Pragtunnel

The Prague tunnel is a railway tunnel in Stuttgart by the Prague, a ridge between the Stuttgart basin and Feuerbach. With two 680 -meter-long tubes connecting the tunnel to the North Station with the Feuerbach station. Through the tunnel, the railway line from Stuttgart lead in the direction of Karlsruhe, Mannheim and Heilbronn ( railway lines of the Franks train and feed to the high-speed line ) and the lines of the S -Bahn Stuttgart to Ludwigsburg (S4, S5) and Leonberg (S6, S60).

The tunnel runs in swellable layers of gypsum Keuper.

Track systems

The track distances in the two tubes were reported in the early 20th century, with 3.70 and 4.00 m. You are now given as 3.65 m (S -Bahn ) and 3.70 m ( mainline ).

South of the tunnel connects a passable with 60 km / h track connection the remote track to the main station with the S -Bahn track direction Feuerbach. For an S -Bahn track threaded a passable with 40 km / h track connection from the Gäubahn.

History

First tube

The first tube of the tunnel Prague was at the very first Württemberg railway project, the central railway Esslingen Stuttgart -Ludwigsburg, built. The first sod was turned on 26 June 1844 represents the beginning of construction of the Central Railway dar. to build this tunnel leading through Keuper layers five shafts were sunk, which were later filled in again. During a dip tube 20 workers lost their lives.

Only after two years of construction, the 828.65 meter long tunnel was pierced, and on 15 October 1846 operation began on the Central Railway. The tunnel had been designed from the beginning for the two-track operation, but was moved initially only a single track. Between 1858 and 1861, the second track was retrofitted.

Between 1911 and 1914, the tube that is now used by the S -Bahn was shortened to 680 m in order to build the freight rail link between the Gäubahn and North Station can.

Second Tube

In 1907 it was decided to subject the Stuttgart railway facilities extensive reconstruction measures, including the four-tracked expansion of the route between Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg counted. For this purpose, a second, 680 -meter-long tunnel was built just to the northeast of the first from October 1908, which started the two additional tracks.

The tunnel was pierced on June 22, 1909, he broke but soon to a length of 20 to 30 meters, and above the tunnel, the ground sloped up to four meters from. After repairing the damage of the new tunnel could be taken only in August 1910 in operation. Subsequently, the old tunnel that had happened unstable by the construction of the new tube, initially locked and renovated. On this occasion, we shortened the tunnel by additional cuts to Stuttgart page to a length of 680 meters also. The renovation was completed on August 21, 1912, and 21-22. November 1912 was put the old tube back into operation. They then served the suburban (or today, the S-Bahn ), while the new tube of long-distance trains will be used.

Since 1981 is located at the northern portals of both tubes a Overpass of the light rail. In this structure there is a constructed provisions for one at this time still planned additional freight track west of the S- Bahn tracks in the form of a concealed fifth track trough. For this purpose, a third Prague tunnel tube was provided.

Future use / Stuttgart 21

As part of the T variant for the expansion of the Stuttgart S- Bahn network the southern Prague tunnel tube would have been traveled in the direction of operation of S-Bahn Stuttgart. The northern tube would have been traveled in the opposite direction. To the north was an additional third tube, designed for long-distance and regional traffic. These considerations led later to the concept T- clasp.

After commissioning of the project Stuttgart 21 long-distance and regional train part of Prague tunnels will initially not be used by long-distance and regional traffic. These trains are to be conducted in the future through the tunnel directly from Feuerbach Feuerbach station to the central station.

Both remain old tubes are. The S -Bahn serves tube will continue to be used for the S -Bahn. The long-distance transport tube is also maintained and to enable the so-called P- option of the Stuttgart 21 project in the future, two more tracks feed.

In the course of the 21 provided in the course of Stuttgart option Northern Cross, a third double-track tunnel, for the S -Bahn tracks towards the north of Stuttgart (low) and Stuttgart would Hauptbahnhof ( deep), to be built.