Ammergau Railway
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The Ammergau Railway or Ammergaubahn (sometimes called the Ammertalbahn or "Ammer Valley Railway", originally the Lokalbahn Murnau–Oberammergau) is a single-tracked, electrified railway line in Bavaria
in southern Germany
. It runs from Murnau
to Oberammergau
, its latter stages following the valley of the river Ammer
from which it derives its name. This stub line to Oberammergau branches off at Murnau from the Munich–Garmisch-Partenkirchen main line.
This 23.671 km long route was completed on 1 May 1900 under a Bavarian concession granted on 24 January 1897 to the Lokalbahn AG
(LAG). On 1 January 1905 it was electrified, becoming the first railway in Germany to run on single-phase AC power. Originally the line was electrified with 5.5 kV, 16 Hz AC. With effect from 1 August 1938 the LAG was transferred to the Deutsche Reichsbahn
. But it was not until 1954/55 that the power system was converted to the usual 15 kV, 162/3 Hz by the Deutsche Bundesbahn
, and four of the five DRG Class E 69 electric locomotives modified accordingly.
As cars increased in popularity, the Ammergau Railway was affected just as badly as other branch lines in the railway network. Goods traffic dwindled to virtually nothing and the number of passengers fell steadily to between 500 and 1,000 per day. As a result a vast amount of infrastructure has been removed.
In 1999 there were negotiations with the passenger union Pro Bahn and DB Regio Bayern AG. Pro Bahn demanded inter alia a new crossing place at Altenau (Bay) and the retention of the second track at Oberammergau. That would have enabled journey times to be reduced by about 10 minutes. But the cost of about 4 million marks was too high and the project was put on ice.
- is needed for scheduled services. Here the regular trains cross hourly. Furthermore, locomotives can no longer run around at the terminus in Oberammergau - only push-pull
trains or multiple units can use the single track there.
In the area of Bad Kohlgrub, 10 kilometres of 80 year old track was replaced, the new rails were continuously welded. The route was also equipped in 2005 with the GSM-R
digital train radio system. Since 28 November 2008 the line has also be controlled from the electronic signal box at Garmisch-Partenkirchen
. This means that the Fahrdienstleiter post at Bad Kohlgrub can be saved.
One curiosity is the request stop
at Jägerhaus, where trains pass through at night without stopping for safety reasons because the stop has no platform lighting.
s being employed (two coaches per train). A few years ago the locomotive-hauled trains were finally replaced by Class 425
and 426 multiples (two sets being required for scheduled services), the last Class 141-hauled push-pull trains working the line in autumn 2004.
"Schienenverkehr im Werdenfelser Land" Sutton-Verlag Erfurt 2005 ISBN 3-89702-886-7
The Ammergau Railway or Ammergaubahn (sometimes called the Ammertalbahn or "Ammer Valley Railway", originally the Lokalbahn Murnau–Oberammergau) is a single-tracked, electrified railway line in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
in southern Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It runs from Murnau
Murnau am Staffelsee
Murnau am Staffelsee is a market town in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region of Bavaria, Germany.Murnau is situated on the edge of the Bavarian alps, approx. 70 km south of Munich. Directly to its west is the Staffelsee lake.-History:Murnau was first documented in...
to Oberammergau
Oberammergau
Oberammergau is a municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria, Germany. The town is famous for its production of a Passion Play, its woodcarvers, and the NATO School.-Passion Play:...
, its latter stages following the valley of the river Ammer
Amper
The Amper is a river located in southern Bavaria, Germany and is the largest tributary to the Isar river. The Amper flows into the Isar in Moosburg, 185 km from the headwater of the river and at a speed of 45 m³/s. It runs out of the Ammersee and its upper course, upstream from the...
from which it derives its name. This stub line to Oberammergau branches off at Murnau from the Munich–Garmisch-Partenkirchen main line.
Operations and History
Lokalbahn AG
The Lokalbahn AG company , or 'LAG' for short, was a private company based in Munich, Bavaria, whose lines of business was the construction and operation of branch lines in Germany and Austria-Hungary...
(LAG). On 1 January 1905 it was electrified, becoming the first railway in Germany to run on single-phase AC power. Originally the line was electrified with 5.5 kV, 16 Hz AC. With effect from 1 August 1938 the LAG was transferred to the Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn was the name of the following two companies:* Deutsche Reichsbahn, the German Imperial Railways during the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich and the immediate aftermath...
. But it was not until 1954/55 that the power system was converted to the usual 15 kV, 162/3 Hz by the Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
, and four of the five DRG Class E 69 electric locomotives modified accordingly.
As cars increased in popularity, the Ammergau Railway was affected just as badly as other branch lines in the railway network. Goods traffic dwindled to virtually nothing and the number of passengers fell steadily to between 500 and 1,000 per day. As a result a vast amount of infrastructure has been removed.
In 1999 there were negotiations with the passenger union Pro Bahn and DB Regio Bayern AG. Pro Bahn demanded inter alia a new crossing place at Altenau (Bay) and the retention of the second track at Oberammergau. That would have enabled journey times to be reduced by about 10 minutes. But the cost of about 4 million marks was too high and the project was put on ice.
Modernisation
In recent times the route has been extensively modernised. However all infrastructure no longer needed for scheduled services fell victim to this process, which resulted in major criticism of Deutsche Bahn by Pro Bahn and others. For example, since the renovation in autumn 2005 there has only been one track at the terminus in Oberammergau, the rest of the area has been built on to provide a bus station and other facilities. As a result the terminus was downgraded from a station to a halt. The stations at Grafenaschau and Unterammergau were likewise downgraded to stops; since when train cannot be caught from either location. As a direct result of these rationalisation measures, specials can no longer run during the day to Oberammergau, because there is no longer anywhere for them to cross. The only remaining crossing place - at Bad KohlgrubBad Kohlgrub
Bad Kohlgrub is a German municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria....
- is needed for scheduled services. Here the regular trains cross hourly. Furthermore, locomotives can no longer run around at the terminus in Oberammergau - only push-pull
Push-pull
Push–pull may refer to:In electronic technology:*Push–pull output, type of electronic circuit*Push–pull converter, in electronics, is a type of DC to DC converter that uses a transformer*Push–pull connector, an electronic cable connector...
trains or multiple units can use the single track there.
In the area of Bad Kohlgrub, 10 kilometres of 80 year old track was replaced, the new rails were continuously welded. The route was also equipped in 2005 with the GSM-R
GSM-R
GSM-R, Global System for Mobile Communications - Railway or GSM-Railway is an international wireless communications standard for railway communication and applications. A sub-system of European Rail Traffic Management System , it is used for communication between train and railway regulation...
digital train radio system. Since 28 November 2008 the line has also be controlled from the electronic signal box at Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria...
. This means that the Fahrdienstleiter post at Bad Kohlgrub can be saved.
One curiosity is the request stop
Request stop
In public transport, a request stop or flag stop describes a stopping point at which trains or buses stop only on an as-need or request basis; that is, only if there are passengers to be picked up or dropped off. In this way, infrequently used stopping points can be served efficiently.Trains save...
at Jägerhaus, where trains pass through at night without stopping for safety reasons because the stop has no platform lighting.
Operational stock
Once the original Class 169 locomotives had retired in the early 1980s due to their advanced state of obsolescence, they were replaced by Class 141 locomotives. The rolling stock, however, remained the same: the so-called SilberlingSilberling
Silberling is the colloquial name for the n-coaches of the Deutsche Bundesbahn, a type of regional passenger coach of which more than 7,000 units were built from 1958 to 1981...
s being employed (two coaches per train). A few years ago the locomotive-hauled trains were finally replaced by Class 425
DBAG Class 425
The Classes 425 and 426 EMUs are a class of electric multiple units built by a consortium of Siemens, Bombardier and DWA and operated by DB Regio in Germany...
and 426 multiples (two sets being required for scheduled services), the last Class 141-hauled push-pull trains working the line in autumn 2004.
See also
- Royal Bavarian State RailwaysRoyal Bavarian State RailwaysAs a nation-state, Germany did not come into being until the creation of the German Empire in 1871 from the various German-speaking states such as Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, Baden and Württemberg. By then each of the major states had formed its own state railway and these continued to remain...
- Bavarian branch linesBavarian branch linesBavarian branch lines comprised nearly half the total railway network in Bavaria, a state in the southeastern Germany that was a kingdom in the days of the German Empire...
- List of closed railway lines in Bavaria
Sources
- Ralf Roman Rossberg: Die Lokalbahn Murnau–Oberammergau. Frankh’sche Verlagshandlung, Stuttgart 1970, ISBN 3-440-03731-2
- Ralf Roman Rossberg: Die Lokalbahn Murnau–Oberammergau. In: Eisenbahn-Kurier. Nr. 215/Jahrgang 24/1990. EK-Verlag GmbH, , S. 46–48.
- Bernd Mühlstraßer: Die Baureihe E 69: Die bayerischen Localbahn-Elloks und die Strecke Murnau–Oberammergau. EK-Verlag GmbH, Freiburg 2005, ISBN 3-88255-169-0
- Peter Blath: Die Lokalbahn Murnau - Oberammergau im Buch:
"Schienenverkehr im Werdenfelser Land" Sutton-Verlag Erfurt 2005 ISBN 3-89702-886-7
External links
- Information about the line at www.mittenwaldbahn.de
- 1944 timetable
- There is a relevant English-language forum at Railways of Germany
