Heinsberg–Lindern railway
| Lindern–Heinsberg (Rheinl) railway | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Overview | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Locale | North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Termini |
Lindern Heinsberg (Rheinland) |
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| Line number | 2542 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Technical | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Line length | 12.2 km (7.6 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrification | 15 kV/16.7 Hz AC overhead catenary | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Route number | 485 (formerly 245, 456) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Lindern–Heinsberg (Rheinl) railway, also called the Heinsberger Bahn (Heinsberg Railway) or Wurmtalbahn (Wurm Valley Railway) is a single-track branch line from Lindern on the Aachen–Mönchengladbach railway to Heinsberg in the German state of North-Rhine Westphalia. It was opened in 1890.
Originally, a railway line from Jülich via Brachelen and Randerath to Heinsberg was proposed, but later it was decided to build a shortened route, which would start in Lindern. Initial plans foresaw the construction of the line as a narrow-gauge railway or a line for horsecars. Such projects were, however, rejected in favour of a standard railway. There was resistance to railway construction in Porselen; some small holders refused to surrender parts of their land and attacked railwaymen with marbles.
The line was opened on 16 May 1890. This date was to be historically significant for the town of Heinsberg and the surrounding communities. The economy in the otherwise structurally weak Heinsberg country profited immensely; especially the Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken in the district of Oberbruch would develop into a large company because of the building of the railway. The company built a works railway, which operated up to the 1980s and passed through the village of Oberbruch.
Closure of the gap between Lindern and Jülich could no longer be achieved, as the development of coal mines around Hückelhovenhad led to the construction of the Jülich–Dalheim railway to the right of Rur. Plans to extend the Heinsberg Railway to Sittard, as a tramway to Roermond or in the standard-gauge railway to Wassenberg, failed because of their cost.
In 1944, Heinsberg station was destroyed, so Deutsche Bundesbahn decided in the early 1950s to build a new station. This resulted in a station building that was rather too large for Heinsberg.
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Wikipedia