Hamburg loco-hauled

[CC 72100]

Evening all,

Potentially looking at going away to Hamburg for a few days. Wherever I go, I like to sample the local railway network and so this would be no exception.

To that end, does anyone know of any particularly interesting loco-hauled out of Hamburg - nowehere too far or pricey, under 60 minutes travelling or so.

Thanks in advance

 

[306024]

Lubeck would be my choice. Not a scenic journey, but an interesting old town rich in history. Sorry can't say what type of locomotive though but someone will probably be along soon to advise.

Or a bit further but Rendsburg to sample the huge bridge over the Kiel Canal.

Both routes are not totally loco hauled though, avoid any through trains to Denmark as they are DMUs.

Train times and fares from the excellent DB website.

 

[Zamracene749]

The 14.10 arrival From Westerland, and the 15.48 departure should be double headed class 218s

Metronom services are loco hauled/pushed by 146s

There are a few 101 IC workings to various places during the day

HKX I think use a MRCE 182 on their workings to /from Koln

If u just want to visit somewhere nice, Luneberg is a charming place well worth a run out, you can use the metronom or ICE to get there. Celle is a fairly nice place too, on the same line but a little further. Uelzen is worth a visit just to admire the mad station buildings!

 

[Harbornite]

Evening all,

Potentially looking at going away to Hamburg for a few days. Wherever I go, I like to sample the local railway network and so this would be no exception.

To that end, does anyone know of any particularly interesting loco-hauled out of Hamburg - nowehere too far or pricey, under 60 minutes travelling or so.

Thanks in advance

You get DB regio Interregio express services that consist of single decker coaches hauled by Class 182s (Siemens Es64U2 eurosprinters) hired in from MRCE dispolok. I saw one of these trains at Berlin.

I think you will also get db class 101s on some intercity services, and maybe a class 103 but I'm not sure about these. You might get DB class 143s with double decker stock on regio services and I know for a fact that Metronom, the local operator (mentioned earlier) uses diesel traxx locos (class 246) and electric class 146s on local services, and NOB use Eurorunners on services to Hamburg. You also won't be too far from Maschen yard, the largest marshalling yard in Europa.

Either way, what I like about Germany (and I'm sure you will) is the amount of loco hauled passenger trains.

 

[Groningen]

The best places to view trains are the S-bahn stations Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg and Hamburg-Veddel between Hamburg Hbf and Hamburg Harburg. You will see every (freight)train that comes from Hannover, Cuxhaven and Bremen. At Maschen there is a huge freightyard, but not sure how the view will be.

 

[DaiGog]

I second Lübeck, although the town is a good 10-minute walk from the station.

For railway interest, arm yourself with a local Lander-ticket and have a wander! There are loco hauled regional services to Lübeck / Travemunde Strand, Kiel and Flensburg with DB, all double deck stock hauled mainly by ex-DR class 112s and 143s. Metronom run to Cuxhaven with new-ish class 246 diesels and to Bremen with class 146 electrics. Nord-Ostsee Bahn (NOB) use new class 245s out of Hamburg Altona on the semi-fasts towards Westerland.

Inter City services also run to Westerland - there are four each way which are electric (class 101) as far as Itzehoe, where pairs of class 218 diesels take over. As also mentioned above there is one train pair which uses 218s to/from Hamburg Hbf. The Westerland line is flat but has some interest - there is a large bridge over the Kiel canal at Hochdonn, and the final leg from Niebull to Westerland crosses the Hindenburg Dam (google 'Marschbahn' for further information). Niebull to Westerland is also served by Motorail services, to which a class 628 DMU is added at Niebull - good for novelty value!

There is also the huge bridge at Rendsburg as mentioned above, which is well worth a look. For a trip out, you can cross over it on a Flensburg service, alight at Schleswig and take a DMU to Husum (nice little town with a harbour) then back with NOB over the Hochdonn bridge into Hamburg. You can do that with a local Lander-ticket as long as you avoid the ICs.

Other IC services are mostly in the hands of 101s, with the odd 120. There is also a 2-hourly RE service to Rostock, which serves Schwerin, worth a look as it is a pleasant town. The ubiquitous ICE is in plentiful supply as you would expect.

Finally, Miniatur Wunderland, the huge model railway exhibition, is down in the trendy Hafen area.

 

[Harbornite]

I know this might be a bit far but db class 218s are also used on the Sylt shuttle from Westerland. Sylt is a holiday resort and only accessible by rail. Think of it as a motorail service because you can stick your car on the train.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Finally, Miniatur Wunderland, the huge model railway exhibition, is down in the trendy Hafen area.

I can't recommend that enough. Calling it even a "huge model railway exhibition" isn't doing it justice. If you have any interest in transport whatsoever, go there, and even if you don't still go there.

 

[317666]

To elaborate on above posts, BR112 electrics work Hamburg - Kiel RE (not for much longer on that one!), Hamburg - Lübeck RE and Hamburg - Ahrensburg/Bargteheide/Bad Oldesloe RB trains with double deckers. From my experience the odd BR143 does turn up on the latter circuit too, especially in the peaks.

Hamburg - Flensburg RE trains are also BR112-hauled, when I was last there in October with a mix of older slam-door coaches, but I'm led to believe they will be/have been replaced with double deckers too.

 

[Shaw S Hunter]

For anybody not familiar with it I recommend looking up the Rendsburger Hochbruecke. Its construction was very much tied in with German militarisation in the years before WW1. And having just had a read-up myself I have discovered that in addition to the rail-deck 42m above the canal it also has a transporter gondola (a la Middlesbrough) for the benefit of purely local traffic, though that is currently out of action following an accident earlier this year. The first time I went over it I was surprised at just how "spindly" it looks, certainly a contrast to the Forth Bridge!

 

[CC 72100]

Thanks for the responses so far - I'll have a proper read through later.

I'm guessing that the DB Lander ticket that i would require would be "Niedersachsen (Lower-Saxony), Hamburg, Bremen" (https://www.bahn.com/i/view/GBR/en/prices/germany/laender-ticket.sht) and I would be valid on 'RE', 'RB' and S-Bahn.

Or there is also a version 'Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg' which looks to include Lubeck, Rostock as mentioned above.

What are Interregio-Express services and how do they appear in timetables in terms of prefix?

 

[Harbornite]

What are Interregio-Express services and how do they appear in timetables in terms of prefix?

They are cheaper and slower alternative to intercity services.

I saw one of these at Berlin and the coaches advertised the price of Berlin to Hamburg as €19.90.

https://www.bahn.de/regional/view/regionen/berlin_brbg/info/berlin_hamburg.shtml

This is what they look like:

 

[CC 72100]

Thanks for that Harbornite.

I've just found the DB journey planner - is there any easy way of telling whether the regional service is DB operated (therefore can be used with a Lander ticket) or privately operated (I'm guessing exempt from Lander tickets)?
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I can't recommend that enough. Calling it even a "huge model railway exhibition" isn't doing it justice. If you have any interest in transport whatsoever, go there, and even if you don't still go there.

Miniatur Wunderland is very much on my to do list!

 

[Harbornite]

Thanks for that Harbornite.

I've just found the DB journey planner - is there any easy way of telling whether the regional service is DB operated (therefore can be used with a Lander ticket) or privately operated (I'm guessing exempt from Lander tickets)?

Good question. Perhaps you could consult the timetables on the private operator sites and then cross reference them to the DB website to see if DB display the tickets of other operators on their site. To test this, I will look up tickets from Berlin to Cottbus to see how well it differentiates between DB and ODEG trains.


If you look here, it's almost like our national rail website because the train service pages for DB and ODEG are pretty much the same.

https://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/q...n=&externRequest=yes&HWAI=JS!js=yes!ajax=yes!


http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/qu...12737103.1473109531&bpls=999177&rt=1&OK#focus

 

[Zamracene749]

Unless it's changed recently, the lander tickets are valid on most private operators services, as well as the tram/bus networks in most of the cities within their area.

 

[30907]

Länder Tickets are valid on all services specified by the Land whether operated by DB or (nominal) independents. They aren't valid on IC/ICE generally. The Niedersachsen one is valid extensively on buses trams etc IIRC - the S-H one isn't, but will take you all the way to Sassnitz or Stettin as well as Sylt!

One hauled service not so far mentioned is the IC up to Burg/Puttgarden on the Vogelfluglinie. Depending on season, there's a southbound morning train (formed off ECS) and an out-and-back early afternoon. 2x218.

 

[CC 72100]

Länder Tickets are valid on all services specified by the Land whether operated by DB or (nominal) independents. They aren't valid on IC/ICE generally. The Niedersachsen one is valid extensively on buses trams etc IIRC - the S-H one isn't, but will take you all the way to Sassnitz or Stettin as well as cSylt!

One hauled service not so far mentioned is the IC up to Burg/Puttgarden on the Vogelfluglinie. Depending on season, there's a southbound morning train (formed off ECS) and an out-and-back early afternoon. 2x218.

Thanks for that - is there a list where each Land specifies the services that the ticket would be valid on? Apart from on the DB website, information seems a little scarse for a non-German speaker!

Thanks all so far

Edit: Local DB website seems to suggest it is valid on all local railways "Regionalzüge (RB, IRE, RE) und S-Bahnen der DB AG und anderer Eisenbahnen in Schleswig-Holstein und Mecklenburg-Vorpommern" http://www.regionalbahn-sh.de/regionalbahn_sh/view/angebot/tickets/sh-ticket.shtml

So it appears that it is valid in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg... nice!

 

[bradford758]

As mentioned above, Niedersachsen tickets cover an area West and South of Hamburg, and Schleswig Holstein is North and East. Both cover all local transport in Hamburg.
There are also local day tickets, including one to cover Greater Hamburg.

Sent from my 4009X using Tapatalk

 

[D6700]

This document gives full details of operator validity for the above ticket. Copying phrases, or even the link itself, into Google Translate is very helpful.

http://www.regionalbahn-sh.de/regionalbahn_sh/view/mdb/bahnintern/angebotsberatung/regio/laender-tickets/schleswig-holstein/mdb_220511_geltungsbereich_sh-ticket.pdf

 

[bradford758]

Various interesting modes of transport in Hamburg, including the Hochbahn, with many sections above street level.

Sent from my 4009X using Tapatalk

 

[Bletchleyite]

Various interesting modes of transport in Hamburg, including the Hochbahn, with many sections above street level.

This gives rise to what happens at Landungsbruecken, where the U-Bahn is above ground and the S-Bahn below.

 

[pne]

Various interesting modes of transport in Hamburg, including the Hochbahn, with many sections above street level.

Though, alas, no tram.

There were plans for one a couple of years ago but then nothing became of them in the end.

Metrobus route 5 runs doubly-articulated busses, if you're into that sort of thing. (That's a route that could really do with the carrying capacity of a tram or other light rail -- and does indeed run over a former tram route before those were all torn up.)

Bus route 109 is billed as the "innovation route" so you occasionally see interesting traction on there such as all-electric or (I think) hydrogen.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Metrobus route 5 runs doubly-articulated busses, if you're into that sort of thing. (That's a route that could really do with the carrying capacity of a tram or other light rail -- and does indeed run over a former tram route before those were all torn up.)

And indeed is basically a rubber tyred tram, having near enough fully dedicated lanes, and "bus stations" in the middle of the road with dedicated crossings and signalling. (In Germany buses can follow tram signals, which makes things a lot easier to segregate - to avoid confusion in the UK similar layouts tend to need traffic islands).

That route (which I'm quite familiar with in its previous guise as the 102 as I spent a year studying in Hamburg in 99-2000) is an interesting comparative study with the Oxford/Wilmslow Road routes in Manchester, as it has a very similar function and capacity requirement, connecting as it does areas of heavy student population with the university and city centre of a similarly large city, but takes a totally different approach.

 

[CC 72100]

For those of you who had followed this thread, you may find my trip report here http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=138372 of interest.
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To elaborate on above posts, BR112 electrics work Hamburg - Kiel RE (not for much longer on that one!)

317666, are you aware of how those Kiel services are going to change?

 

[317666]

For those of you who had followed this thread, you may find my trip report here http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=138372 of interest.
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317666, are you aware of how those Kiel services are going to change?

Yes, the Kiel and Flensburg services are both going over to new Bombardier TWINDEXX EMUs, basically an EMU version of the classic DB Regio double deckers - some of the trailers are already in service as part of the double deck rakes (in the new dark grey livery), but the motor cars haven't been delivered yet.

 

[CC 72100]

Yes, the Kiel and Flensburg services are both going over to new Bombardier TWINDEXX EMUs, basically an EMU version of the classic DB Regio double deckers - some of the trailers are already in service as part of the double deck rakes (in the new dark grey livery), but the motor cars haven't been delivered yet.

Thanks for that - that's quite a shame then. I travelled on some of the grey coaches which are done to a high standard. While the fact that they can be hauled or used as part of an EMU is laudable, that's a great shame that some more loco services will be lost, especially when you have 6 an hour at present from Elmshorn.

I'll be planning more Germany in the new year, may drop you a pm closer to the time for suggestions