Tag Archives: Germany

Trams and freight trains share the road in Bremen

I’ve written about freight trams before, but in the city of Bremen in northeast Germany freight there is something a little different – a freight siding that shares the tram tracks. Photo by Spoorjan, via Wikimedia Commons The freight siding […]

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‘Do Re Mi’ music as the train powers out of the station

It’s normal for electric locomotives to make some kind of ‘buzzing’ noise as their accelerate, due to the way that power is applied to their traction motors. But the Siemens EuroSprinter family of electric locomotives make an unexpected sound – […]

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How do trains change to daylight savings time?

Timekeeping is something that railways take seriously – but what happens to trains when the clocks changes from ‘normal’ time to daylight savings, and an hour is either lost or gained? Germany Deutsche Bahn cancel trains due to run in […]

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German railfans exploring the world of rail

For many railfans their interest in railways ends at the border of their own country, with little interest in the trains found elsewhere in the world. But it seems that German railfans are an exception to this, being happy to […]

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Construction fail at the railway station

Recently I came across a viral photo on Facebook that showed a railway track dropping over the edge of a cliff, then continuing on below. So where was the photo taken, and why is the track layout so ridiculous? I […]

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Freight trams of Europe

Trams are usually used to carry passengers, but across Europe there are a handful of tramway networks that also carry freight. Pure freight The best known in the English speaking world is the ‘CarGoTram‘ of Dresden, Germany. Photo by kaffeeeinstein, […]

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Sacrificial buffer stops at Munich Hauptbahnhof

Across Europe a common theme at major railway stations is dead end platform tracks ending at buffer stops, with the main passenger concourse behind. But there was one thing I didn’t realise – sometimes the buffer stops are designed to […]

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Germany’s one woman freight railway

Across Germany there are many small rail freight operators, but there are none smaller than ‘Rail 4U’ – a one-woman operation founded by Barbara Pirch in 2001.


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Underground platforms at Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof

My first experience of the railways of Europe was at Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof, which happens to the busiest railway station in Germany – and the scale of the station was amazing, with a total of 32 platforms across three levels.

Main hall at Frankfurt am Main Hauptbahnhof Continue reading

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Electric trains, trams and trolleybuses on movable bridges

The Russian city of Saint Petersburg is a located across a collection of islands, divided by the Neva River, and reconnected by a series of lift bridges that allow boats to head upriver. So how do electric trains, trams and trolleybuses make their way across?

Disused tram tracks across Trinity Bridge (Тро́ицкий мост) over the River Neva Continue reading

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