Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Rolling Stock and Current Operations

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Rolling Stock and Current Operations

(Schnellfahrstrecke Köln–Aachen)

The Rhenish Railway Company started operations on the section to Müngersdorf with four steam locomotives, three of which were manufactured in England. The Carolus Magnus was built by the newly founded Dobbs & Poensgen locomotive factory in Aachen, but it was prone to failure and had to be rebuilt. It was only used to haul work trains and was sold early. The 10 locomotives were estimated to have operated a total at 5361 Prussian miles (40,382 km (25,092 mi)) in 1841. After the opening of the whole line, the number of locomotives used grew to a total of 21.

The original timetable provided three passenger trains (morning, noon and evening) between Cologne and Aachen per day and direction. Due to the line being single-track initially, trains were scheduled to cross in Düren. The two morning trains started or ended in Herbesthal. Passenger trains initially served all stops on the way until a pair of express trains was introduced between Cologne and Herbesthal in 1857. The first night train ran on the railway in May 1859. The first trains from Cologne to Paris were initially unlit, but lamps were eventually attached to the locomotives after an accident at a level crossing.

Prussian State Railways

Under the nationalisation policy of Otto von Bismarck, the Cologne–Aachen railway became part of the Prussian state railways (Preußische Staatseisenbahnen). This greatly expanded the connections operated on the line. In 1913, there were also direct through coaches from Aachen via the line to Cologne, Berlin, Bremen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hanover, Kiel, Munich and Wiesbaden. The Ostend–Vienna Express started as a luxury train in 1894 and later operated as an international express. It included coaches that were attached/detached to the Orient-Express and was one of the most important connections between Western Europe and the Balkans. The service only ended in 1993.

Deutsche Bundesbahn

After the Second World War, Deutsche Bundesbahn took over the line that had been operated by Deutsche Reichsbahn from 1920 to 1945. In the first few years, steam locomotives from the Reichsbahn era were predominantly used: class 01 and class 03 locomotives in front of express trains and class 38.10 locomotives in front of other passenger trains. Class 50 and class 55.25 locomotives hauled most freight trains. Individual trains were operated with VT 36.5 diesel railcars. In addition, the line was used by international express trains such as the Ostend–Vienna Express, which took only 1:03 hours from Cologne to Aachen.

In the 1960s and 1970s, several Trans Europ Express train pairs ran on the Cologne–Aachen line. Diesel railcars of class VT 11.5 (e.g. Hamburg–Paris) and trains with French TEE coaches were used. The VT 08 class was used for long-distance express (F) trains. In addition, international expresses hauled by Belgian steam locomotives ran to Cologne. Electrification was completed in 1966, and from then on electric locomotives were mostly used for passenger transport. Mainly class 110 and Belgian multi-system locomotives of class 16 and later also class 18 ran in long-distance transport and initially class 141 were operated in local transport. The new class 184 multi-system locomotives delivered in the autumn of 1966 (also marketed as Europalokomotiven—"European locomotives") were extensively tested in Germany–Belgium traffic, but were only rarely used later because the locomotives often failed due to frequent strong voltage fluctuations in the Belgian overhead line, so from 1971 they were no longer used for passenger services to Belgium and were relocated to the Saarland in 1979. The international daytime passenger services were therefore largely operated from the 1970s to the 1990s with Belgian multi-system locomotives. Locomotives for freight transport were changed in Aachen-West and locomotives for overnight express trains were changed in Aachen Hbf.

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Current Operations

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Passenger Services

In long-distance traffic, the Cologne–Aachen high-speed line is operated with ICE International services using class 406 sets and Thalys services using PBKA sets. This offer is supplemented by individual Intercity and Intercity Express services that run once a week and thus create direct connections to/from other regions in Germany at the weekend.

The Regional-Express services RE 1 (NRW-Express) and RE 9 (Rhein-Sieg-Express) serve the entire length of the line hourly and together provide an approximately 30-minute cycle. The NRW-Express is operated with push–pull trains composed of double-deck carriages from Bombardier and class 146.0 locomotives. The Rhein-Sieg-Express is operated with locomotives of class 146.0 or class 111 as well as Talent 2 railcars in coupled sets. Class 120.2 locomotives were also used until 2018.

Between Cologne Hauptbahnhof and Köln-Ehrenfeld, the RE 8 regional express (Rhein-Erft-Express) service is operated with class 425 multiple units and the Regionalbahn RB 27 service (Rhein-Erft-Bahn) with push-pull trains consisting of three double-decker coaches and a locomotive of class 143. Between Cologne and Horrem, the Regionalbahn RB 38 service (Erft-Bahn) is operated with class 644 railcars and S-Bahn services S 13 and S 19 with class 423 multiple units. The S 12 service also runs between Cologne and Düren with class 423 sets.

Euregiobahn services on the section between Aachen Hauptbahnhof and Stolberg Hauptbahnhof are operated with Bombardier Talent DMUs every 30 minutes in coupled sets on weekdays and in single sets on Sundays. The Euregiobahn services leave the Cologne–Aachen line between Stolberg and Langerwehe and return to Langerwehe and Düren, running hourly.

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Freight Transport

The Cologne–Aachen high-speed line is used by numerous freight trains due to its location between the Köln-Eifeltor freight yard on the West Rhine railway and Aachen West, the eastern end of the Aachen–Tongeren railway. Much of the freight traffic is carried by DB Cargo and Cobra (Corridor Operations Belgium Rail), a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, and SNCB. Other regular services are a SBB Cargo Combined transport train hauled by TRAXX locomotives and freight trains operated by Crossrail (now part of Cargologic) and RTB Cargo, which uses diesel-hauled goods exchange trains (Übergabegüterzuge) from Düren to Stolberg and back. The line is also used by freight trains to and from Mönchengladbach on the section between the Cologne-Ehrenfeld and Köln-Müngersdorf Technologiepark stations.

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Overview

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Native Name: Schnellfahrstrecke Köln–Aachen
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Line Number:
2600 (Cologne–Aachen)
2622 (Cologne–Düren)
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Locale: North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
Service
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Route Number: 480
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Line Length: 70 km (43 mi)
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Track Gauge: 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Electrification: 15 kV/16.7 Hz AC overhead catenary
Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Operating Speed: 250 km/h (155 mph)

Cologne–Aachen High-Speed Railway Route Map

km

         HSL to Frankfurt…
         and line to Düsseldorf…
         Hohenzollern Bridge
         (from Köln Messe/Deutz)
         Cologne Stadtbahn
0.0    Cologne
0.8    Köln Hansaring
0.8    Köln Hansaring turnback facility
1.4    to Cologne depot
         West Rhine Railway to Köln West
         West Lower Rhine Railway
         to Köln-Nippes
2.0    Köln-Nippes–Köln West freight line
         Herkulesstraße junction
         from Köln West
         S-Bahn Flying junction
3.2    Cologne Stadtbahn
3.7    Köln-Ehrenfeld
         Köln-Ehrenfeld freight yard
         Cologne–Frechen line (HGK)
5.9    Köln-Müngersdorf Technologiepark
          to Mönchengladbach
9.0    Lövenich (former station)
9.7    Lövenich (S-Bahn)
11.1  Köln-Weiden West
13.8  Frechen-Königsdorf
15.0
         start of cutting
         (former Königsdorf Tunnel)
16.5
         North-South Railway
         (RWE Power)
16.6
         start of cutting
         (former Königsdorf Tunnel)
18.5 Erft Railway to Neuss
18.7 Horrem
         former Bergheim District Railway
         to Mödrath
         Erft
21.4 Sindorf crossover
21.4 Sindorf
22.4 Sindorf
22.6 Sindorf siding
26.0 Dorsfeld
27.8 Buir crossover
30.3 Buir
35.0 Merzenich
         former line from Neuss
35.7 Merzenich crossover
37.3 Düren Vorbf
         former bypass curve
         to Euskirchen
         former Distelrath–Schneidhausen line
39.0 from Euskirchen
         from Distelrath
39.1 from Jülich
39.2 Düren
         DKB tramway Düren–Kreuzau
39.8 to Heimbach
        Rur (Düren triangular truss bridge)
42.2 Hubertushof crossover, siding
         Derichsweiler
48.9 Langerwehe
         (link line to Inde Valley Railway
54.1 Nothberg (until Dec 2009)
         Jägerspfad (last level crossing until April 2020)
56.9 Eschweiler Hbf
57.0 Ichenberg Tunnel (95 m)
57.9 Three arch bridge (Inde)
58.0 Inde Valley Railway
59.8 Stolberg (Rheinl) freight yard
60.3 to Eupen
60.3 Stolberg (Rheinl) Hbf
         Stolberg (Rheinl) part V
         to Herzogenrath
         Nirm Tunnel
         Eilendorf Tunnel
64.9 Eilendorf
         from Aachen Nord
         Aachen-Rothe Erde Wertz
         (siding)
67.0 Aachen-Rothe freight yard
         former line from Hahn
68.2 Aachen-Rothe Erde
         Moltkebahnhof
         Burtscheid Viaduct
70.2 Aachen Hbf
         to Mönchengladbach
72.9 Aachen Süd
         Busch Tunne
77.0
         Germany
         national border
         Belgium

         main line… HSL 3… to Liège