Hochneukirch station

Hochneukirch
Through station
Hochneukirch station
Location	Bahnhofstr. 87, Hochneukirch, Jüchen, North Rhine-Westphalia Germany
Coordinates	51°06′12″N 6°27′57″E / 51.10336889°N 6.46584721°E / 51.10336889; 6.46584721Coordinates: 51°06′12″N 6°27′57″E / 51.10336889°N 6.46584721°E / 51.10336889; 6.46584721
Line(s)	Cologne–Mönchengladbach railway former Hochneukirch–Stolberg railway
Platforms	2
Other information
Station code	2804
DS100 code	KHOK
IBNR	8000390
Category	6
Website	www.bahnhof.de
History
Opened	1873
Previous names	Neukirchen Hoch-Neukirch
Services
Preceding station   Deutsche Bahn   Following station Rheydt-Odenkirchen toward Mönchengladbach Hbf RE 8 Rhein-Erft-Express Jüchen toward Koblenz Hbf RB 27 Rhein-Erft-Bahn

Hochneukirch is a station in Jüchen in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located on the Cologne–Mönchengladbach railway and the closed Mönchengladbach–Stolberg railway.

In 1873, the station was established on the eastern edge of Hochneukirch (at that time still called Neukirchen, now part of Jüchen), stimulating the emerging textile industry. The station (which is located at line km 11.8) is connected to the centre by Bahnhofstraße ("station street"). The former Mönchengladbach–Stolberg railway connected with the Cologne–Mönchengladbach railway and both lines then used the same tracks to Rheydt-Odenkirchen station.

In 1873, the place received a rail connection from Mönchengladbach to Stolberg. The first train of the Bergisch-Markisch Railway Company (Bergisch-Märkische Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft) ran from Mönchengladbach continued via Jülich and Eschweiler-Aue to Stolberg on the Hochneukirch–Stolberg railway.

The railway to Cologne was opened in 1889. This line was built parallel with the existing line.

The station building is still preserved and has included a signal box designated Hf since 1964. This signal box was abandoned with the installation of an electronic interlocking in 2007. The island platform is equipped with a waiting room and a ticket machine. The former freight shed is still preserved south of the entrance building.

The city of Mönchengladbach and its chamber of commerce presented the railway minister with a proposal for a Cologne–Mönchengladbach railway running between Mönchengladbach and Grevenbroich via Giesenkirchen instead of Hochneukirch. Mönchengladbach claimed this route would lead to more development in its hinterland. But the manufacturers and people of Hochneukirch supported a route via Hochneukirch and Grevenbroich to Cologne. The manufacturer Peter Busch contacted some deputies that he was familiar with in the Berlin Landtag and the pastor Martin Köllen addressed himself to the Oberhofmeister (chief of staff) of the Empress Augusta, Count Nesselrode-Ehreshoven. Through the intermediation of the count, Köllen was able to communicate his wishes to the railway minister Albert von Maybach in writing. As a result of his personal support, the railway line was built through Hochneukirch and opened in 1889. Peter Busch and Martin Köllen are commemorated in Hochneukirch for their dedication with streets named after them to the left and right of the station.