Trams in Halberstadt

Halberstadt tramway network
Halberstadt tramway network
	A Leoliner NGTW6-H [de] low-floor tram in Halberstadt, 2007.
Operation
Locale	Halberstadt, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
Horsecar era: 1887–1903
Status	Converted to electricity
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)
Propulsion system(s)	Horses
Electric tram era: since 1903
Status	Operational
Lines	2
Operator(s)	Halberstädter Verkehrs-GmbH [de]
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)
Propulsion system(s)	Electricity
Electrification	600 V DC
Route length	11.7 km (7.3 mi)
	Halberstadt tramway network, 2019
Website	Halberstädter Verkehrs-GmbH (HVG) (in German)

The Halberstadt tramway network (German: Straßenbahnnetz Halberstadt) is a network of tramways forming part of the public transport system in Halberstadt, a city in the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.

Opened in 1887, the network has been operated since 1992 by Halberstädter Verkehrs-GmbH [de] (HVG), which also operates the city's six bus lines.^[1]^[2]

History

The first tramway in Halberstadt opened in 1887, in the form of a horse-drawn system operated by Halberstädter Pferdebahn AG. This was taken over by the city of Halberstadt on 1 July 1902, and electric tram operation began on 2 May 1903 with the construction of a new tram depot on Gröperstrasse.^[1]^[2]

On 8 April 1945, during the Second World War, the system suffered severe damage to both facilities and vehicles due to aerial bombing, and the tram service was temporary suspended. Services resumed on 18 August 1945.^[1]

On 1 January 1982, the Halberstadt tram undertaking was incorporated into the VE Verkehrskombinat Magdeburg. However in 1990 it was returned to city control, and the city owned HVG was founded to own and operate the system.^[1]

On 3-4 June 2023, the city celebrated 120 years of electric tramway operation by running a special service using its historic fleet. This service also served Germany's annual model tramway exhibition, the Kleine Bahn Ganz Gross, which visited the city that year.^[2]

Operation

Route network

The tramway currently operates two routes, both of which start at the Hauptbahnhof. Service starts at 05:00, and ceases at 20:00 on weekdays and at 18:30 on weekends and public holidays.

Route	Selected stops on the route	Notes
1	Hauptbahnhof – Heinrich-Heine-Platz – Fischmarkt – Holzmarkt – Zuckerfabrik – Friedhof	Runs Monday to Saturday only
2	Hauptbahnhof – Heinrich-Heine-Platz – Landratsamt – Herbingstraße (– Klus) – Herbingstraße – Westerhäuser Straße – Holzmarkt – Voigtei – Sargstedter Weg	Runs via Klus only on weekends

Main Fleet

5 low-floor articulated Leoliner NGTW6-H [de], numbers 1 to 5^[1]^[2]
3 articulated bi-directional GT4, numbers 164 (formerly Freiburg 106), 167 (formerly Nordhausen 91, formerly Freiburg 110), 168 (formerly Nordhausen 92, formerly Freiburg 111)^[1]^[2]
1 articulated uni-directional GT4, number 156 (formerly Stuttgart 550)^[1]^[2]

Historical trams and special cars

1 Historical Lindner tram built in 1939, number 31^[1]^[2]
1 Historical LOWA ET 54 tram built in 1956, number 36^[1]^[2]
1 ET 57 tram with EB 62 trailer, numbers 39 and 61 respectively^[1]^[2]
1 ET 62 tram, number 30^[1]
1 Reko tram, number 29^[1]^[2]
1 articulated bi-directional GT4 "HAKIBA" (Halberstäder Kinderbahn), number 166 (formerly Freiburg 104)^[1]
1 articulated bi-directional GT4 maintenance tram, number 161 (formerly Freiburg 105)^{[citation needed]}

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m "Unternehmen" [Company] (in German). Halberstädter Verkehrs-GmbH (HVG). Archived from the original on 2023-09-21. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Russell, Mike (October 2023). "Halberstadt Celebrates 120". Tramways & Urban Transit (1030). Mainspring on behalf of the Light Rail Transit Association: 404–405.

Bibliography

Bauer, Gerhard; Kuschinski, Norbert (1994). Die Straßenbahnen in Ostdeutschland [The Tramways in East Germany]. Vol. Band 2: Sachsen-Anhalt, Thüringen [Volume 2: Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia]. Aachen, Germany: Schweers + Wall. ISBN 392167980X. (in German)
Schwandl, Robert (2012). Schwandl's Tram Atlas Deutschland (in German and English) (3rd ed.). Berlin: Robert Schwandl Verlag. ISBN 9783936573336.