Station: [24] Traffic


M: Siegburg main station! Everybody out, please!

F: Siegburg was connected to the railway network early on, in 1859 – specifically to the long-distance route from Cologne to Frankfurt via Giessen. The stop predated today’s ICE railway station.

Thanks to its convenient location and its many factories, Siegburg soon became a railway hub with three, and briefly even four, stations.

M: Siegburg and its convenient location! In medieval times, that was the main reason why people settled around the Siegberg. You may remember we mentioned that earlier, at the stop about the founding of the abbey.

F: Yes, Siegburg was and is a transport hub for the region. As well as the main station, there was also a station on the Agger Valley line serving the Oberbergisches Land, and a stop for the Bröl Valley Railway, linking the Westerwald region to the Rhine.

M: After 1911, there was even a fourth line – a tram route connecting Bonn and Siegburg. Part of this route was shared with Bröl Valley Railway. Another tram route came into service in 1914: the light railway from Siegburg to Zündorf am Rhein.

F: The axle and connecting coupling on show here are from that tram – and you’re welcome to touch. In the display case behind them, we have a reconstruction of the tram driver's cab – with an original seat and control panel.

M: In 2002, the old main station was converted into the present Bonn/Siegburg ICE station. Siegburg has been connected to Deutsche Bahn’s high-speed network ever since, and the trip to Frankfurt takes only about half an hour.

F: Again, there’s extra information at the media station in this room – though only in German. To find out more about the history of traffic and transport in Siegburg, simply press the button by the door.

 

M: All aboard, please! Next stop, second floor!

 

Fotos: © Dagmar Trüpschuch