page_title: Baden main line
section_title: Karlsruhe–Basel
hierarchical_section_title: Baden main line / Sections / Karlsruhe–Basel
caption_attribution_description: German ICE train in front of "Isteiner Klotz", a rock in south west Germany
context_page_description: The Baden main line is a German railway line that was built between 1840 and 1863. It runs through Baden, from Mannheim via Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Offenburg, Freiburg, Basle, Waldshut, Schaffhausen and Singen to Constance. The Baden Mainline is 412.7 kilometres long, making it the longest route in the Deutsche Bahn network and also the oldest in southwest Germany. The section between Mannheim and Basle is the most important northern approach to the Swiss Alpine passes, whilst the section between Basle and Constance is only of regional significance. The stretch from Karlsruhe to Basle is also known as the Rhine Valley Railway and the Basle–Constance section as the High Rhine Railway.
context_section_description: The line between Karlsruhe and Basel is one of the busiest railway lines in Germany. It runs on the eastern edge of the Upper Rhine valley. While the line is mostly straight, it has, in the southern section between Schliengen and Efringen-Kirchen a winding route passing between the Rhine and the Isteiner Klotz ridge above the villages on the slopes of the Black Forest. A lower alignment similar to the A 5 autobahn was not possible at the time of the construction of the railway, because the Rhine had not yet been straightened in this area so the areas below the villages were still in the flood plain of the Rhine.
  In 1895, another main line railway was opened between Karlsruhe and Rastatt next to the Baden main line, further to the west through Durmersheim. The reason for this was the demand of the German military for the construction of a second northern access to Strasbourg on the Graben-Neudorf–Karlsruhe–Rastatt–Rœschwoog route. Simultaneously this route relieved the Baden main line. In 1966, the Rastatt–Rœschwoog section was closed, but the section north of Rastatt continues to operate. During the construction phase of this strategic railway, Rastatt station was relocated and expanded.
  Due to the strong growth in traffic, the larger railway stations had to be expanded in the early 20th century. So a new Karlsruhe freight bypass was completed in 1895 together with the extension of the Rhine Railway to Rastatt, allowing the main line through the Karlsruhe urban area to be relieved of freight trains. A new Karlsruhe station was opened in 1913. In 1911, Offenburg station was rebuilt and extended with a marshalling yard. The railway tracks in Basel were adapted for the increased traffic with a new freight yard in 1905 and a new passenger station and a new marshalling yard in 1913. The marshalling yard is partly on German and partly on Swiss territory. The railways of three counties cooperated in building extensive rail infrastructure in Basel connecting the Baden station for trains arriving from Germany to the Central station and the adjacent French station (part of SNCF since 1938). In addition to the marshalling yard at the Baden station, there is another, larger marshalling yard in Muttenz. The passenger trains on the Baden main line usually end at Basel Baden station, only the international trains continue through to Basel Central Station.
  The importance of the line meant that it was duplicated between 1847 and 1855 and electrified between 1952 and 1957. The quadruplication of the tracks and the upgrading for a top speed of 250 km/h has been under way as part of the Karlsruhe–Basel new and upgraded line (Neu- und Ausbaustrecke Karlsruhe–Basel) project since the late 1980s.
  In 1971 there was an accident at Rheinweiler when an express train that was running too fast on the twisty section between Efringen-Kirchen and Schliengen road was derailed and crashed down the railway embankment. 23 people were killed and 121 injured.
  The traffic on the Rhine Valley line is notable for its international long-distance passenger and freight traffic. Every hour one or two IC, EuroCity (EC) or ICE services run. Three times daily TGV services also run from Stuttgart via Karlsruhe to Strasbourg. Local services runs at least hourly as Regionalbahn (stopping) and Regional-Express or Interregio-Express services. Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft also operates Karlsruhe Stadtbahn services between Karlsruhe and Achern. In the early 1980s, a series of stations were abandoned, especially between Rastatt and Offenburg. After the quadruplication of the line, Stadtbahn stations in Haueneberstein, Sinzheim, Steinbach (now Baden-Baden-Rebland) were put back into operation and a new station was established in Sinzheim Nord. The Regional-Express services between Basel and Freiburg are integrated into the Basel Regional S-Bahn network, although the former designation of the route as line S 4 has been dropped as inappropriate for a Regional-Express service.
  Freight transport is very extensive. In addition to Deutsche Bahn AG, Swiss Federal Railways operates on
caption: An ICE train before Isteiner Klotz, 2006
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