Mannheim Hauptbahnhof
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mannheim Hbf | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Architectural information | |
| Location | Mannheim |
| State | Baden-Württemberg |
| Country | Germany |
| Willy-Brandt-Platz 17 68161 Mannheim |
|
| Operations | |
| DS100 code | RM |
| Station code | 3925 |
| Type | Bf |
| Category | 1 |
| Deutsche Bahn - Stations in Germany | |
Mannheim Hauptbahnhof (usually translated from German as Mannheim Central Station, short form: Mannheim Hbf) is the central railway station of Mannheim in Germany. It is one of the 21 Category 1 stations in Germany. It is the second largest traffic hub in southwestern Germany after Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof, with 626 trains a day, including 185 long-distance trains. 76,000 passengers embark, disembark or transfer between trains at the station each day. The station was modernised in 2001.
[edit] History
The original station of the Badische Hauptbahn (Baden mainline) from Heidelberg, opened in 1840, was a terminal station in the area of the Tattersall. Plans for a bridge over the Rhine to Ludwigshafen (now the Konrad Adenauer bridge), however, soon made it necessary to move the station.
The station building, some of which still survives, was built between 1871 and 1876. From around 1900, consideration was given to extending or relocating the station. In 1915 it was decided to expand the existing station. In 1927, the front of the station was demolished and rebuilt 10 m closer to the street, doubling the area of the station. In World War II, it was badly damaged and it was rebuilt in a simpler style without decorative fixtures, but reminiscent of its previous forms. The station building was comprehensively reorganised from 1999 to 2001. The platform-side buildings were extended and had their symmetry restored, while the entrance hall received a glass dome. The blend of tradition and modernism is considered successful.
[edit] Planned developments
The station lies is at the junction of lines from Stuttgart, Basel, Saarbrücken and Frankfurt. The Mannheim-Stuttgart high-speed rail line was completed in 1991 and it is planned to build a high-speed line to Frankfurt. Deutsche Bahn had sought to establish a by-pass of the city through the Rheinauer Wald to the east of the city, including a complex junction in the Pfingstbergtunnel. This would have have substantially reduced the number of long-distance trains serving Mannheim, leading to significant opposition from the city and the region. As a result, Deutsche Bahn dropped this plan for the time being in 2006.
Extensive changes at the railway tracks of the main station are planned between late 2007 or early 2008 and 2010/2011. Among other things, a new platform is to be built for the S-Bahn RheinNeckar for approximately €50 million.[1] In addition, regional and long-distance traffic are to be largely segregated, with regional trains being kept in the future to the four tracks closest to the station building and long-distance traffic on the further tracks.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ Erweiterung des Hauptbahnhofs für 50 Millionen Euro Article of 21 March 2007 in swr-online.de (German)
- ^ Bahn investiert in den Hauptbahnhof in Wormser Zeitung of 23 March 2007 (German)
