Alzey–Mainz railway

Alzey–Mainz
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Route number:	661
Line number:	3523
Line length:	41.1
Track gauge:	1435
Operating points and lines
Legend Rheinhessen Railway from Worms Donnersberg Railway from Kirchheimbolanden 9.0 Alzey 192 m to Bodenheim 11.4 Albig Wiesbach Valley Railway from Wendelsheim 16.7 Armsheim 141 m Rheinhessen Railway to Bingen 22.6 Wörrstadt 190 m 27.1 Saulheim 155 m Selz 32.4 Nieder Olm 135 m 36.4 Klein-Winternheim-Ober-Olm 169 m Klein-Winternheim Tunnel (378 m) 39.9 Mainz-Marienborn 163 m 44.5 Mainz-Gonsenheim 46.5 Anst Mainz Kleiner Sand 47.6 Mainz Waggonfabrik West Rhine from Koblenz 50.1 Mainz Hbf Line to Ludwigshafen and Frankfurt (Main)

The Alzey–Mainz railway was opened on 18 December 1871 by the Hessian Ludwig Railway (German: Hessische Ludwigsbahn), linking the two cities of Alzey and Mainz in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate to each other.

Route

File:Bahnhof mainz-marienborn.jpg

Mainz-Marienborn station in the winter

File:Mainzer Hauptbahnhof- auf Bahnsteig zu Gleis 5- Richtung Worms (Hochsteg) (RB Doppelstockwagen) 19.3.2009.JPG

Regionalbahn service in Mainz Hauptbahnhof on its way towards Alzey (2009)

The non-electrified line is operated by Regionalbahn service RB 31 and Regional-Express line RE 13.

It connects at Alzey with services on the Donnersberg Railway (Donnersbergbahn), operating as RB 47. The section between Alzey and Armsheim is also used by services on the Rheinhessen Railway from Bingen to Worms.

As the line from Armsheim to Mainz is single-track only, services can be operated at most every half-hour, with oncoming trains forced to wait in stations, usually in Saulheim and Mainz-Marienborn (RB) or Mainz-Gonsenheim (RE).

The Elsass-Express (Alsace Express) to Wissembourg uses this part of the line on weekends and on public holidays.

Rolling stock

The track is served by both trains consisting of class 218 diesel locomotives hauling three double-decker carriages and by class 628 diesel multiple units, sometimes in coupled sets. In fact, class 629, a variation of class 628, was specially built for the very steeply graded line.