page_title: Murg Valley Railway
section_title: Route
hierarchical_section_title: Murg Valley Railway / Route
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Stadtbahn in Freudenstadt Stadtbahnhof English: Tram train in Freudenstadt Stadtbahnhof
context_page_description: The Murg Valley Railway is a 58 kilometre long railway line in the Northern Black Forest in Germany, that links Rastatt and Freudenstadt. It was opened in stages from 1868 to 1928 being built outwards from both Rastatt and Freudenstadt. The route through the narrow Murg Valley required the construction of numerous tunnels and bridges. The section between the stations of Baiersbronn and Freudenstadt Stadt is a steep ramp which is why it had to be operated until 1926 as a rack railway. Even today it can only be worked by vehicles that have the required approval.
  After the occasional long-distance passenger services had been withdrawn in the 1990s, the Murg Valley Railway was integrated into the network of the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn between 2002 and 2004. Since then it has been operated by Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft, using their fleet of tram-trains. At Freudenstadt, these meet the services of the Ortenau S-Bahn, operating over the Kinzig Valley Railway to Offenburg.
context_section_description: The Murg Valley Railway passes through a Black Forest valley, which in places forms a gorge. Until the 18th century the middle section was hardly accessible. On sections there is still very little room for the line between the Murg and the rock walls. With its ten tunnels, eight bridges and steep sections, the line includes a series of solutions to technical challenges.
  The line starts in Rastatt station and runs from the southern end of the station area to the east on the northern bank of the Murg river through an industrial area. After about a kilometre, it reaches a halt created in 2002, Rastatt Beinle. Subsequently the line crosses the open fields of the Upper Rhine Plain to Kuppenheim station. From here it leaves the plane and now runs along the Murg Valley through the halts of Bischweier and Bad Rotenfels Schloss.
  The section of the line from Kuppenheim to Bad Rotenfels station was duplicated in preparation for opening of the Stadtbahn, all other sections of Murg Valley Railway are single track. From Bad Rotenfels the Murg Valley Railway crosses into the town of Gaggenau, passing through the halt of Bad Rotenfels Weinbrennerstraße to the three-track station of Gaggenau. South of Gaggenau station the line runs through the Mercedes-Benz factory, where in addition to a siding there is a halt for the company’s employees.
  Next, the line follows the Murg Valley to the south, past the halts of Ottenau and Hörden and finally reaches Gernsbach station, which has several tracks for freight and passenger transport. Between the halts of Ottenau and Hörden is a two-track operations station with sidings, where delayed trains may pass.
  South of Gernsbach are the halts of Gernsbach Mitte and Obertsrot and the stations of Hilpertsau and Weisenbach, which both have crossing loops. The most scenic and technically difficult part of the Murg Valley Railway begins in Weisenbach. Near Schönmünzach the Murg valley narrows to become a gorge, so that the railway has to run on the steep slopes of the valley. It was necessary to build nine tunnels and five viaducts on this section.
  South of Weisenbach station, the line crosses the Murg on a 76-metre-long steel truss bridge and climbs the western slope of the Murg. After passing through the halt of Au and the Füllen and Hart tunnels, the line crosses the Murg again on a 127-metre-long bridge. This was originally built as an entirely brick arch bridge, which was destroyed during the Second World War and afterwards it received a steel central section, while the outer parts of the brick bridge were retained. The line then reaches the double-track station of Langenbrand.
  Next, the line runs on the eastern slope of the Murg, crossing a mountain spur through the Brach tunnel and reaches the imposing, 183 metre-long and 27 metre-high stone bridge over the Tennetschlucht. This is directly connected to Stiehl tunnel and the line runs through the Rappen tunnel and the Hacken tunnel before reaching the halt of Gausbach, opened in 2002. After passing through the Gausbach tunnel, the Murg Valley Railway reaches Forbach station, which in addition to two running lines built in 2002, has an additional bay track for trains terminating here and a two-track carriage depot. Forbach also has the AVG’s line controllers' office for the line. From Weisenbach to Forbach the line has to overcome a climb of 123.5 metres, which corresponds with an average gradient of 2.0 percent.
  South of Forbach, the line climbs to Schönmünzach station over a ten kilometre-long section that runs through an almost uninhabited, wooded area. Raumünzach station and Kirschbaumwasen halt are almost exclusively used as starting points for boat trips. Raumünzach station is also passing place for trains. South of Forbach and near Raumünzach the Murg Valley Railway crosses the Murg on bridges. While the stone bridge at Forbach was destroyed during the Second World War and rebuilt as a steel-truss structure, the bridge in Raumünzach is still a brick vault bridge. Each of the two bridges has a tunnel nearby to the  south: the Haul tunnel, 364 metre
caption: Freudenstadt Stadt station is the highest point on the Murg Valley Railway
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