Trams in Nuremberg

The Nuremberg tramway network (German: Straßenbahnnetz Nürnberg) is a network of tramways forming part of the public transport system in Nuremberg, a city in the federal state of Bavaria, Germany. The system reached the neighboring city of Fürth from its opening year to almost a century later when construction of the U1 subway line led to the withdrawal of tram service to and within Fürth. During that era and referring to it historically in literature or nostalgic activities, the system was known as “Nürnberg-Fürther Straßenbahn“ (Nuremberg-Fürth tramway). For example, a local association dedicated to preserving the history and heritage of the tram network as well as old rolling stock calls itself “Freunde der Nürnberg-Fürther Straßenbahn“ (friends of the Nuremberg Fürth tramway)[5] The system is planned to cross the municipal boundaries of Nuremberg once more, if and when the extension to Erlangen and from there to Herzogenaurach dubbed "Stadtumlandbahn" (or "StUB" for short) opens (see below).

Nuremberg tramway network
A GT8N tram at Friedrich-Ebert-Platz, 2012.
A GT8N tram at Friedrich-Ebert-Platz, 2012.
Operation
LocaleNuremberg, Bavaria, Germany
Horsecar era: 1881 (1881)–1898 (1898)
Status Converted to electricity
Track gauge 1,432 mm (4 ft 8+3⁄8 in)
Propulsion system(s) Horses
Electric tram era: since 1896 (1896)
Status Operational
Lines 5[1][2]
Operator(s) Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft Nürnberg (VAG)
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Propulsion system(s) Electricity
Electrification 600 V DC
Stock 48[3]
Route length 33 km (21 mi)[4]
Stops 76[2]
Tramway network, 2012
Tramway network, 2012
Website VAG Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft Nürnberg (in German)

The network is operated by Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft Nürnberg (VAG), which is a member of the Verkehrsverbund Großraum Nürnberg (VGN; Greater Nuremberg Area Transport Association). The VAG also operates the Nuremberg U-Bahn and local buses while the Deutsche Bahn AG operated Nuremberg S-Bahn also operates within VGN schedules and ticketing rules.

As of 2013, the network consisted of five lines,[1] running on a total operational route length of 33 kilometres (21 mi).[4] The network carried 39.152 million passengers annually.

History

The first horse-drawn tramline opened in Nuremberg on 25 August 1881.[6]

Electrification came to the system when the first electric tramline opened on 7 May 1896.[6] The entire system was electrified on 20 July 1898.[6] Until the 1990s the track gauge was nominally 1,432 mm (4 ft 8+3⁄8 in), however, this figure is just 3 mm (0.12 in) from standard gauge and thus both figures are within each other's tolerances.

The system reached into the neighboring city of Fürth until 1981 (weeks ahead of the 100th anniversary of the system) when tram service was shut down in anticipation of the newly built subway line U1 replacing the service to Fürth - prior to that the trams to Fürth had been using the elevated line built for the U1 as a transitional service. This marked a particularly high-profile example of shutdowns of tram service on the network in the course of U-Bahn expansion. When the decision to build an U-Bahn (as opposed to converting the existing tram system into a Stadtbahn as other West German cities were doing at the time) was taken in the 1960s, the tram network was planned to be gradually replaced by subways and buses and shut down step by step. However, this decision was ultimately reversed and there have both been shutdowns (last along Pirckheimer Straße in 2011) and expansions (last in 2016 towards the new northern endpoint "Am Wegfeld" in preparation for potential extension towards neighboring Erlangen) in the 2010s.[7][8]

Both the decision to abandon tram service in favor of U-Bahn and bus service and its reversal were paralleled in Munich where many U-Bahn Munich lines replaced former tram lines (including the somewhat idiosyncratic numbering scheme based on those former tram lines and not the order of construction or geographic location) but the decision to abandon the tram system was ultimately reversed and the Munich tram network has since started expanding again. The particular politics of Bavaria played a significant role in this as Franconia whose largest city is Nuremberg often feels "left behind" by what it views as Old Bavaria centric politics by the "natural governing party" of Bavaria, the CSU. The city council of Nuremberg had already taken the decision to build a subway-surface system similar to that in Stuttgart on the advice of Stuttgart based traffic scientist Walther Lambert[9] before reversing course after the Bavarian State government had assured a Nuremberg subway would be on financially equal footing to the Munich one (i.e. Get significant state funding) but refused to make any such assurances for a Stadtbahn. In a similar fashion, the decision to keep - and later expand - the tramway after all was also a product of political idiosyncrasies, as the city of Nuremberg "lent" new low-floor trams to the city of Munich embroiled in fierce debate about whether or not the Munich tramway was to have a future and if so in which form and the new more accessible vehicles were among the deciding factors in both cities in them keeping and even expanding tram service.

Lines

The Nuremberg tramway network operated on six lines until 2011,[4] when two tram lines were joined.

The network has 96 kilometres (60 mi) of track,[2] with a total route length of 37 kilometres (23 mi),[2] of which 33 kilometres (21 mi)[2] is operational route. Of the tram's operational route, 41% is segregated from other traffic, with the other 59% representing trams operating in the street with other automobile traffic.[2] Lines have been numbered in such a way as to not overlap with the U-Bahn Nuremberg ever since the opening of U1, meaning line-number 1 ceased to be used when U1 opened, line-number 2 ceased to be used when U2 opened and so on. Thus the current lines are numbered 4 thru 8 with planned lines referred to by numbers greater than 8.

The Nuremberg tramway network consists of the following five lines:[1]

Line Route (crossing points and termini) Stops
Nuremberg tramway Gibitzenhof – Landgrabenstraße – Hallertor – Friedrich-Ebert-Platz – Am Wegfeld 19
Nuremberg tramway Tiergarten – Mögeldorf – Marientunnel – Hauptbahnhof - Aufseßplatz - Frankenstraße - Südfriedhof 26
Nuremberg tramway Doku-Zentrum – Dutzendteich – Schweiggerstraße – Christuskirche – Landgrabenstraße – Hallertor – Westfriedhof 22
Nuremberg tramway Tristanstraße - Hauptbahnhof 9
Nuremberg tramway Doku-Zentrum – Wodanstraße – Schweiggerstraße – Hauptbahnhof – Rathenauplatz – Erlenstegen 17
line network
line network

Interchanges with other systems

Most tram stops are also served by local buses.

Interchanges with U-Bahn Nuremberg

There are two points in the Nuremberg transportation network which are served by all subway lines, Plärrer station and Nuremberg Central Station. The former offers interchange between the subway and tram lines 4&6 while the latter offers interchange between the subway and tram lines 5,7&8. The Plärrer has been a central traffic hub in Nuremberg for centuries and the Bavarian Ludwig Railway (metonymically known locally by the name of its first steam locomotive "Adler"), Germany's first railway, terminated there from 1835 to 1922. Historically up to 13 different tram lines served the Plärrer.

Other interchange points between subway and tram include Wöhrder Wiese station (U2 and U3 to tram line 8) and Rathenauplatz station (U2 and U3 to tram line 8) along the main U2/U3 trunk where the two driverless subway lines overlap to a combined 100 second headway. There is also an interchange at Friedrich-Ebert-Platz station between U3 and tram line 4. All interchanges between U2 and the tram network are also served by U3.

Interchanges between subway line U1 exist at Aufseßplatz station (tram lines 5 and 6) as well as Frankenstraße station (tram line 5).

Interchanges with S-Bahn Nuremberg and other local trains

Besides the central interchange station Nürnberg Hauptbahnhof where all S-Bahn lines and almost all regional trains serving Nuremberg stop (the Gräfenberg railway serves only Nuremberg Northeast station) there are also a handful of interchange stations between the tram system and Nuremberg S-Bahn as well as between the tram system and regional trains.

Passengers can change between tram lines 4 and 6 and the S-Bahn lines S1 and S2 at Nürnberg-Steinbühl station. Nürnberg-Dutzendteich station meanwhile allows connections between S2 and tram line 6.

Tram line 5 offers several connections to the S-Bahn at Nürnberg-Dürrenhof station (S1 and S2) as well as to S1 at Nürnberg-Ostring station (within walking distance of tram stop "Business Tower"). Furthermore, tram line 5 serves Nürnberg-Mögeldorf station which is also served by S1.

Due in part to being not electrified services along the Right Pegnitz line (Nuremberg Cheb railway) are branded as regional trains instead of S-Bahn. There are interchanges between the tram line 8 and regional train services along that line at Nürnberg Ostbahnhof ("Nuremberg East(ern) Station") and Erlenstegen. In the course of planned Nuremberg S-Bahn expansion, the Right Pegnitz line is to be electrified[10] and integrated into the S-Bahn Nuremberg network at some future date.[11][12] The expansion might also include infill stations with further S-Bahn/Tram interchanges.

Expansion plans

After a 2016 ballot measure in Erlangen, the section to am Wegfeld is planned to be extended to Erlangen and from there to Herzogenaurach in a roughly L-shaped line. Herzogenaurach previously had a connection to mainline rail, but it was shut down in the 1980s, leaving it one of southern Germany's biggest cities without a rail connection. With the establishment of a new Nuremberg Technical University (de:Technische Universität Nürnberg) on former railway real estate in the new borough "Lichtenreuth" there are plans to extend the tram into the new neighborhood. The still extant section of track towards "Stadtpark" which was taken out of revenue service in the course of U-Bahn extension is also planned to regain regular passenger service.[13] In the course of long term traffic planning the so called "Nahverkehrsentwicklungsplan 2025" (named after the year in which projects were to be finished, not the year it was issued - the term roughly translates as "(local) public transit development plan" and is commonly abbreviated NVEP 2025) was commissioned in 2011 and ultimately published in 2013 to do cost benefit analysis of numerous proposed and discussed U-Bahn and Tram projects.[14] Among the projects with the best benefit cost ratio per the legal requirements in Germany was one crossing the northern Old Town, serving Nuremberg City Hall and roughly replacing that section of current bus line 36.[15] Other projects included an extension of the tram network to Kornburg in the South or serving Nuremberg's port on the Main-Danube Canal.[16] However, as of 2021 few of those projects are being seriously considered right now.[17][18] In 2021 the committee on transportation of the Nuremberg City Council passed a plan for numerous upgrades and expansions of the tram network, including the introduction of new lines "10" (Dutzendteich-Plärrer-Am Wegfeld) and "11" (Gibitzenhof-Hauptbahnhof-Mögeldorf) offering new direct routes on existing infrastructure, as well as the reactivation of the infrastructure towards the Stadtpark for passenger service and extensions in Minervastraße and Brunnecker Straße which will provide redundancy in the case of blockage of routes in addition to more capacity and service. The plans are to be put into practice during the 2020s with an end goal of an overall public transit ridership of 200 million p.a. in Nuremberg in 2030.[19]

Rolling stock
Flexity Classic, refurbished GT6N, and Avenio T1.6 at the historic St. Peter tram depot in August 2018

As of 2019, Nuremberg operates a fleet of 48 trams.[20] In 2018, VAG borrowed one Avenio T1 from Munich, as well as one Bombardier Flexity Classic from Kraków in preparation for a tender for new trams.[21] In November 2019, VAG ordered 12 Avenio trams from Siemens Mobility, with an option for 75 more,[3] and entry into service scheduled for 2022.[22]

Model Year built Number Image
Adtranz GT6N 1995-1996 14
Adtranz GT8N 1999-2000 26
Stadler GTV6 (Variobahn) 2006-2007 8

See also

References

Notes
  1. "Straßenbahn Stadtverkehr Nürnberg" [Tramline traffic (lines) Nuremberg] (in German). VGN. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
  2. "Wussten Sie? - Wussten Sie zum Thema "Straßenbahn"" [Did you know? - Facts about the Tram] (in German). VAG. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
  3. "VAG Nuremberg orders Siemens Avenio low-floor trams". Urban Transport Magazine. November 18, 2019. Archived from the original on November 18, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  4. "Geschäftsbericht 2012 Ziele erreichen – auf ganzer Strecke" [Annual Report 2012 Targets achieved - over the whole distance] (PDF) (in German). VAG. June 2013. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-10-05. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
  5. "Freunde der Nürnberg-Fürther Straßenbahn e.V - Home". www.sfnbg.de.
  6. "125 Jahre Nahverkehr in Nürnberg: Am 25. August 1881 fuhr die erste Pferdebahn" [125 years suburban traffic in Nuremberg: On 25 August 1881, the first horse tram line] (in German). VAG. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
  7. "Straßenbahnverlängerung nach Am Wegfeld und Buskonzept Nürnberg-Nord - Verkehrsplanung Nürnberg". www.nuernberg.de.
  8. "Ab morgen heißt es: Bahn frei für die Linie 4". www.nordbayern.de.
  9. "28. März 1963: Stadtrat vor einer schwierigen Entscheidung".
  10. "Sektor Nordost - Elektrifizierung Pegnitztal". VGN.
  11. "S-Bahn-Ausbau ins Pegnitz- und Schnaittachtal". www.deutschebahn.com.
  12. "S-Bahn-Ausbau ins Pegnitz- und Schnaittachtal: Planungsvereinbarung für neue S-Bahn unterzeichnet - Bahnausbau Nordostbayern". www.bahnausbau-nordostbayern.de.
  13. "Kein Radentscheid in Nürnberg - Einigung auf Mobilitätspakt". www.nordbayern.de.
  14. "NVEP 2025 - Nahverkehrsentwicklungsplan - Verkehrsplanung Nürnberg". www.nuernberg.de.
  15. "Gutachten spricht für eine Altstadt-Tram in Nürnberg". www.nordbayern.de.
  16. "Pläne für den Nahverkehr in Nürnberg". www.nordbayern.de.
  17. "Nürnberg: Keine Tram nach Kornburg". www.busundbahn.de.
  18. "Planungen der Nürnberger Altstadt-Tram liegen auf Eis". www.nordbayern.de.
  19. "ÖPNV-Maßnahmenpaket 2030: VAG als Treiber der Verkehrswende". 22 July 2021.
  20. Hall, Martin. Tram & Metro Systems of Western Europe 2019. pp. 91–92. ISBN 9781908553188.
  21. Barrow, Keith (August 28, 2018). "Nuremberg plans tender for up to 85 LRVs". railjournal.com. Simmons-Boardman Publishing. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  22. Burroughs, David (November 15, 2019). "Nuremberg orders four-section Avenio LRVs". railjournal.com. Simmons-Boardman Publishing. Retrieved November 18, 2019.

Bibliography
  • Binder, Robert; et al. (1986). Der Stadtverkehr in Nürnberg und Fürth von 1881 bis 1981 [City Transport in Nuremberg and Fürth from 1881 to 1981] (in German). Nürnberg: Presse- und Öffentlichkeitsstelle der VAG.
  • Hendlemeier, Wolfgang (1981). Handbuch der deutschen Straßenbahngeschichte [Handbook of German Tram History] (in German). Vol. 1. München.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Höltge, Dieter; Kochems, Michael (2006). Straßen- und Stadtbahnen in Deutschland [Tramways and Stadtbahnen in Germany]. Vol. Band 10: Bayern [Volume 10: Bavaria]. Freiburg i. B., Germany: EK-Verlag. ISBN 388255391X. (in German)
  • Klebes, Günther (1980). Die Strassenbahnen Bayerns in alten Ansichten [The Trams of Bavaria in Old Postcards] (in German). Zaltbommel. ISBN 90-288-1197-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Schwandl, Robert (2012). Schwandl's Tram Atlas Deutschland (in German and English) (3rd ed.). Berlin: Robert Schwandl Verlag. pp. 110–113. ISBN 9783936573336.
  • Der Nahverkehr in Nürnberg und Fürth von 1982 bis 2008 [Local Transport in Nuremberg and Fürth from 1982 to 2008] (in German) (1 ed.). Nürnberg: Jürgen Heußner. 2009.
  • 125 Jahre Nahverkehr in Nürnberg [125 Years Local Transport in Nuremberg] (in German) (1 ed.). Nürnberg: Presse- und Öffentlichkeitsstelle der VAG. 2006. ISBN 978-3-00-018689-9.
  • Nürnberg-Fürther Straßenbahn im Wandel der Zeiten [Nürnberg-Fürther Straßenbahn through the Ages] (in German) (3 ed.). Nürnberg: Freunde der Nürnberg-Fürther Straßenbahn e. V. 2005.

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