Katzbach Railway

Katzbach Railway
Overview
Native name	Katzbachbahn
Locale	Baden-Württemberg
Line number	9412
Technical
Line length	27.3 km (17.0 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Minimum radius	155.19 m (509.2 ft)
Electrification	15 kV/16.7 Hz AC Overhead catenary
Route number	710.3
Route map Baden-Kurpfalz Railway from Karlsruhe S 31S 32 Western Railway from Stuttgart -0.8 Bruchsal Bruhrain Railway to Germersheim Baden-Kurpfalz Railway to Heidelberg 0.8 Bruchsal Schlossgarten 1.3 Bruchsal Stegwiesen 2.2 Bruchsal Curve to the Mannheim–Stuttgart high-speed railway 3.0 Mannheim–Stuttgart high-speed railway 3.3 Ubstadt Curve to the Mannheim–Stuttgart high-speed railway 4.5 Ubstadt Ort Kraich Valley Railway to Menzingen S 32 5.2 Ubstadt Uhlandstraße 7.3 Stettfeld (Baden) 9.3 Zeutern Sportplatz 9.8 Zeutern 11.7 Zeutern Ost 14.4 Odenheim West 15.2 Odenheim terminus of the S 31 15.9 Odenheim Ost 19.6 Tiefenbach (Baden) 21.6 Eichelberg 21.8 Eichelberger Viaduct 23.2 Elsenz 26.5 Hilsbach Source: German railway atlas

The Katzbach Railway (German: Katzbachbahn) is a branch line in southwestern Germany from Bruchsal to Odenheim that opened in 1896, and was extended in 1900 to Hilsbach. In 1960 services between Tiefenbach and Hilsbach were withdrawn, in 1975 the section between Odenheim Ost and Tiefenbach followed and, in 1986, the 600 metre long section from Odenheim station to Odenheim Ost was closed. Since 1994 the line has been operated by the Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (AVG), who electrified it in 1998 and integrated it into the network of the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn.

The line follows its namesake, the Katzbach stream, from Stettfeld to Odenheim. Together with the neighbouring Kraich Valley Railway from Bruchsal to Menzingen, with which it shares a common trackbed as far as Ubstadt Ort, it has formed a single operating unit since its inception.

After Bruchsal station the Katzbach line runs together with the Kraich Valley Railway as a single track parallel with the Rhine Valley Railway through the stations of Bruchsal Schlossgarten and Bruchsal Stegwiesen before it leaves the main line for Ubstadt Ort, where it separates from the Kraich Valley Railway. The Katzbach Railway continues straight on to Ubstadt Uhlandstraße station and runs to Stettfeld next to the Kraichbach. At Stettfeld it turns to climb beside the Katzbach and passes through the hilly landscape of the Kraichgau. After it has passed through Zeutern, it reaches the current end of the line at Odenheim.

The current line follows two river valleys, while the topographical conditions of the closed section to Hilsbach was much more difficult, which is the reason it was built later.

Before the Baden-Württemberg administrative reform of 1973, the towns along the railway line from Bruchsal to Odenheim were in the district of Bruchsal, while the remaining municipalities (Tiefenbach, Eichelberg, Elsenz and Hilsbach) were part of the district of Sinsheim. The line was ultimately closed because the connection to Sinsheim was never completed and patronage on the last section of the line was rather low.

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