Trams in Darmstadt

Darmstadt tramway network
Tram at Willy-Brandt-Platz
Operation
Locale	Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany
Steam tram era: 1886 (1886)–1922 (1922) Status Converted to electric traction Operator(s) Herrmann Bachstein consortium (1886–1895) Süddeutsche Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (SEG) (1895–1912) Hessische Eisenbahn-Aktiengesellschaft (HEAG (1912–1922) Propulsion system(s) Steam
Electric tram era: since 1897 (1897) Status Operational Lines 9 Operator(s) Siemens & Halske (1897) City of Darmstadt (1898–1912) HEAG (since 1912) Track gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) Propulsion system(s) Electricity Stock 48 (including 38 low-floor trams) Track length (total) 94.6 km (58.8 mi) Route length 42 km (26 mi) Stops 164 Website HEAG mobilo

The Darmstadt tram network is a light rail system and the backbone of public transport within Darmstadt, a city in the federal state of Hesse, Germany. As of 2019, nine lines on four main routes (42 kilometres (26 mi)) served 164 stops, including 126 barrier-free stops. The system is operated by HEAG mobilo, and is an integral part of the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV), the public transit authority of the Rhein-Main-Area.

History

Trams have operated continuously in Darmstadt since 1886, with the opening of steam tram lines in the city centre and to Griesheim and Eberstadt. The first electric routes opened in 1897, but steam trams continued to serve Griesheim until 1914 and Eberstadt until 1922. The network has been operated since 1912 by Hessische Eisenbahn-Aktiengesellschaft (HEAG). Since then the trams have become a distinctive part of Darmstadt's character and are widely used by people from all walks of life as a safe and fast means of transportation within Darmstadt and its suburbs. At the Hauptbahnhof railway station the tram system and the Rhine-Main S-Bahn meet.

While some older lines like the Oberwaldhaus-/Martinsviertel-/and Ostbahnhof lines were closed, new sections were built, following the development of new residential areas. The branch to Kranichstein opened in 2003, there were short extensions in Alsbach in 2008 and Arheilgen in 2011, and most recently a line to the Technische Universität Darmstadt campus at Lichtwiese opened in 2022. Since the 1990s the existing network has also been gradually been modernised. All lines (except for line 3) have since been less of a classical tram system and more of a light rail system (Stadtbahn) with a private right-of-way and separate stations with "same-level-platforms".

Lines

The central hub of the Darmstadt tram network is the "Luisenplatz", at which eight of Darmstadt's ten tram lines stop. On the main routes the hours of operation are usually from around 5:00 am until 1:00 am. As of 2024 the network is made up of the following lines:

Line	Route	Stops	Notes
1	Hauptbahnhof ↔ Rhein-/Neckarstr. ↔ Eberstadt	19
2	Hauptbahnhof ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ TU Darmstadt, Lichtwiese campus	11
3	Hauptbahnhof ↔ Willy-Brandt-Platz ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Lichtenbergschule	15
4	Griesheim ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Kranichstein	25	Mondays to Fridays, except early morning and late evening
	Hauptbahnhof ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Kranichstein Bahnhof	16	Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays; Mondays to Fridays only early morning and late evening
5	Böllenfalltor ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Kranichstein	20
6	Arheilgen ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Eberstadt ↔ Alsbach (Express line)	30	Outside peak hours every second tram terminates in Eberstadt; Express line – does not call at all stops
7	Lichtenbergschule ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Eberstadt	26
8	Arheilgen ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Alsbach	38
9	Griesheim ↔ Luisenplatz ↔ Böllenfalltor	20
10	Griesheim ↔ Hauptbahnhof (Express line)	08	Express line – does not call at all stops

On all main routes at least a 15 minute frequency is offered all day, with the ten lines coordinated so that in peak hours almost all routes (except the section between Eberstadt and Alsbach) have at least a 10 minute frequency. In some places parallel bus routes also offer a higher frequency service.

Rolling stock

In 2019 the fleet consisted of 48 trams (ten high-floor ST12, 20 low-floor ST13 and 18 low-floor ST14) and 30 low-floor trailers. 14 new Stadler-built low-floor trams were ordered in January 2020. The new ST15 trams are 43 m long, unidirectional vehicle with five sections and were the first order for the Stadler Tina model. A follow-on order for a further 11 trams was announced in June 2021 to allow the last high-floor ST12 trams to be withdrawn. The first of the new ST15 trams entered test service with passengers in October 2023.

• 
  High-floor ST12 tram
• 
  SB9 trailer
• 
  ST13 tram, with SB9 trailer
• 
  ST14 tram
• 
  ST14 interior
• 
  Stadler Tina ST15 tram

See also

• List of town tramway systems in Germany
• Trams in Germany

Bibliography

• Bürnheim, Hermann; Burmeister, Jürgen (1997). Bahnen und Busse rund um den langen Ludwig. (Engl.: Railways and Buses around the long Ludwig) (4th ed.). Düsseldorf: Alba Publikation. ISBN 978-3-87094-357-8. (German)
• Höltge, Dieter; Köhler, Günter H. (1992). Straßen- und Stadtbahnen in Deutschland [Tramways and Stadtbahnen in Germany] (in German). Vol. Band 1: Hessen [Volume 1: Hesse] (2nd., enlarged ed.). Freiburg i. B., Germany: EK-Verlag. ISBN 3882553359.
• Schwandl, Robert (2012). Schwandl's Tram Atlas Deutschland (3rd ed.). Berlin: Robert Schwandl Verlag. ISBN 978-3-936573-33-6.

External links

• HEAG mobilo – official website
• Darmstadt database / photo gallery and Darmstadt tram list at Urban Electric Transit – in various languages, including English.
• Darmstadt database / photo gallery at Phototrans – in various languages, including English.