is the Hauptbahnhof for the town of Witten

Witten

Witten is a university city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the home of the Witten/Herdecke University, the first private university in Germany.-Bordering municipalities:* Bochum* Dortmund* Herdecke* Wetter * Sprockhoevel* Hattingen...

 in western 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 is situated southwest of the town.

In 1849 the station was opened as Witten West by the Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft. At the end of the 19th century the whole station was reconstructed, the new station building was was designed by the architect Richard Witten Sauerbruch and opened in 1901. It is now part of the The Industrial Heritage Trail

The Industrial Heritage Trail

The Industrial Heritage Trail links tourist attractions related to the industrial heritage in the Ruhr area in Germany. It is a part of the European Route of Industrial Heritage.-The route:...

 (. In 1940 the station was renamed Witten Hauptbahnhof.

History

Witten station was originally built as part of the Elberfeld–Dortmund trunk line

Elberfeld–Dortmund railway

The Elberfeld–Dortmund railway is a major German railway. It is part of a major axis for long distance and regional rail services between Wuppertal and Cologne, and is served by Intercity Express, InterCity, Regional Express, Regionalbahn and S-Bahn trains....

 of the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company, which was opened on 20 December 1848, originally only for freight. On 26 October 1860, the BME began building its Ruhr route from this station.

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...

 opened a freight rail line through Witten-Höhe to Wengern Ost connecting with the Ruhr Valley Railway on 4 October 1926. In Witten-Höhe, the Witten–Wengern Ost/Schwelm railway branched off from 15 May 1934 to 30 November 1979, carrying passenger trains to Gevelsberg West

Gevelsberg West station

Gevelsberg West station is a through station in the town of Gevelsberg in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The station was opened with the Witten–Wengern Ost/Schwelm railway from Witten-Höhe to Schwelm that was opened by Deutsche Reichsbahn on 15 May 1934...

 and Schwelm

Schwelm station

Schwelm station is the most important station in the city of Schwelm in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. All regional and S-Bahn trains stop at the station. Long distance services pass through without stopping.-History :...

. This line was permanently closed at the beginning of 1983. Passenger services continued through Wengern Ost to Hagen-Vorhalle

Hagen-Vorhalle station

Hagen-Vorhalle station is a large marshalling yard of national importance and a small passenger station for local services in the Hagen district of Vorhalle in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia...

 for three years, but were also closed on 1 June 1986.

Current situation

The section of the Elberfeld–Dortmund line to the south is used by both long distance and regional services, the section of the line to the north has, however, only been used by Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn  line S 5 since 1988.

The regional services stop in the station on the Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg line to Essen Hauptbahnhof

Essen Hauptbahnhof

is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Essen in western Germany. It is situated south of the old town centre, next to the A 40 motorway.It was opened in 1862 by the Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn...

. Since 1988, long-distance services have run without stopping in Witten on the same route as well as on the faster line built via the Oberstraße Tunnel to Dortmund Hauptbahnhof

Dortmund Hauptbahnhof

is the central station for the city of Dortmund in Germany.The station's origins lie in a joint station of the Köln-Mindener Eisenbahn and Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn which was built north of the city centre in 1847. That station was replaced by a new station, erected in 1910 at the current site....

.

The only lines still in operation on the south bank of the Ruhr (Witten Hbf to Witten-Höhe, Witten-Höhe to Wengern Ost, Wengern Ost to Hagen-Vorhalle) are now connected together as a through freight route.

Line	Line name	Route
	Wupper-Express	Aachen Aachen Hauptbahnhof Aachen Central Station is the train station for the city of Aachen, in the far west of Germany near the Dutch and Belgian border. It is the largest of the four currently active Aachen stations, and is integrated into the long-distance network.- History :...  – Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the city of Mönchengladbach in western Germany.-Overview:The station is the largest railway station in the city and, along with Rheydt Hbf, one of the two Hauptbahnhof stations in Mönchengladbach...  – Düsseldorf Düsseldorf Hauptbahnhof is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Düsseldorf in Germany, state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:The station was opened on 1 October 1891 opened as Düsseldorf Central Station...  – Wuppertal – Hagen Hagen Hauptbahnhof is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Hagen in western Germany. It is an important rail hub for the southeastern Ruhr area, offering regional and long distance connections....  – Dortmund Dortmund Hauptbahnhof is the central station for the city of Dortmund in Germany.The station's origins lie in a joint station of the Köln-Mindener Eisenbahn and Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn which was built north of the city centre in 1847. That station was replaced by a new station, erected in 1910 at the current site....
	Ruhr-Sieg-Express	Essen Essen Hauptbahnhof is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Essen in western Germany. It is situated south of the old town centre, next to the A 40 motorway.It was opened in 1862 by the Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn...  – Bochum Bochum Hauptbahnhof is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Bochum in western Germany. In its current incarnation, it was built from 1955 to 1957 and is one of the most notable 1950s railway stations in Germany....  – Witten – Hagen – Letmathe – (Finnentrop – Siegen Siegen station Siegen station is the main station of the town of Siegen, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is in close to the modern centre of Siegen, which includes the bus station and the Sieg Carré and City Galerie shopping centres.-History :... ) / Iserlohn
	Ruhr-Lenne-Bahn	Essen – Bochum – Witten – Hagen
	Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn	Dortmund – Witten – Wetter (Ruhr) Wetter (Ruhr) station Wetter station is in the district of Vorhalle in the centre of the city Wetter in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is served by regional services and Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn line S 5.-History :... – Hagen