Georgensgmünd–Spalt railway

The railway line Georgensgmuend - gap, popularly known also splitters Bocklin, is a 7 km long from 1872 to 1995 and now operated degraded branch line of the main track Nuremberg -Augsburg, who joined the city gap to the rail network.

Planning and construction

Initial plans that Ludwig South-North Railway Lindau -Nuremberg aim to build on Gunzenhausen -gap Georgensgemünd were not realized. The Spalter hops growers should have the prevented due to the fear of deterioration of the world-renowned hops because of the steam locomotives. When the railway was recognized as a transport later, the city gap asked several times to connect to the web at Georgensgemünd, finally had but after Vizinalbahngesetz muster even the construction costs in the amount of 80,000 guilders.

Civil Schmidt of the railway section Nuremberg worked 1870-1872 from a total of 4 possible route variants, of which the first was finally realized. She pointed compared to the other alignments on the shortest route and the least construction and was therefore preferred. The city of gap undertook cost-cutting measures, the 14 engineering structures ( bridges and culverts ) of stones were built, for example, which were incurred during the demolition of the city walls. The course consists of almost 3/4 of straight lines, only six curves were necessary. The narrowest curve radius amounted to 750 meters, the shortest distance between two opposite straight 188.50 meters. The underground train line consisted of grown clay and sand, but only to a short piece had to be pulled up on the sand sole peaty soil. Incisions were partly carried out up to 3 meters deep, embankments piled up to 8.5 meters high, and also sand and clay was used. A total of approximately 120,000 cubic meters of earth were moved. The rails and switches and crossings made ​​of cast steel was supplied by Späth in Nuremberg, two profiles were used. Milestones made ​​a local stonemason for 50 Kreuzer per piece incl delivery.

On October 16, 1872, the railway line was opened as a second Vizinalbahn of the Bavarian State Railways.

Operation

The first train reached gap on 18 September 1872 the operation of the branch line was added to 16 October. Initially drove three pairs of trains daily, which were supplemented in recent years of operation for a further two to three connections. The until 1892 or 1897 set up breakpoints water cell and hill mill was operated until 1922 or 1924. For a breakpoint Großweingarten was created.

To make the operation more economical, 1914, the extension of the railway was planned on the wind stream and marked out the route. The remaining work was delayed by the outbreak of the First World War and thereafter no longer be pursued by the Deutsche Reichsbahn.

The traffic was first settled as on the other Vizinalbahnen with old main line locomotives. After several less successful experiments with special branch line locomotives, the first " glass boxes " of PtL series were 2/2 put into operation in 1905, which should characterize the route in the following decades. The era of these locomotives ended in 1963 with the retirement of the 98 307 which went up last between gap and Georgensgmuend. Resources point of the route of the railway station was split. The locomotives stayed in the two permanent locomotive station at the exit towards Georgensgmuend.

On September 28, 1969, the passenger traffic on the 6.9 km long route was decommissioned by the German Federal Railways, although the track was still completely renovated in 1963. The freight was still carried on until 28 May 1995. Occasionally, the track was also used by special trains, especially to the construction waste landfill operated by the DB in which, among other things -developed gravel and overburden of degraded platforms were deposited.

Meanwhile, the railway line has been converted into a cycle path. The gap of the city railway station was restored and is now a cultural center station of the cultural life of the city. Include the " splitters Bocklin " at the German Steam Locomotive Museum in New Market ( Upper Franconia ).