nuremberg, these are all run by the transit authorities in the city. The thirteen S-Bahn systems are in Berlin, Dresden, Hamburg, Hanover, Magdeburg, Mitteldeutschland, Munich, Nuremberg, Rhein-Main, Rhein-Neckar, Rhein-Ruhr, Rostock and Stuttgart. The S-Bahn systems are all franchised to the incumbent train operating company Deutsche Bahn, normal headway is 20 minutes and use dedicated tracks running alongside mainline routes. Ticketing is governed by the transport authority and connectivity is integrated into the city public transport system. In 1882, the number of steam-powered trains around Berlin prompted the Prussian State Railways to construct separate rail tracks for suburban traffic. The Berliner Stadtbahn connected Berlins eight intercity rail stations which were spread throughout the city, a lower rate for the newly founded Berliner Stadt-, Ring- und Vorortbahn was introduced on 1 October 1891. This rate and the succession of trains made the short-distance service stand out from other railroads. The second suburban railroad was the Hamburg-Altonaer Stadt- und Vorortbahn connecting Hamburg with Altona, the Altona office of the Prussian State Railroad established the steam powered railroad in 1906. The beginning of the 20th century saw the first electric trains, as the steam powered trains came to be nuisances to more and more people, the Berliner Stadt-, Ring- und Vorortbahn switched to direct current wagons running on 750 V from a third rail. In 1924, the first electrified route went into service, the third rail was chosen because it made both the modifications of the rail tracks and the side-by-side use of electric and steam trains easier. To set it apart from its competitor, the subterranean U-Bahn, the Hamburg service had established an experimental alternating current line in 1907. The whole network still used steam power until 1940, when the old locomotives were replaced by 1200 V DC electric ones, in 1934, the Hamburg-Altonaer Stadt- und Vorortbahn was renamed as S-Bahn. The name was adopted for Hamburgs city-owned independent mass transit tram lines. Nuremberg and Munich decided on a full U-Bahn independent from their existing tramways and those systems of tram in tunnels in city centre areas do not meet the criteria of a metro, they are instead light rail systems. Nonetheless, they are referred to as U-Bahn. Officially, they are called Stadtbahn or U-Stadtbahn, during the 1990s, when, according to original planning, the tramways of Nuremberg and Munich were scheduled to disappear, a reorientation process set in. In Nuremberg and Munich, after 30 years new rolling stock was purchased, existing lines were modernised, today, Berlin, Munich and Nuremberg not only have buses, but also trams, S-Bahn, and U-Bahn systems, each with non-shared tracks and different vehicles
17.
Berlin U-Bahn
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The Berlin U-Bahn is a rapid transit railway in Berlin, the capital city of Germany, and a major part of the citys public transport system. Together with the S-Bahn, a network of train lines. In addition, a tram network operates in the parts of the city. Opened in 1902, the U-Bahn serves 173 stations spread across ten lines, with a track length of 151.7 kilometres. Trains run every two to five minutes during peak hours, every five minutes for the rest of the day, over the course of a year, U-Bahn trains travel 132 million km, and carry over 400 million passengers. In 2015,534.5 million passengers rode the U-Bahn, the entire system is maintained and operated by the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe, commonly known as the BVG. Designed to alleviate traffic flowing into and out of central Berlin, the East Berlin U-Bahn lines from West Berlin were severed, except for two West Berlin lines that ran through East Berlin. These were allowed to pass through East Berlin without stopping at any of the stations, Friedrichstraße was the exception because it was used as a transfer point between U6 and the West Berlin S-Bahn system, and a border crossing into East Berlin. The system was reopened following the fall of the Berlin Wall. The Berlin U-Bahn is the most extensive network in Germany. In 2006, travel on the U-Bahn was equivalent to 122.2 million km of car journeys, at the end of the 19th century, city planners in Berlin were looking for solutions to the increasing traffic problems facing the city. As potential solutions, industrialist and inventor Ernst Werner von Siemens suggested the construction of elevated railways, while AEG proposed an underground system. Years of negotiations followed until, on 10 September 1896, work began on an elevated railway to run between Stralauer Tor and Zoologischer Garten, with a short spur to Potsdamer Platz. Known as the Stammstrecke, the route was inaugurated on 15 February 1902, before the year ended, the railway had been extended, by 17 August, east to Warschauer Brücke, and, by 14 December, west to Knie. In a bid to secure its own improvement, Schöneberg also wanted a connection to Berlin, the elevated railway company did not believe such a line would be profitable, so the city built the first locally financed underground in Germany. It was opened on 1 December 1910, just a few months earlier, work began on a fourth line to link Wilmersdorf in the south-west to the growing Berlin U-Bahn. The early network ran mostly east to west, connecting the areas in and around Berlin. In order to open up the network to more of the workers of Berlin, in 1920, the surrounding areas were annexed to form Groß-Berlin, removing the need for many negotiations, and giving the city much greater bargaining power over the private Hochbahngesellschaft
18.
Hamburg U-Bahn
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The Hamburg U-Bahn is a rapid transit system serving the cities of Hamburg, Norderstedt and Ahrensburg in Germany. Although technically an underground, most of the track length is above ground. The network is interconnected with the citys S-Bahn system, which also has underground sections and it is operated by Hamburger Hochbahn within the Hamburger Verkehrsverbund. It was opened in February 1912, and comprises four lines serving 91 stations, in 1906 the Senate of Hamburg awarded a contract for the Elevated and Underground Railway to Siemens & Halske and AEG of Berlin. The first stretch was completed on 7 October 1906 and this was followed in 1911 with the founding of the Hamburger Hochbahn Aktiengesellschaft. Thus Hamburg became the third German city to have a U-Bahn, the construction of such a railway had long been discussed, meanwhile an elevated train was also considered. On 15 February 1912 the first stretch of the future Ringbahn between Rathaus station und Barmbek was inaugurated, the stretch included both underground and elevated sections. By 1915 the Ringbahn and the three spurs, from Kellinghusenstraße to Ohlsdorf, from Schlump to Hellkamp and from station to Rothenburgsort were completed. By 1934 the extensions from Ohlsdorf to Ochsenzoll, from Kellinghusenstraße to Jungfernstieg, in 1943, during the Second World War the subway was badly damaged during Operation Gomorrha, the RAF bombing of Hamburg that summer. The stretch from Hauptbahnhof to Rothenburgsort was not repaired because the district it passed through had been completely destroyed and it was five more years before the remaining network was once more completely intact. Further additions to the network were made, starting in 1960, the KellJung line was extended via Meßberg to the central station. Later in 1962 the extension reached Wandsbek Markt and in 1963 Wandsbek-Gartenstadt, the total network length was 67.9 kilometres. The construction of a Durchmesserstrecke began in 1963, the plan was to connect Billstedt with Stellingen. The Eimsbüttel branch formed the part of the line. The branch was extended up to Hagenbecks Tierpark in 1966, the existing terminus at Hellkamp was withdrawn from service in 1964 and a new station was built at Lutterothstraße further northwest. The connection between Berliner Tor and Horner Rennbahn was opened in 1967, in the same year this eastern branch was extended to Legienstraße. Further extensions took place in 1969 to Billstedt and in 1970 towards Merkenstraße, the extension Ochsenzoll – Garstedt came into service in May 1969. Thus, the total length reached 88.5 km
19.
University of Duisburg-Essen
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The University of Duisburg-Essen is a public university in Duisburg and Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and a member of the newly founded University Alliance Metropolis Ruhr. It was founded in 1654 and re-established on 1 January 2003 as a merger of the Gerhard Mercator University of Duisburg, until 1994 the name of the Gerhard Mercator University was Comprehensive University of Duisburg. With its 12 departments and more than 39,000 students, in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2016-17 the University of Duisburg-Essen was ranked 197th in the world and stands at 17th place in its 150 Under 50 Rankings. In many disciplines the UDE ranks amongst the top 10 of German research universities, over the past three years, research income has risen by 150 percent. Many international students study at the University of Duisburg-Essen and give the cities of Duisburg, origins, The University of Duisburg Its origins date back to the 1555 decision of Duke Wilhelm V von Jülich-Kleve-Berg to create a university for the unified duchies at the Lower Rhine. To this end, it was necessary to obtain a permission of the emperor and it opened on 14 October 1655 by Johannes Claudberg as their first rector. The university had four faculties, Theology, Medicine, Law, during its period of activity it was one of the central and leading universities of the western provinces of Prussia. Only a few decades later the university was in competition with the better equipped Dutch universities. The university declined rapidly and was on 18 October 1818 due to a Cabinet Order of Friedrich Wilhelm III, at the same time, the University of Bonn was founded. Large parts of the Duisburg University Library were relocated to Bonn, also the sceptre of the University of Duisburg was given to the University of Bonn, and is available until today. After a decision of the state government in 1960 the teacher training college of Kettwig was settled to Duisburg and was named Pedagogical University Ruhr. In 1968, the university was founded again in Duisburg, related to the old one, bearing the name, initially only small, the university was developed rapidly in the 1970s up to about 15,000 students. In 1972 the Pedagogical University Ruhr and the Public School of Engineering, other schools were also relocated to Duisburg. The University of Duisburg was then called Comprehensive University of Duisburg, in 1994 the university was renamed Gerhard Mercator University. By 2016 the university reached a Place under the Top 200 universities of the world, in the same year Duisburg-Essen University is ranked number 17 in the Worlds top 100 universities under 50 years old, ranked by Times Higher Education. In March 2007 the three universities of Bochum, Dortmund and Duisburg and Essen founded the University Alliance Metropolis Ruhr,2000, Jutta Limbach, jurist and politician 2001, Volker Schlöndorff, filmmaker. 2002, Ulrich Wickert, journalist, chief anchor for tagesthemen 2003, Daniel Goeudevert French writer,2005, Richard von Weizsäcker, politician, former President of the Federal Republic of Germany. 2015, Götz Werner, founder of Dm-drogerie markt 2016, Karl Lehmann, Cardinal prelate, former Chairman of the Conference of the German Bishops Professors include Jette Joop, Kai Krause and Bruce Ames
20.
Essen-Altenessen station
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Essen-Altenessen is a railway station situated in Essen in western Germany. It is served by the S2 line of Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn and line U18 of the Essen Stadtbahn, the station was opened on 15 May 1847 on the trunk line of the former Cologne-Minden Railway Company. Under the name of Essen CM and it and Essen-Bergeborbeck are the oldest stations in modern Essen. A railway association was founded in 1841 by the community of Essen to persuade the Cologne-Minden Railway Company to move its route further south to run through Essen. Even the offer of a subsidy of 2,000 Prussian thalers failed to persuade the CME to change its route because it wanted to avoid hills where possible, running roughly along the course of the Emscher. As a result of this rejection, the city of Essen later spent over 16,000 thalers to establish a road connecting to Altenessen station, until the establishment of Essen BM station in 1862, Altenessen station served as Essen station. The freight sector was of importance to the station, especially the transport of coal from numerous mines in the two communities. In 1872, the station was renamed Altenessen, a nearly two-kilometre long line the station connected via Helene junction to Essen-Stoppenberg was opened on 27 April 1874. A line opened in 1880, connecting this station to Essen BM, in addition, connections existed to Essen-Nord and Essen-Segeroth station, which since 1868 had also been called Essen CM and Essen-Altenessen Rheinisch station. After the incorporation of Altenessen in Essen in 1915, the Altenessen station was renamed Essen-Altenessen in 1920, the station was built as a wedge station with central station building between the Cologne-Minden line and the line to Stoppenberg. By 1887 the tracks were at level, with a nearby level crossing over Essen-Horster Strasse. The approximately 170–180 trains running per day meant that the crossing was closed for up to seven hours each day and that made it necessary to rebuild the station, the street and the line. Altenessener Strasse was lowered by 2.64 meters, while the lines were raised. The bridge over Altenessener Strasse and Lierfeldstraße on the line to Stoppenberg was opened on 30 September 1901, the bridge over Altenessener Strasse on the main line was opened on 10 November 1901. In the Second World War there was a labour camp of the railway division of Essen/Ruhr at the station for 27 French prisoners. Heavy air raids in October 1944 destroyed the tracks, stopping train operations run through Altenessen. Several bombs also hit the station, the station was renovated in 1999, following the demolition of the station building. Today the station only as a stop for local traffic on the route between Oberhausen and Gelsenkirchen
21.
Botanischer Garten Grugapark
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The Botanischer Garten Grugapark is a municipal botanical garden located in the Grugapark at Virchowstraße 167a, Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is open daily, a fee is charged. The garden was established in 1927 for recreation, teaching, parts of the garden were destroyed in World War II but gradually rebuilt and re-designed for the Essen Bundesgartenschau of 1965. Asia section - dove tree, Japanese elm, and Asian hydrangeas, maples, climbing plants - self-described as Germanys largest collection of climbing plants, including clematis, honeysuckle, climbing hydrangea, wolfberry, and wild vines. Forest valley - American sweet gums, pin oaks, bald cypresses, herb garden - medicinal herb garden in a medieval style. Mediterranean orangery - acacias, bay laurels, date palms, fig trees, rhododendron valley -500 rhododendron species and cultivars. Rose garden - rose cultivars and water lily pond, sensory garden - primarily roses and herbs. Shrubbery - several thousand shrubs from Asia, the Americas, and Europe, as well as cowslip, delphinium, Carpathian harebell, heuchera, lupin, red hot pokers, primrose, Westphalian cottage garden - medicinal and culinary herbs and local vegetables representative of a Westphalian farmers garden. Wetlands - bald cypress, bamboos, reeds, willows, etc, the garden also includes three greenhouses, built in 1985, for its tropical rainforest collection, succulents, and primeval plants from Australia and tropical South East Asia. Other features of interest include a garden, a scenic pond. Botanischer Garten der Universität Duisburg-Essen List of botanical gardens in Germany Botanischer Garten Grugapark Garden map Essen municipal description BGCI entry GardenVisit entry
22.
Duisburg
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Duisburg is a German city in the western part of the Ruhr Area in North Rhine-Westphalia. It is an independent metropolitan borough within Regierungsbezirk Düsseldorf, with the worlds biggest inland harbor and its proximity to Düsseldorf Airport, Duisburg has become an important venue for commerce and steel production. In the early Middle Ages it was a court of the Franks. Like many other cities, todays Duisburg is a result of numerous incorporations of surrounding towns and it is the fifteenth-largest city in Germany and the fifth-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia with 486,855 residents at the end of 2013. The city is renowned for its steel industry, the last remaining coal mine closed down in the summer of 2009, but Duisburg had never been a coal-mining center to the same extent as other places in the Ruhr region. All blast furnaces in the Ruhr are now located in Duisburg, in 2000 49% of all hot metal and 34. 4% of all pig iron in Germany was produced here. It also has a brewery, the König Brauerei, located in Duisburg-Beeck. The University of Duisburg-Essen, with 39,000 students, ranks among the 10 largest German universities, Duisburg is located in the Lowland Rhine area at the confluence of the Rhine and Ruhr and near the outskirts of the Bergisches Land. The city spreads along both sides of these rivers, the following cities border Duisburg, Oberhausen, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Ratingen, Düsseldorf, Meerbusch, Krefeld, Moers, Rheinberg, and Dinslaken. Duisburg therefore could mean fortified place in the floodplain, another interpretation assumes that the name is derived from the Old German duis which means hill. Duisburg could mean something like castle on the hill, thus, a place on a hill overlooking the Rhine, that could refer to the area of the present Town Hall. Duisburggau was also the name of the medieval Gau on the Lower Rhine, a legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the namesake Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca.2395 BC. There is nothing to any historical basis for such an early founding of Duisburg. Latest archaeological studies show that the present-day market-place was already in use in the first century and it has been the major central trading place of the city since the 5th century. The city itself was located at the Hellweg, an important medieval trade route, the Romans already guarded the ford. 420, The Franks usurp the Roman settlement and recolonize the old part of the town,883, The Normans conquer Duisburg and stay for the winter. Due to the towns favorable geographic position a palatinate was built, Duisburg became a member of the Hanseatic League. Around 1000 the river Rhine moved westward from the city and this put an end to the citys development as a trading town and it soon grew into a quiet rural city
23.
Rapid transit
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Rapid transit, also known as heavy rail, metro, subway, tube, or underground, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. The stations typically have high platforms, without steps inside the trains and they are typically integrated with other public transport and often operated by the same public transport authorities. However, some transit systems have at-grade intersections between a rapid transit line and a road or between two rapid transit lines. It is unchallenged in its ability to transport large numbers of people quickly over short distances with little use of land, variations of rapid transit include people movers, small-scale light metro, and the commuter rail hybrid S-Bahn. The worlds first rapid-transit system was the partially underground Metropolitan Railway which opened as a railway in 1863. In 1868, New York opened the elevated West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway, china has the largest number of rapid transit systems in the world. The worlds longest single-operator rapid transit system by length is the Shanghai Metro. The worlds largest single rapid transit service provider by both length of revenue track (665 miles and number of stations is the New York City Subway. The busiest rapid transit systems in the world by annual ridership are the Tokyo subway system, the Seoul Metropolitan Subway, the Moscow Metro, the Beijing Subway, Metro is the most common term for underground rapid transit systems used by non-native English speakers. One of these terms may apply to a system, even if a large part of the network runs at ground level. In Scotland, however, the Glasgow Subway underground rapid transit system is known as the Subway, in the US, underground mass transit systems are primarily known as subways, whereas the term metro is a shortened reference to a metropolitan area. In that vein, Chicagos commuter rail system, serving the area, is called Metra. Exceptions in naming rapid transit systems are Washington DCs subway system the Washington Metro, Los Angeles Metro Rail, and the Miami Metrorail, the opening of Londons steam-hauled Metropolitan Railway in 1863 marked the beginning of rapid transit. Initial experiences with steam engines, despite ventilation, were unpleasant, experiments with pneumatic railways failed in their extended adoption by cities. Electric traction was more efficient, faster and cleaner than steam, in 1890 the City & South London Railway was the first electric-traction rapid transit railway, which was also fully underground. Both railways were merged into London Underground. The 1893 Liverpool Overhead Railway was designed to use electric traction from the outset, budapest in Hungary and Glasgow, Chicago and New York all converted or purpose-designed and built electric rail services. Advancements in technology have allowed new automated services, hybrid solutions have also evolved, such as tram-train and premetro, which incorporate some of the features of rapid transit systems
24.
Elevated railway
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An elevated railway is a rapid transit railway with the tracks above street level on a viaduct or other elevated structure. The railway may be standard gauge, narrow gauge, light rail, monorail, Elevated railways are usually used in urban areas where there would otherwise be a large number of level crossings. Most of the time, the tracks of elevated railways that run on steel viaducts can be seen from street level, the earliest elevated railway was the London and Greenwich Railway on a brick viaduct of 878 arches, built between 1836 and 1838. The first 2.5 miles of the London and Blackwall Railway was also on a viaduct, during the 1840s there were other schemes for elevated railways in London which did not come to fruition. From the late 1860s elevated railways became popular in US cities, the New York West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway operated with cable cars from 1868 to 1870, thereafter locomotive-hauled. This was followed by the Manhattan Railway in 1875, the South Side Elevated Railroad, Chicago, the Chicago transit system itself is known as L, short for elevated. The Berlin Stadtbahn is also mainly elevated, the first electric elevated railway was the Liverpool Overhead Railway, which operated through Liverpool docks from 1893 until 1956. In London, the Docklands Light Railway is an elevated railway that opened in 1987 and. The trains are driverless and automatic, another modern elevated railway is Tokyos driverless Yurikamome line, opened in 1995. Most monorails are elevated railways, such as the Disneyland Monorail System, the Tokyo Monorail, the Sydney Monorail, the KL Monorail, the Las Vegas Monorail, many maglev railways are also elevated. During the 1890s there was some interest in railways, particularly in Germany, with the Schwebebahn Dresden. H-Bahn suspension railways were built in Dortmund and Düsseldorf airport,1975, the Memphis Suspension Railway opened in 1982. Shonan Monorail and Chiba Urban Monorail in Japan, despite their names, are suspension railways too, People mover or automated people mover is a type of driverless grade-separated, mass-transit system. The term is used only to describe systems that serve as loops or feeder systems. Similar to monorails, Bombardier Innovia APM technology uses only one rail to guide the vehicle along the guideway, aPMs are common at airports and effective at helping passengers quickly reach their gates. Elevator Grade separation Monorail Railway Rapid transit People mover Trackless
25.
S2 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn)
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Line S2 is a S-Bahn line in the Rhein-Ruhr network. It starts in Dortmund Hauptbahnhof and runs westerly, during weekdays one service per hour runs each to Duisburg Hauptbahnhof, Essen Hauptbahnhof and Recklinghausen Hauptbahnhof using class 422 electric multiple units. In the evenings and on weekends, only services to Duisburg, S-Bahn services commenced between Dortmund and Duisburg on 2 June 1991. Services commenced between Dortmund and Essen on 29 September 1991, services commenced between Dortmund and Recklinghausen on 24 May 1998
26.
Rhein-Emscher-Express
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The Rhein-Emscher-Express is a Regional-Express service in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, running from Düsseldorf via Duisburg, Gelsenkirchen and Dortmund to Hamm. It connects with the rest of the rail network of NRW in Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Oberhausen, Wanne-Eickel, Dortmund. In addition, it connects in Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Oberhausen, Dortmund, the Rhein-Emscher-Express has been operating since the introduction of the integrated regular interval timetable in North Rhine-Westphalia in 1998. It first ran from Mönchengladbach via Krefeld, Duisburg, Gelsenkirchen, the Duisburg–Mönchengladbach section was dropped in exchange for an extension from Duisburg to Düsseldorf in the timetable change in December 2002. Since then the Rhein-Emscher-Express has run entirely on the line of the Cologne-Minden Railway Company. Only the NRW-Express and the Rhein-Express use the long-distance tracks, the RE3 runs hourly every day from Düsseldorf to Hamm. It runs parallel with Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn lines over large parts of its route, the passenger rail transport was operated by DB Regio NRW until 12 December 2009, using class 425 electric multiple units in coupled sets since the introduction of the winter timetable of 2008. Previously the service had operated with push–pull trains of five refurbished Silberling carriages or four double-deck carriages with a class 111 electric locomotive. The average speed is only 63 km/h, the reason for this is the frequent stops between Dortmund and Hamm. The current operator of this service and the Maas-Wupper-Express is Eurobahn, operations are carried out using 4 four-carriage and 14 five-carriage Stadler FLIRT electrical multiple units with a top speed of 160 km/h, rented from Angel Trains. On 7 January 2010, the station was officially renamed Essen-Zollverein Nord, two North Rhine-Westphalian municipal transport associations, the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr and the Verkehrsgemeinschaft Ruhr-Lippe are involved in the operation of the service. The franchise for operating the service together with the Maas-Wupper-Express from the change on 13 December 2009 was put out to tender. The winner was Rhenus Keolis GmbH, beating Abellio Rail NRW GmbH, List of regional rail lines in North Rhine-Westphalia List of scheduled railway routes in Germany Rhein-Emscher-Epress
27.
S1 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn)
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Line S1 is a S-Bahn line on the Rhine-Ruhr network. It is operated by DB Regio and it runs from Dortmund west over Essen to Duisburg. From there it travels south to Düsseldorf and Hilden before continuing to Solingen and it is operated at 20 minute intervals, using coupled sets of class 422 four-car electrical multiple units. S-Bahn services commenced between Bochum and Duisburg-Großenbaum on 26 May 1974, services were extended from Großenbaum to Düsseldorf on 22 May 1977 and from Bochum to Dortmund on 25 September 1983. Services ran via Düsseldorf Airport Terminal station from 24 May 1998 to 28 May 2000, services were extended from Düsseldorf to Solingen on 13 December 2009, replacing part of the former line S7 service
28.
S3 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn)
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Line S3 is a S-Bahn in the Rhein-Ruhr network. It runs from Oberhausen over Essen to Hattingen Mitte and it is operated at 20 minute intervals, using class 422 four-car electrical multiple units. S-Bahn services commenced between Oberhausen and Hattingen on 26 May 1974, services were extended from Hattingen to Hattingen Mitte on 3 July 1987
29.
S6 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn)
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Line S6 is a S-Bahn line in the Rhein-Ruhr network. It is operated at 20 minute intervals using class 143 locomotives hauling four x-Wagen carriages and it was opened on 28 September 1967 between Ratingen Ost and Düsseldorf-Garath
30.
S9 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn)
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Line S9 is an S-Bahn line on the Rhine-Ruhr network, operated by DB Regio. It runs from Haltern am See in the north through Essen to Wuppertal Hauptbahnhof in the south, during the day three services per hour run between Wuppertal and Bottrop Hauptbahnhof, with one service per hour continuing to Haltern, using class 422 electric multiple units. S-Bahn services commenced between Dortmund and Essen on 29 September 1991, services commenced between Steele Ost and Haltern am See on 24 May 1998. Services were extended to Wuppertal on 14 December 2003
31.
NRW-Express
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The NRW-Express is a Regional-Express service in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, running from Aachen via Cologne, Düsseldorf, Essen and Dortmund to Hamm as line RE1. The line is operated by DB Regio NRW, the service has one of the highest levels of patronage in Germany with about 110,000 passengers per day, mainly commuters and students. Todays NRW-Express replaced existing express services on sections of the route after the regionalisation of transport in Germany. A number of stations served by long-distance trains, such as Düsseldorf-Benrath. The NRW-Express was first classified as Regionalschnellbahn RSB1, then as StadtExpress SE1 and eventually as Regional-Express RE1, the service originally operated on the Aachen–Bielefeld route and was composed of class 110 locomotives hauling six partly modernised Silberling carriages. If necessary, trains had an additional carriage, from the mid-90s, the trains were formed of non air-conditioned double-deck carriages and class 111 locomotives. Shortly later control cars were added, so that operations could be introduced. The sets were now hauled by class 146 locomotives, which had originally been supplied for the Expo. A passenger version of class 145, which has a top speed of 140 km/h, was ordered as class 146 with a top speed of 160 km/h in the autumn of 2001 and was first used for the NRW-Express services. This attractiveness became a problem since the trains were often overcrowded, an extension of the trains with an additional carriage failed to overcome this problem because the trains still used single-deck carriages and some platforms were too short for the extra carriage. At the time double-deck carriages were in supply and their increased weight caused travel times to be extended. The high loadings often meant that the scheduled stopping times were insufficient, delays to long-distance trains also had a strong influence on the punctuality of the NRW-Express. The situation was aggravated several times when DB Regio tried to change the timetable by shortening the time in Bielefeld from 70 to 10 minutes to save a train set. These trials were given up after a few weeks at the most. With the timetable change in December 2002, the route was cut back from Bielefeld to Hamm, on the section that was eliminated, the NRW-Express was replaced by the newly created Westfalen-Express from Düsseldorf via Duisburg, Essen, Hamm and Bielefeld to Minden. On the last section from Dortmund, the NRW-Express, however, now stopped only in Kamen, as a result of the shortening of the route of the trains, punctuality was significantly improved, although in the past most lost time could be made up between Hamm and Bielefeld. RE1 therefore remains one of the lines in North Rhine-Westphalia that is most vulnerable to delay, a bomb plot on the train in 2006 failed due to faulty construction. Since the timetable change in December 2010, services have been extended every 2 hours to run between Hamm an Paderborn, in the off-peak it also stops only at Dortmund-Scharnhorst, Dortmund-Kurl, Kamen-Methler and Nordbögge
32.
Rhein-Haard-Express
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The Rhein-Haard-Express is a Regional-Express service in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, running from Münster via Recklinghausen, Gelsenkirchen, Essen and Duisburg to Düsseldorf. The Haard-Bahn operated at an interval of about half an hour after RE2 on the section between Münster and Essen and this differed only by an additional stop in Recklinghausen Süd, which RE2 stops at only in the off-peak. On 11 December 2016, was Haard-Bahn was renamed the Niers-Haard-Express and extended to Duisburg, Krefeld, the additional trains in the peak hour between Essen and Haltern also bear this name, although this is not geographically correct as the Niers flows through Mönchengladbach. The Haard is a ridge in the Haltern Hills, the Rhein-Haard-Express operated from 1998 to 2002 as the Haard-Express only between Münster and Essen. From the timetable change in December 2002, it ran via Duisburg to Mönchengladbach, taking over the Duisburg–Mönchengladbach section from the Rhein-Emscher-Express, in return the Rhein-Haard-Express took over the Duisburg–Düsseldorf section and also operates as an hourly service. In this section, there are normally five Regional-Express services per hour, since the timetable change on 12 December 2010, the Rhein-Haard-Express trains have operated with five instead of four carriages. After an EU-wide tender, DB Regio NRW contract to operate the service has been extended from December 2014 to December 2029, with the timetable change in December 2016, there was a further change in the route of the service. The RE11 service returned to its route between Duisburg and Düsseldorf. The section of the RE 2s former route between Essen to Mönchengladbach, was not resumed by the Rhein-Haardt-Express, instead, the Haard-Bahn, which previously ran between Münster and Essen on the same route as the Rhein-Haardt-Express, was extended to Mönchengladbach and renamed the Rhein-Haard-Express. Only the NRW-Express and the Rhein-Express use the long-distance tracks, the Rhein-Haard-Express runs hourly every day and it stops at every station north of Recklinghausen Hbf. It runs on a section parallel to S-Bahn lines and from Münster to Essen it runs in the same route as the Niers-Haard-Express but 30 minutes earlier or later. In the peak hour services of the RE42 run between Haltern am See station and Essen Hbf. The RE2 is operated by DB Regio AG, using trains of five double-deck carriages hauled by class 146 electric locomotives at speeds of up to 160 km/h. The RE42 is operated with class 1428 sets, which are slower that the RE2 trains but have better acceleration, as a result, the Rhein-Haard-Express takes two minutes longer between Essen and Münster than the Niers-Haard-Express. The average speed is 71 km/h, in the evening or at night, when the RE42 no longer runs, the Rhein-Haard-Express stops in Recklinghausen Süd. The Rhein-Haard-Express was the last RE line in North Rhine-Westphalia that still featured a so-called ZugCafé, in recent years, this bistro was only open during the peak hour from Monday to Friday. With the new contract awarded to DB Regio AG for the operation of the service from 14 December 2014, the sets have been converted for the Rhein-Haard-Express, so that the first class seating is now be located in the control car. This is where step-free access and a toilet for the disabled is located, the control car heads the trains running towards Düsseldorf, while the locomotive leads towards Münster
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Rhein-Weser-Express
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The Rhein-Weser-Express is a Regional-Express service route in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, connecting the most important cities in Westphalia with the Ruhr. Cologne, Neuss, Düsseldorf and Duisburg lie on the Rhine, until the timetable change in December 2016, this services was called the Westfalen-Express and ended in Düsseldorf Hauptbahnhof. Until the timetable revision of 2002, the NRW-Express operated with five, in 2002 services were extended to Minden and at the same time the service was split into two routes. The Westfalen-Express was established, taking over the Hamm–Bielefeld–Minden section and extending to Düsseldorf and this change was intended in particular to improve the timeliness of the entire service. A service called line RE 6a was put into operation as a pre-operation for the Rhein-Ruhr-Express on 13 December 2015 and this interim line was scheduled to be operated with double sets of class 425 EMUs. The RE6 services has been named the Rhein-Weser-Express since its extension, only the NRW-Express and the Rhein-Express use the long distance tracks. The Mönchengladbach–Düsseldorf railway between Düsseldorf and Neuss, the Lower Left Rhine Railway between Neuss and Cologne, like the Rhein-Emscher-Express, the Rhein-Weser-Express runs for a large part of its route of the trunk line of the Cologne-Minden Railway Company. Between Dortmund and Duisburg, however, it uses the more developed, since the timetable change in December 2010, the Rhein-Weser-Express has run during the day at hourly intervals from Minden to Düsseldorf, over the whole route between 0700 and 2200. Until the timetable change in December 2010 some services in the off-peak lengths turned around in Dortmund, large sections of the RE6 proceeds parallel with S-Bahn lines and it has some of the character of a fast S-Bahn service and is perceived by passengers accordingly. The service is operated by DB Regio NRW, using trains of five double-deck carriages. Class 111 electric locomotives are regularly substituted on the route, the maximum speed of 160 km/h can be reached on long sections. The average speed is 84.5 km/h, some services are operated with class 425 electric multiple units. The large traffic contract that covers the route between Dortmund and Düsseldorf was terminated by the VRR on 12 June 2008 without notice, since then DB has operated this branch under direction. On 19 December 2008 the Administrative Court of Gelsenkirchen ruled that the termination of the traffic contract had been unlawful. The North Rhine-Westphalian authorities submitted a joint tendering schedule, according to which the RE6 line was to be tendered together with the RE5 Rhein-Express, operation for the RE6 was to commence on 11 December 2016. Within the framework of the so-called Rhein-Ruhr-Express interim contract, services are being provided by DB Regio from December 2016 until the start-up of the Rhine-Ruhr Express services, List of regional rail lines in North Rhine-Westphalia List of scheduled railway routes in Germany Westfalen-Express
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Rhein-Hellweg-Express
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The Rhein-Hellweg-Express is a Regional-Express service in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, running from Hamm via Dortmund, Bochum, Essen, Duisburg and Düsseldorf Airport to Düsseldorf Hbf. It is named after the Rhine and the Westphalian Hellweg, in 1988 the first regular interval regional rapid train service was established from Dortmund via Essen, Duisburg and Düsseldorf to Cologne. This operated hourly on the Cologne–Duisburg and Dortmund–Duisburg lines, which then were the most important railway lines for passenger traffic in North Rhine-Westphalia. With the extension of the service on the Hamm–Bielefeld and Cologne–Aachen lines, after the timetable change in December 2002, services on the central Ruhr axis between Hamm and Düsseldorf increased to five Regional-Express services in each two hour period. The NRW-Express was now shortened to run on the Hamm–Aachen route, the new Rhein-Hellweg-Express was introduced at two hourly intervals, running from Düsseldorf to Hamm and continuing on the line to Paderborn. The section of the Rhein-Hellweg Express between Duisburg and Düsseldorf was taken over by the Rhein-Haard-Express, in return, the Rhein-Hellweg Express runs on the section between Duisburg and Mönchengladbach. The Duisburg–Mönchengladbach line is for the first time connected directly to the eastern Ruhr region by Regional-Express services, overall, there were further bottlenecks due to the timetable change. In the central Ruhr area between Hamm and Duisburg, three express lines were now running at approximately 20-minute intervals. The Hamm–Dortmund section was reinforced by RE3, the Bochum–Essen section by RE16, the section between Hamm and Kassel, however is only operated generally at two-hour intervals and some trains even in the afternoon peak terminate in Paderborn. Due to some remaining IC/ICE services on the line, there are gaps in the regional services of up to four hours in both directions, especially at lunch time. Departure times also differ significantly, so the timetable is difficult for customers to remember there are no regular services. In the evenings, the RE11 service from Düsseldorf ends in Dortmund, at the other end, some services only run from Kassel to Hamm, so passengers are forced to change trains regularly to reach the Ruhr area or Düsseldorf. The use of the class 425 sets has significantly reduced the capacity of seating and standing places, the number of daily circuits serving the entire route has been reduced from eight to seven. The section of Eurobahns daily Dortmund-Kassel-Sprinter service from Hamm was integrated in RE11, only the NRW-Express and the Rhein-Express use the long-distance tracks. RE11 services runs hourly from Monday to Sunday, initially, when the service operated between Hamm and Paderborn on weekdays at two hourly intervals, trains were composed of class 110 and 111 locomotives, usually hauling five Silberling carriages. But it was noticed that the number of passengers required higher capacity. The carriages have air conditioning and are approved for a speed of 160 km/h. The service has a speed of 81 km/h
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Ruhr-Sieg-Express
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It is operated by Abellio Rail NRW hourly. In the summer of 2001, DB Reise&Touristik abandoned InterRegio line 22, the RE16 service was established to replace it from the timetable change of 10 June 2001 by the transport association of the Rhine-Ruhr, Ruhr-Lippe and Westfalen-Süd. In 2004, the operations of the RE16 was tendered together with the RB40, RB56, the tender was won by Abellio Rail and the operations of the tendered lines was awarded for twelve years from 9 December 2007. Since the commencement of Abellio services, Welschen Ennest has been added as a stop, because of this scheme, these four stations are served more often on Saturdays than on other days. Moreover, RE16 services in the peak towards Essen serve all stations between Siegen and Hagen. In the evening weekday peak RE16 services from Essen serve all stations between Hagen and Siegen, a special feature of the service is the coupling and uncoupling of trains at Iserlohn-Letmathe. The trains from Iserlohn and Siegen are coupled in Iserlohn-Letmathe and run together via Hagen, Witten, in the opposite direction the trains run coupled to Iserlohn-Letmathe, where they are separated with one section running to Siegen and the other to Iserlohn. Even the trains that run from/to Iserlohn, now carry the designation of RE16, the service to Siegen is usually made up of a three-part Stadler FLIRT set and the service to Iserlohn is usually made up of a two-part FLIRT set. On weekends the service to Iserlohn-Letmathe is operated as a three-part set, the Ruhr-Lenne-Bahn would then run via Essen-Steele rather than Essen-Kray Süd. Due to the different number of stops for the different services. There are other connections in Iserlohn to the Ardey-Bahn to Dortmund, in Iserlohn-Letmathe, it is a possible to change from services from Siegen to services to Iserlohn and vice versa each hour. In the early days of the Ruhr-Sieg-Express it was operated with class 425 electric multiple units. So sometimes two class 426 EMUs were coupled, sometimes a class 425 and a class 426 set were coupled, occasionally a triple set of class 426 was operated, which sometimes caused problems. In the last weeks before the change of operator, this often occurred, the use of both classes ended at the timetable change on 9 December 2007, when Abellio Rail NRW took over operations on the line with two-and three-part Stadler FLIRT EMUs. The contract with Abellio runs until December 2019, list of regional rail lines in North Rhine-Westphalia
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