The Magdeburg–Thale railway is a predominantly single-track, non-electrified main line railway that connects Thale, in the northern Harz, with Magdeburg, the capital of Saxony-Anhalt. Its eastern section between Magdeburg and Halberstadt was opened in 1843 and it is one of the oldest railways in Germany.
Its original terminus in Magdeburg was at the Elbbahnhof (Elbe station) on the Schleinufer, which had been built by the Magdeburg-Leipzig Railway Company (Magdeburg-Leipziger Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft). The Magdeburg Centralbahnhof (central station, called the Hauptbahnhof since 1895) was not built until the 1870s.
In 1967, the Langenweddingen rail disaster occurred on the line, the worst in the history of East Germany. The accident involved a bi-level train hitting a tanker truck at a level crossing, resulting in an explosion that killed 94 people, many of them children on their way to a summer camp in the Harz mountains.
In the 1970s, four pairs of trains per day ran on the Magdeburg–Halberstadt section to or from Berlin, with some coaches to or from Thale. On 29 October 1988, the last scheduled steam-hauled train operated by East Germany railways ran between Thale and Halberstadt.[2]
In 1992, trains operated every two hours between Halberstadt, Berlin and Frankfurt (Oder) with trains stopping at all stations between Magdeburg and Thale; some additional services operated in busy periods. In 1995 long-distance services between Magdeburg and Halberstadt were stopped completely and were replaced by Regional-Express services, operating hourly.
A collision between the Harz-Elbe Express and a freight train on the line on 29 January 2011 killed 10 people and injured 23.[3][4]
The halts of Hordorf, Krottorf and Groß Quenstedt have not been served since the timetable change on 9 December 2012.
Oschersleben station is the most important station on the line to Halberstadt. It was built together with the construction of the line to Brunswick. The southern side of the V-shaped station (German: Keilbahnhof) serves trains to Halberstadt and the northern side formerly served trains to Jerxheim and Brunswick and the trains of the Oschersleben–Schöningen railway. The station building is located between the tracks and originally contained the customs and passport control facilities for travelling between the Duchy of Brunswick and the Kingdom of Prussia. After the division of Germany after 1945, the route to Jerxheim was closed and in consequence the northern side of the station lost most of its purpose. Until 1991, a few daily passenger trains shuttled from there to the border town of Gunsleben. In recent years a few trains from Magdeburg terminated on the north side of the station. Meanwhile, the tracks and the large reception hall on the north side are virtually unused.
Halberstadt station is a major transfer point to the northern Harz rail network. There are interchanges to Halle, Magdeburg, Hanover, Thale, Hildesheim, Goslar and Blankenburg. Halberstadt station is also connected to the local tram and bus networks. The railway tracks in Halberstadt station were modernized in recent years.
Wegeleben
Wegeleben station used to have a lobby and a restaurant. After the change passenger numbers decreased and these facilities were closed. Further modifications were made, and in 2007 the station was modernized. It now has two platforms, a bypass track and new signalling systems.
Neinstedt station formerly had two platform tracks and freight tracks, but now has only one track. The former station building, which included a restaurant, was demolished in spring 2009.
The Thale station is a terminus built directly on the edge of the Harz. In 1907 an additional station was opened at Thale-Bodetal. From the Thale station there was once a connection through the Thale steel works to the adjacent line to Blankenburg. Of its three platforms only one is now used for scheduled services.
Current services
Services on the line have been operated since 11 December 2005 for an initial twelve years by Transdev Sachsen-Anhalt as part of the Nordharznetz (north Harz network). LINT 41 and LINT 27 sets have been used. The services run under the name of HEX (Harz-Elbe-Express) hourly in each direction, including on the weekend. Trains cross in Blumenberg, Halberstadt and Quedlinburg. The express train operates as a double set on the Magdeburg−Halberstadt section. While one portion continues to Thale, the second portion continues either to Blankenburg or Vienenburg. The intervening stations between Magdeburg and Oschersleben are served during the peak hour and every two hours during the non-peak with a travel time of about 40 minutes. The express trains to Halberstadt stop only in Oschersleben and Nienhagen (b. Halberstadt), with a travel time of about 43 to 48 minutes.
On weekends, the Harz-Berlin-Express (HBX) provides a direct connection between the Harz and Berlin. During the weekend (Fridays to Sundays), the train from Thale leave in the late afternoon and is coupled in Halberstadt with a train portion that comes from Vienenburg. The journeys from Berlin Ostbahnhof to the Harz start on Saturdays and Sundays in the morning and on Sundays in the evening.
Prospects
The Magdeburg–Halberstadt section is being raised to a consistent for a speed of 120 km/h. The time for trains running from Magdeburg to Halberstadt would be reduced to only 40 minutes. The Halberstadt–Wegeleben section is already upgraded for use by tilt trains and for operation at the higher speeds. 100 km/h can already be achieved on the line to Quedlinburg. The line between Magdeburg and Langenweddingen would be upgraded to be used by a service of the S-Bahn Mittelelbe (Central Elbe S-Bahn) and a new halt would be built at Gewerbegebiet Osterweddingen. In return, it is planned to drop the stop in Blumenberg.[6][7]
The upgrade started in 2015. Construction section 2.1 Oschersleben–Halberstadt was put into operation in 2016 and construction section 2.2 Blumenberg–Oschersleben was planned to be completed on 27 March 2017.[8] The new bridge over the B 246 to the east of the Oschersleben (Bode) station has been usable since March 2017 and the road under it to be opened in November 2017. The opening of construction section 1 Magdeburg–Blumenberg was scheduled for 2018.[9] Overall, the Magdeburg–Halberstadt upgrade is estimated to cost €55 million.[10]
Magdeburg Hbf
Krottorf halt (1996)
Thale Hbf (under repair, 2011)
References
Footnotes
^Eisenbahnatlas Deutschland (German railway atlas). Schweers + Wall. 2009. pp. 44–5, 123. ISBN978-3-89494-139-0.
^Klappentext zu Dirk Endisch: Die Hauptstrecke Halberstadt–Thale
^Hein, Dörthe; Thomas Struk (30 January 2011). "Hordorf erschüttert: Tragisches Zugunglück gibt viele Rätsel auf". Hamburger Abendblatt (in German). Retrieved 30 January 2011. Laut Polizei wurden 23 Menschen verletzt, einige von ihnen schwer, darunter soll ein zehnjähriges Mädchen sein [According to the police 23 persons were injured, some of them severely, allegedly a ten-year-old girl is among them].
Endisch, Dirk (2006). Die Hauptbahn Halberstadt–Thale (The Halberstadt–Thale main line) (in German). Korntal-Münchingen: Dirk Endisch. ISBN978-3-936893-34-2.
Endisch, Dirk (2014). Die Hauptbahn Magdeburg–Halberstadt (in German). Stendal: Dirk Endisch. ISBN978-3-936893-58-8.
