Elze–Bodenburg railway

Elze–Bodenburg

Route number:

202b (1966)

Line length:

22,9

Track gauge:

1435

from Groß Düngen/Hildesheim

-0,4

Bodenburg(new halt since 2003)

0,0

Bodenburg(former station)

to Bad Gandersheim

1,5

Breinum

(Museum railway, since ca. 1980)

Alme

3,9

Almstedt-Segeste

4,6

Segeste Grillplatz

(Museum railway, since ca. 1980)

5,0

Grundkamp

(Museum railway, planned)

ca. 7,5

Hanover–Würzburg high-speed railway

(built after closure of this line)

8,0

Sibbesse

Despe

10,4

Hönze

Despe

13,0

Eitzum

14,8

Barfelde

Despe

18,5

23,2

The Elze–Bodenburg railway was a branch line of 23 kilometres (14 mi) length in the Leine Uplands. Its main intermediate station was Gronau. The line is also known as the "Lower Saxon Alme Valley Railway" (niedersächsische Almetalbahn').

The section from Elze, a station on the Hanoverian Southern Railway, to Gronau was opened on 1 July 1900. On 7 November 1901 the section via Sibbesse to Bodenburg was opened which provided railway access to the southern parts of Hildesheimer Wald. The line connected in Bodenburg to the Lamme Valley Railway from Groß Düngen whose section between Bad Salzdetfurth and Bodenburg had been opened on the same day. Less than a year later, the Lamme Valley Railway was extended to Bad Gandersheim.

The Elze–Bodenburg line served only local needs in a predominantly agricultural region. Passenger traffic between Gronau and Bodenburg already ceased on 25 September 1966. On the same day, freight traffic between Gronau and Sibbesse was discontinued, and this section was decommissioned on 17. August 1970. Freight traffic between Sibbesse and Segeste ended on 25 September 1974, between Segeste and Bodenburg on 31 Dezember 1983. Passenger traffic between Elze and Gronau continued until 31 Mai 1980, freight traffic enden in 1994. Since then, the whole of the line has been out of operation. The last passenger services were provided by battery electric multiple units of DB class 515.

The section between Bodenburg and Almstedt was operated as a museum railway from 1976 to 1991 als Museumsbahn. It is currently not usable, but will be preserved. Only a stretch of track of about 800 metres (2,600 ft) length in Almstedt can be traveled by museum trains. The remainder of the line was cut several times, such as when the Hanover–Würzburg high-speed railway was built. It intersects the closed-down line at kilometer mark 38.8.

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Wikipedia