page_title: Kraich Valley Railway
section_title: Acquisition by the AVG and upgrade for the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn (since 1994)
hierarchical_section_title: Kraich Valley Railway / History / Acquisition by the AVG and upgrade for the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn (since 1994)
caption_attribution_description: AVG Lok 462 mit Personenzug bei Menzingen
context_page_description: The Kraich Valley Railway is a branch line in southwestern Germany running from Bruchsal to Menzingen. It is now integrated as line 32 of the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn.
context_section_description: In order to preserve the line from closure, the Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (Alb Valley Transport Company, AVG) took over the line from the SWEG in 1994. Originally it operated the line with class NE 81 diesel multiple units that it had taken over from the SWEG or acquired from Maschinenfabrik Esslingen. Initially the AVG services was operated under the most recent timetable of the SWEG, six months later improvements were made that resulted in a regular interval timetable, which had not previously existed. As part of the founding of the Karlsruher Verkehrsverbund (Karlsruhe Transport Association, KVV), the service on the Katzbach Railway was named line R 32.
  At the same time as the line was acquired by AVG, it was decided to upgrade the line to Stadtbahn standards. This included, among other things, the modernisation and electrification of the line and the construction of new stations. In March 1996, the Kraich Valley Railway and Katzbach Railway celebrated the centennial of the two lines. At this time, the Bruchsal–Ubstadt Ort section was already electrified, so Stadtbahn sets were operated between Bruchsal and Ubstadt as part of the celebrations.
  In September 1996, the Kraich Valley Railway was finally incorporated into the operations of the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn. The Karlsruhe Stadtbahn line S 3, which has operated since 1994 from Karlsruhe Central Station to Bruchsal, was extended to Menzingen at the end of the Kraich Valley Railway. In preparation, the station platforms were raised and some of the station crossing loops were extended. In addition, a total of four new stations were established at Bruchsal Schlossgarten, Bruchsal Stegwiesen, Ubstadt Salzbrunnenstr. and Unteröwisheim Martin-Luther-Str.
  At the opening of the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn  at the end of 2003, the Mannheim–Karlsruhe section of the Rhine Valley Railway was integrated into the S-Bahn network and has since been called line S 3. To avoid confusion, the former line S 3 serving the Kraich Valley Railway was renamed line S 32 at the same time. Gochsheim station was rebuilt with a crossing loop at the same time.
caption: AVG locomotive 462 with an Esslingen carriage
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