Berlin Straßenbahn
Encyclopedia
The Berlin tram network is the main tram
system in Berlin
, Germany
. It is one of the oldest tram
networks in the world having its origins in 1865 and is operated by (BVG), which was founded in 1929. It is notable for being one of the largest tram systems; there are 22 tram lines operate across a standard gauge
network with 382 stops and measuring 191.6 kilometres in length. Nine of the lines are operated 24 hours per day, identified with the letter 'M' before their number.
Almost all of the remaining network is within the confines of the former East Berlin
—tram lines within West Berlin
having been replaced by buses during the division of Berlin (first extension into West Berlin opened in 1994 on today's M13). In the eastern vicinity of the city there are also three private tram lines not part of the main system, whilst to the south-west of Berlin is the Potsdam
tram system with its own network of lines.
, BVG was divided into an eastern and a western company, but was once again reunited in 1992, after the fall of the GDR. In West Berlin
, by 1967 all tram lines had been shut down. With the exception of two lines constructed after the German reunion, the Berlin tram continues to be limited to the eastern portion of Berlin.
The public transport system of Berlin is the oldest one in Germany
. In 1847, the first public line opened: The Concessionierte Berliner Omnibus Compagnie (Concessed Berlin Bus Company) operated the first horse-bus line of the city, beginning service on the 1st of January. The growing market experienced the launch of numerous additional companies, with 36 bus companies in Berlin by 1864.
On June 22, 1865, the opening of Berlin's first horse tramway marked the beginning of the age of trams in Germany, spanning from Brandenburger Tor along today's Straße des 17. Juni
(17 June-Road) to Charlottenburg
. Two months later, on the 28th of August, it was extended along Dorotheenstraße to Kupfergraben near today's Museumsinsel (Museum Island
), a terminal stop which is still in service today. Like the horse-bus, many companies followed the new development and built horse-tram networks in all parts of the today's urban area. In 1873, a route from Rosenthaler Platz to the Gesundbrunnen (Health well) was opened, to be operated by the new Große Berliner Pferde-Eisenbahn (Great Berlin Horse Tram) which would later become the dominating company in Berlin under the name of Große Berliner Straßenbahn (GBS) (Great Berlin Tram).
On 16 May 1881, the region of Berlin again wrote transport history. In the village of Groß-Lichterfelde, which was incorporated into Berlin-Steglitz
39 years later, Werner von Siemens opened the world's first electric tramway. Initially, the route was intended merely as a testing facility. Siemens named it an "elevated line taken down from its pillars and girders", because he wanted to build a network of electric elevated lines in Berlin. But the sceptical town council did not allow him to do this until 1902, when the first elevated line opened.
The electric tram in Groß-Lichterfelde
was built in meter-gauge and ran from today's suburban station, East Lichterfelde, to the cadet school in the Zehlendorfer Straße (today Finckensteinallee). A single trip cost more than an average hourly wage. The route was refitted to standard gauge
in October 1925.
The new development overran the old horse trams, causing the final horse tram to be shut down in 1910.
On 18 December 1899, it became possible to travel underground, even under the Spree
River, upon completion of the Spreetunnel between Stralau and Treptow
. Due to structural problems, it was closed on 15 February 1932. From 1916 to 1951, the tram had a second tunnel, the Lindentunnel running under the well-known boulevard Unter den Linden
.
The history of tramway companies of the Berlin Straßenbahn is very complicated. Besides the private companies, which often changed due to takeover
s, mergers, and bankruptcies
, the cities of Berlin
, Spandau
, Köpenick
, Rixdorf
, the villages Steglitz
, Mariendorf
, Britz
, Niederschönhausen
, Friedrichshagen
, Heiligensee and Französisch Buchholz
, and the Kreis Teltow (Teltow county) had municipal tramway companies.
The most important private operating company was the Große Berliner Pferde-Eisenbahn (Great Berlin Horse Tramway), which called itself Große Berliner Straßenbahn (GBS) (Great Berlin Tramway) after starting the electrification. GBS acquired nearly all of the other companies throughout the years. In 1920, the GBS merged with the municipal companies BESTAG and SSB to become the Berliner Straßenbahn (Berlin Tramway), which was reorganized in 1929 into the newly-formed municipal Berliner Verkehrs-AG (BVG
) (Berlin Transport Company). Besides the tramway, the BVG also took over the elevated and underground rail lines and the bus routes which were previously operated primarily by the Allgemeine Berliner Omnibus-Actien-Gesellschaft (ABOAG) (General Berlin Bus Company).
The following table includes all companies that operated tramways in today's Berlin before the formation of the BVG. The background color of each line marks the drive method which the respective company used to serve their lines at the time of the formation (blue = horse tram, yellow = steam tram, white = electric tram, red = benzole tram).
On the day of its formation, the BVG had 89 tramway lines: a network of 634 kilometres in length, over 4,000 tramway cars, and more than 14,400 employees. An average tram car ran over 42,500 kilometers per year. The Berlin tramway had more than 929 million passengers in 1929, at which point, the BVG already had increased its service to 93 tramway lines.
In the early 1930s, the Berlin tramway network began to decline; after partial closing of the world's first electric tram in 1930, on 31 October 1934, the oldest tramway of Germany followed. The Charlottenburger Chaussee (today Straße des 17. Juni) was rebuilt by Nazi planners following a monumental East-West-Axis, and the tramway had to leave. In 1938, however, there were still 71 tramway lines, 2,800 tram cars and about 12,500 employees. Consequently, the bus network was extended during this time. Since 1933, Berlin also had trolley buses.
During World War II, some transport tasks were given back to the tramway to save oil. Thus an extensive transport of goods was established. Bombings (from March 1943 on) and the lack of personal and electricity caused the transport performance to decline. Due to the final fights for Berlin, the tramway system collapsed on 23 April 1945.
ian suburbs Kleinmachnow
and Schönefeld
stopped, and on 15 January 1953 traffic over the downtown sector border too.
On 2 October 1967 the last tramcar traveled through West-Berlin over the last line, which carried number 55 - from Zoo Station via Ernst-Reuter-Square, the City Hall in Charlottenburg
, Jungfernheide S-Bahn station, Siemensdamm, Nonnendammallee, Falkenseer Platz, and Neuendorfer Allee to Spandau, Hakenfelde
.
Today, many Metrobus
lines follow the routes of former tram lines.
The separation of the city resulted in many problems and difficulties for the public transportation system. Tram lines could no longer travel through city centre as usual, and the main tram garage was moved to in Uferstraße in Western Berlin.
and 1960s
. In 1967, the lines through the city centre closed down, at the same time as the new city expansion on Alexanderplatz
started to grow.
However, complete termination of the city's tram network was neither planned nor even discussed. In the late 1970s
, some new tramway sections were built in order to connect the new housing estates Marzahn
, Hohenschönhausen
and finally Hellersdorf to the city's tram network.
Around Berlin there are some additional tram systems that do not belong to the BVG:
The last three companies are located in the eastern suburbs at the eastern edge of Berlin. Each of them has only one line.
BVG tramway net has 22 urban lines. MetroTram uses also the symbol :
The two tram lines 87 and 88 are not BVG, which run in the municipalities of Woltersdorf
, Schöneiche
and Rüdersdorf
(in the Land of Brandenburg
), due to the fact that are partly located in suburban areas of Berlin, i.e. Rahnsdorf
and Friedrichshagen
, are partly shown in BVG tramway maps and suddenly considered de facto
part of Berliner Tramway Net.
as one of the 10 Great Streetcar routes along with:
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
system in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It is one of the oldest tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
networks in the world having its origins in 1865 and is operated by (BVG), which was founded in 1929. It is notable for being one of the largest tram systems; there are 22 tram lines operate across a standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
network with 382 stops and measuring 191.6 kilometres in length. Nine of the lines are operated 24 hours per day, identified with the letter 'M' before their number.
Almost all of the remaining network is within the confines of the former East Berlin
East Berlin
East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city...
—tram lines within West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
having been replaced by buses during the division of Berlin (first extension into West Berlin opened in 1994 on today's M13). In the eastern vicinity of the city there are also three private tram lines not part of the main system, whilst to the south-west of Berlin is the Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
tram system with its own network of lines.
Early history
In 1865, a horse tramway was established in Berlin. In 1881, the world's first electric tram line opened. Numerous private and municipal operating companies constructed new routes. So at the end of the 19th century the network developed quite rapidly and the horse trams were changed into electric ones. By 1930, the network had a route-length of over 630 km with more than 90 lines. In 1929, all operating companies were unified into the BVG. After World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, BVG was divided into an eastern and a western company, but was once again reunited in 1992, after the fall of the GDR. In West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
, by 1967 all tram lines had been shut down. With the exception of two lines constructed after the German reunion, the Berlin tram continues to be limited to the eastern portion of Berlin.
From horse bus to electric trams
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. In 1847, the first public line opened: The Concessionierte Berliner Omnibus Compagnie (Concessed Berlin Bus Company) operated the first horse-bus line of the city, beginning service on the 1st of January. The growing market experienced the launch of numerous additional companies, with 36 bus companies in Berlin by 1864.
On June 22, 1865, the opening of Berlin's first horse tramway marked the beginning of the age of trams in Germany, spanning from Brandenburger Tor along today's Straße des 17. Juni
Straße des 17. Juni
The Straße des 17. Juni is a street in central Berlin, the capital of Germany. It is the western continuation of the Unter den Linden. It runs east-west through the Tiergarten, a large forest park to the west of the city centre. At the eastern end is the Brandenburg Gate and at the western end is...
(17 June-Road) to Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, named after Queen consort Sophia Charlotte...
. Two months later, on the 28th of August, it was extended along Dorotheenstraße to Kupfergraben near today's Museumsinsel (Museum Island
Museum Island
Museum Island is the name of the northern half of an island in the Spree river in the central Mitte district of Berlin, Germany, the site of the old city of Cölln...
), a terminal stop which is still in service today. Like the horse-bus, many companies followed the new development and built horse-tram networks in all parts of the today's urban area. In 1873, a route from Rosenthaler Platz to the Gesundbrunnen (Health well) was opened, to be operated by the new Große Berliner Pferde-Eisenbahn (Great Berlin Horse Tram) which would later become the dominating company in Berlin under the name of Große Berliner Straßenbahn (GBS) (Great Berlin Tram).
Steglitz
Steglitz is a locality of the Steglitz-Zehlendorf borough in the south-west of Berlin, the capital of Germany. The locality also includes the neighbourhood of Südende.-History:...
39 years later, Werner von Siemens opened the world's first electric tramway. Initially, the route was intended merely as a testing facility. Siemens named it an "elevated line taken down from its pillars and girders", because he wanted to build a network of electric elevated lines in Berlin. But the sceptical town council did not allow him to do this until 1902, when the first elevated line opened.
The electric tram in Groß-Lichterfelde
Gross-Lichterfelde Tramway
The Gross Lichterfelde Tramway was the world's first electric tramway. It was built by the Siemens & Halske company in Lichterfelde, a suburb of Berlin, and went in service on 16 May 1881....
was built in meter-gauge and ran from today's suburban station, East Lichterfelde, to the cadet school in the Zehlendorfer Straße (today Finckensteinallee). A single trip cost more than an average hourly wage. The route was refitted to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
in October 1925.
The new development overran the old horse trams, causing the final horse tram to be shut down in 1910.
On 18 December 1899, it became possible to travel underground, even under the Spree
Spree
The Spree is a river that flows through the Saxony, Brandenburg and Berlin states of Germany, and in the Ústí nad Labem region of the Czech Republic...
River, upon completion of the Spreetunnel between Stralau and Treptow
Treptow
Treptow is a former borough in the southeast of Berlin. It merged with Köpenick to form Treptow-Köpenick in 2001.-Geography:The district was composed by the localities of Alt-Treptow, Plänterwald, Baumschulenweg, Niederschöneweide, Johannisthal, Adlershof, Altglienicke and Bohnsdorf....
. Due to structural problems, it was closed on 15 February 1932. From 1916 to 1951, the tram had a second tunnel, the Lindentunnel running under the well-known boulevard Unter den Linden
Unter den Linden
Unter den Linden is a boulevard in the Mitte district of Berlin, the capital of Germany. It is named for its linden trees that line the grassed pedestrian mall between two carriageways....
.
Great Variety of Companies until the formation of the BVG
Takeover
In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company by another . In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to the acquisition of a private company.- Friendly takeovers :Before a bidder makes an offer for another...
s, mergers, and bankruptcies
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
, the cities of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Spandau
Spandau
Spandau is the fifth of the twelve boroughs of Berlin. It is the fourth largest and westernmost borough, situated at the confluence of the Havel and Spree rivers and along the western bank of the Havel, but the least populated.-Overview:...
, Köpenick
Köpenick
Köpenick is a historic town and locality that is situated at the confluence of the rivers Dahme and Spree in the south-east of the German capital city of Berlin. It was formerly known as Copanic and then Cöpenick, only officially adopting the current spelling in 1931...
, Rixdorf
Neukölln
Neukölln is the eighth borough of Berlin, located in the southeastern part of the city and was part of the former American sector under the Four-Power occupation of the city...
, the villages Steglitz
Steglitz
Steglitz is a locality of the Steglitz-Zehlendorf borough in the south-west of Berlin, the capital of Germany. The locality also includes the neighbourhood of Südende.-History:...
, Mariendorf
Mariendorf
Mariendorf is a locality in the southern Tempelhof-Schöneberg borough of Berlin.- Geography :Mariendorf is situated between the localities of Tempelhof in the north and Marienfelde and Lichtenrade in the south...
, Britz
Britz
Britz is a German locality within the Berlin borough of Neukölln.-History:The village of Britzig was first mentioned in 1273. It was incorporated by the 1920 Greater Berlin Act...
, Niederschönhausen
Niederschönhausen
Niederschönhausen is a German locality within the borough of Pankow, Berlin. It is commonly known also as "Pankow-Schönhausen".-History:...
, Friedrichshagen
Friedrichshagen
Friedrichshagen is a German locality within the Berlin borough of Treptow-Köpenick. Until 2001 it was part of the former borough of Köpenick.-History:...
, Heiligensee and Französisch Buchholz
Französisch Buchholz
Französisch Buchholz , also known simply as Buchholz, is a German locality within the Berlin borough of Pankow.-History:...
, and the Kreis Teltow (Teltow county) had municipal tramway companies.
The most important private operating company was the Große Berliner Pferde-Eisenbahn (Great Berlin Horse Tramway), which called itself Große Berliner Straßenbahn (GBS) (Great Berlin Tramway) after starting the electrification. GBS acquired nearly all of the other companies throughout the years. In 1920, the GBS merged with the municipal companies BESTAG and SSB to become the Berliner Straßenbahn (Berlin Tramway), which was reorganized in 1929 into the newly-formed municipal Berliner Verkehrs-AG (BVG
Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe
The is the main public transport company of Berlin, the capital city of Germany. It manages the city's U-Bahn underground railway, tram, bus and ferry networks, but not the S-Bahn urban rail system....
) (Berlin Transport Company). Besides the tramway, the BVG also took over the elevated and underground rail lines and the bus routes which were previously operated primarily by the Allgemeine Berliner Omnibus-Actien-Gesellschaft (ABOAG) (General Berlin Bus Company).
The following table includes all companies that operated tramways in today's Berlin before the formation of the BVG. The background color of each line marks the drive method which the respective company used to serve their lines at the time of the formation (blue = horse tram, yellow = steam tram, white = electric tram, red = benzole tram).
| First line opened | Operating company | Gauge (mm) | Takeover date | Taken over by | Special remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1865-06-22 | Berliner Pferde-Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (BPfEG) | 1,435 | 1894-09-26 | BChS | first horse tram in Germany |
| 1871-11-01 | Westend-Terrain-Gesellschaft H. Quistorp & Co. | 1,435 | 1878 | BPfEG | |
| 1873-07-08 | Große Berliner Pferde-Eisenbahn (GBPfE) | 1,435 | 1898-01-25 | GBS | |
| 1877-01-01 | Neue Berliner Pferdebahn-Gesellschaft (NBPfG) | 1,435 | 1900-01-01 | GBS | |
| 1879-04-01 | Große Internationale Pferde-Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (GIPfEG) | 1,435 | 1886 | GBPfE | founded already in March 1872 |
| 1881-05-16 | Elektrische Straßenbahn der Gemeinde Groß-Lichterfelde | 1,000 | 1895-03-04 | ESGLSS | world's first electric tramway |
| 1882-10-18 | Cöpenicker Pferde-Eisenbahn (CPE) | 1,435 | 1903 | SSC | |
| 1885-06-13 | Pferde-Eisenbahn der Gemeinde Rixdorf | 1,435 | 1887-01-01 | GBPfE | |
| 1886-05-05 | Davy, Donath & Co. | 1,435 | 1888-12-22 | BDK | |
| 1887-08-06 | Pferde-Eisenbahn der Gemeinde Mariendorf | 1,435 | 1888-01-01 | GBPfE | |
| 1888-05-18 | Wilmersdorf-Schmargendorfer Dampfstraßenbahn Reymer & Masch (WSD) | 1,435 | 1888-12-22 | BDK | |
| 1888-07-01 | Dampfstraßenbahn Groß-Lichterfelde - Seehof Seehof, Germany Seehof is a municipality in the Nordwestmecklenburg district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.... - Teltow Teltow Teltow is a town in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, in Brandenburg, Germany.-Geography:Teltow is part of the agglomeration of Berlin. The distance to the Berlin city centre is , while the distance to Potsdam is .... |
1,435 | 1891-05-31 | DLSTS | |
| 1888-12-22 | Berliner Dampfstraßenbahn-Konsortium (BDK) | 1,435 | 1898-10-01 | WBV | also operated some horse trams |
| 1891-05-17 | Straßenbahn Friedrichshagen | 1,000 | 1906-12-16 | SSC | in 1894 taken over by the village, electrificated and regauged to standard gauge Standard gauge The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge... as of the takeover by SSC |
| 1891-05-31 | Dampfstraßenbahn Groß-Lichterfelde - Seehof - Teltow - Stahnsdorf Stahnsdorf Stahnsdorf is a municipality in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, in Brandenburg, Germany.-Geography:It is situated 20 km southwest of Berlin , and 12 km east of Potsdam.-History:... |
1,435 | 1906-04-01 | TKb | |
| 1891-06-04 | Pferdebahn Tegeler Chaussee - Tegel | 1,435 | 1891-06-04 | GBPfE | |
| 1891-08-01 | Pferde-Eisenbahn der Gemeinde Britz | 1,435 | 1891-08-01 | GBPfE | |
| 1892-06-05 | Spandauer Straßenbahn Simmel, Matzky & Müller (SpS) | 1,000 | 1920-12-08 | Berliner Straßenbahn | on 1894-09-01 management taken over by Allgemeine Deutsche Kleinbahn-Gesellschaft (ADKG), electrification finished on 1896-03-18, from 1899-03-04 management by AEG AEG Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in 1883 by Emil Rathenau.... , regauged to standard gauge on 1907-10-26, bought by the city of Spandau on 1909-07-01 |
| 1892-07-01 | Pferde-Eisenbahn der Gemeinde Niederschönhausen | 1,435 | 1892-07-01 | GBS | |
| 1894-09-26 | Berlin-Charlottenburger Straßenbahn (BChS) | 1,435 | 1919-05-15 | GBS | electrification finished on 1900-10-01 |
| 1895-03-04 | Elektrische Straßenbahnen Groß-Lichterfelde - Lankwitz - Steglitz - Südende (ESGLSS) | 1,000 | 1906-04-01 | TKb | |
| 1895-09-10 | Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske AG was a German electrical engineering company that later became part of Siemens AG.It was founded on 12 October 1847 as Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske by Ernst Werner von Siemens and Johann Georg Halske... |
1,435 | 1899-07-01 | BESTAG | |
| 1898-01-25 | Große Berliner Straßenbahn (GBS) | 1,435 | 1920-10-01 | Berliner Straßenbahn | electrification finished on 1902-12-15, bought by the Zweckverband Groß-Berlin on 1909-09-20 |
| 1898-10-01 | Westliche Berliner Vorortbahn (WBV) | 1,435 | 1919-05-15 | GBS | also operated some horse trams, electrification finished on 1900-06-19 |
| 1899-07-01 | Berliner Elektrische Straßenbahn-AG (BESTAG) | 1,435 | 1920-12-01 | Berliner Straßenbahn | |
| 1899-07-01 | Südliche Berliner Vorortbahn | 1,435 | 1919-05-15 | GBS | |
| 1899-10-21 | Straßenbahn Berlin-Hohenschönhausen | 1,435 | 1906-12-10 | NBSNO | |
| 1899-12-18 | Gesellschaft für den Bau von Untergrundbahnen (Straßenbahn Schlesischer Bahnhof - Treptow) (SST) | 1,435 | 1909-06-22 | Berliner Ostbahnen | opened the Spreetunnel |
| 1901-08-15 | Straßenbahn Niederschöneweide - Cöpenick (SNC) | 1,435 | 1909-06-22 | Berliner Ostbahnen | |
| 1901-10-01 | Gesellschaft für elektrische Hoch- und Untergrundbahnen in Berlin (tramway line Warschauer Brücke-Zentralviehhof) | 1,435 | 1928-04-01 | BSBG | on 1910-01-01 tram line was sold to SSB, instead of it opening of a new tram line from Warschauer Brücke to Scharnweber-/Gürtelstraße, later extended to Wagnerplatz (today Roedeliusplatz) in Lichtenberg |
| 1903 | Städtische Straßenbahn Cöpenick (SSC) | 1,435 | 1920-10-01 | GBS | |
| 1904-07 | Pferde-Eisenbahn der Gemeinde Französisch-Buchholz | 1,435 | 1907-12-19 | BESTAG | electrification as of takeover by BESTAG |
| 1905-12-03 | Straßenbahn der Gemeinde Steglitz | 1,435 | 1921-04-16 | Berliner Straßenbahn | |
| 1906-04-01 | Teltower Kreisbahnen (TKb) | 1,000/1,435 | 1921-04-16 | Berliner Straßenbahn | steam tram of DLSTS was electrificated on 1907-03-30 |
| 1906-12-10 | Neue Berliner Straßenbahn Nordost (NBSNO) | 1,435 | 1910-05-03 | NÖBV | |
| 1908-03-23 | Elektrische Straßenbahn Spandau-Nonnendamm | 1,435 | 1914-10-01 | SpS | founded by Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske AG was a German electrical engineering company that later became part of Siemens AG.It was founded on 12 October 1847 as Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske by Ernst Werner von Siemens and Johann Georg Halske... |
| 1908-07-01 | Städtische Straßenbahnen Berlin (SSB) | 1,435 | 1920-10-01 | Berliner Straßenbahn | |
| 1909-06-22 | Berliner Ostbahnen | 1,435 | 1920-05-01 | GBS | |
| 1910-05-03 | Nordöstliche Berliner Vorortbahn (NÖBV) | 1,435 | 1919-05-15 | GBS | |
| 1910-08-07 | Straßenbahn des Flugplatzes Johannisthal | 1,435 | 1910-10 | service suspended | last horse tram in Berlin |
| 1912-03-09 | Schmöckwitz-Grünauer Uferbahn | 1,435 | 1924-08 | Berliner Verkehrs-GmbH | electrification finished on 1912-07-23 |
| 1913-05-29 | Straßenbahn der Gemeinde Heiligensee an der Havel | 1,435 | 1920-10-01 | Berliner Straßenbahn | |
| 1920-10-01 | Berliner Straßenbahn | 1,000/1,435 | 1923-09-10 | BSBG | meter gauge routes are of former TKb |
| 1923-01-08 | Kleinbahn Spandau-West - Hennigsdorf Hennigsdorf Hennigsdorf is a town in the district of Oberhavel, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated north-west of Berlin, just across the city border, which is formed mainly by the Havel river.-History:... |
1,435 | 1929-01-01 | BVG | electrification later by BVG |
| 1923-09-10 | Berliner Straßenbahn-Betriebs-GmbH (BSBG) | 1,000/1,435 | 1929-01-01 | BVG | meter gauge routes are of former TKb |
| 1924-08 | Berliner Verkehrs-GmbH | 1,435 | 1925-03-01 | BSBG | |
On the day of its formation, the BVG had 89 tramway lines: a network of 634 kilometres in length, over 4,000 tramway cars, and more than 14,400 employees. An average tram car ran over 42,500 kilometers per year. The Berlin tramway had more than 929 million passengers in 1929, at which point, the BVG already had increased its service to 93 tramway lines.
In the early 1930s, the Berlin tramway network began to decline; after partial closing of the world's first electric tram in 1930, on 31 October 1934, the oldest tramway of Germany followed. The Charlottenburger Chaussee (today Straße des 17. Juni) was rebuilt by Nazi planners following a monumental East-West-Axis, and the tramway had to leave. In 1938, however, there were still 71 tramway lines, 2,800 tram cars and about 12,500 employees. Consequently, the bus network was extended during this time. Since 1933, Berlin also had trolley buses.
During World War II, some transport tasks were given back to the tramway to save oil. Thus an extensive transport of goods was established. Bombings (from March 1943 on) and the lack of personal and electricity caused the transport performance to decline. Due to the final fights for Berlin, the tramway system collapsed on 23 April 1945.
The Berlin Tramway since 1945
The BVG was—like most other Berlin institutions—split into two different companies on 1 August 1949. Two separate companies were installed, the BVG-West in the three western sections (with 36 tram lines) and the BVG-Ost (Berlin Public Transit Authority East) (with 13 lines) in the Soviet sector. The latter became in 1969 the VEB Kombinat Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVB). On 14 October 1950, traffic on the lines from West Berlin to the BrandenburgBrandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
ian suburbs Kleinmachnow
Kleinmachnow
Kleinmachnow is a municipality in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, in Brandenburg, Germany.-Geography:It is situated southwest of the centre of Berlin, immediately neighbouring the borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf, and east of Potsdam...
and Schönefeld
Schönefeld
-Places in Germany:*Schönefeld, a municipality of Brandenburg near Berlin*Leipzig-Schönefeld, a quarter of Leipzig, Saxony*Schönefeld , a village in the town Beelitz, Brandenburg...
stopped, and on 15 January 1953 traffic over the downtown sector border too.
West
From 1954 onwards, a shift took place in the public transit plans of West-Berlin. From that moment, plans aimed at discontinuing the tramway service, and replacing it with extended underground and bus lines. The tramway was considered old-fashioned and unnecessary, since Berlin already had a well-developed underground network. From 1954 to 1962 numerous tram lines were replaced with bus routes and extended underground lines and stops. By 1962, the western part of the city had only 18 tram lines left, out of the original 36.On 2 October 1967 the last tramcar traveled through West-Berlin over the last line, which carried number 55 - from Zoo Station via Ernst-Reuter-Square, the City Hall in Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, named after Queen consort Sophia Charlotte...
, Jungfernheide S-Bahn station, Siemensdamm, Nonnendammallee, Falkenseer Platz, and Neuendorfer Allee to Spandau, Hakenfelde
Hakenfelde
Hakenfelde is a German locality of Berlin in the borough of Spandau.-History:The name Hakenfelde is derived a dairy-farm built in 1730 on the outskirts of Spandau. Part of the town of Spandau it merged into Berlin in 1920 with the "Greater Berlin Act"...
.
Today, many Metrobus
Metrobus
Metrobus may refer to:* MCW Metrobus, a bus model manufactured by MCW in the 1970s and 1980s* Metrobus a bus operator in south-east England* M-é-t-r-o-b-u-s, the bus and metro operator Tramway de Rouen in Rouen, France...
lines follow the routes of former tram lines.
The separation of the city resulted in many problems and difficulties for the public transportation system. Tram lines could no longer travel through city centre as usual, and the main tram garage was moved to in Uferstraße in Western Berlin.
East
Soviet Moscow was, with its tram-free avenues, the role model for East-Berlin's transport planning. The car-oriented mentality of West Berlin did also settle in the East, as a lot of tram lines closed here as well in the 1950s1950s
The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...
and 1960s
1960s
The 1960s was the decade that started on January 1, 1960, and ended on December 31, 1969. It was the seventh decade of the 20th century.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe...
. In 1967, the lines through the city centre closed down, at the same time as the new city expansion on Alexanderplatz
Alexanderplatz
Alexanderplatz is a large public square and transport hub in the central Mitte district of Berlin, near the Fernsehturm. Berliners often call it simply Alex, referring to a larger neighborhood stretching from Mollstraße in the northeast to Spandauer Straße and the City Hall in the southwest.-Early...
started to grow.
However, complete termination of the city's tram network was neither planned nor even discussed. In the late 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
, some new tramway sections were built in order to connect the new housing estates Marzahn
Marzahn
Marzahn is a locality within the borough of Marzahn-Hellersdorf in Berlin. Berlin's 2001 administrative reform led to the former boroughs of Marzahn and Hellersdorf fusing into a single new borough...
, Hohenschönhausen
Alt-Hohenschönhausen
Alt-Hohenschönhausen is a German locality in the borough of Lichtenberg, Berlin. Known also as Hohenschönhausen it was, until 2001, the main and the eponymous locality of the former Hohenschönhausen borough.-History:The locality, first mentioned in 1230, was an autonomous municipality still...
and finally Hellersdorf to the city's tram network.
General view
The Berlin tram network is today the largest one in Germany, and, in spite of many cutbacks, one of the largest in the world.Around Berlin there are some additional tram systems that do not belong to the BVG:
- the Verkehrsbetrieb Potsdam (operators of the Potsdam TramwayPotsdam TramwayThe Potsdam tram network is the tram system of the German city of Potsdam, the capital of Brandenburg. It is owned by the public citizen company Verkehrsbetrieb Potsdam and included in the fare zone "C" of the Berliner public transport area.-History:The network opened on 12 May 1880: It was an...
) - the Strausberg RailwayStrausberg RailwayThe Strausberg Railway is a light railway serving the town of Strausberg in Brandenberg, Germany. It links central Strausberg with the Strausberg railway station, where it connects with trains on the Berlin S-Bahn and the Niederbarnimer Railway...
(which is in fact a tram line, located in the town of StrausbergStrausbergStrausberg is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, located 30 km east of Berlin. With a population of 26,206 in 2010 it is the largest town in the district of Märkisch-Oderland.-History:...
) - the Woltersdorf Tramway (line 87, partly in Berlin)
- the Schöneiche-Rüdersdorf Tramway (line 88, partly in Berlin)
The last three companies are located in the eastern suburbs at the eastern edge of Berlin. Each of them has only one line.
Routes
| Mitte, Am Kupfergraben ↔ Niederschönhausen, Schillerstraße / Rosenthal Nord | |
| S+U-Bhf. Alexanderplatz/Dircksenstraße ↔ Am Steinberg (- Heinersdorf) | |
| S-Bhf. Hackescher Markt ↔ Hohenschönhausen, Zingster Straße / Falkenberg | |
| S-Bhf. Hackescher Markt ↔ Hohenschönhausen, Zingster Straße | |
| (U-Bahnhof Schwartzkopffstraße Schwartzkopffstraße (Berlin U-Bahn) Schwartzkopffstraße is a Berlin U-Bahn station located on the .It was built in 1923 by Grenander/Fehse/Jennen. Due to massive financial problems, the station was built in a very simple way. No artwork were put on the columns or walls, which are only plastered.... -) Landsberger Allee/Petersburger Straße ↔ Hellersdorf, Riesaer Straße |
|
| (U-Bahnhof Schwartzkopffstraße -) Landsberger Allee/Petersburger Straße ↔ Ahrensfelde | |
| S-Bhf. Nordbahnhof Berlin Nordbahnhof Berlin Nordbahnhof is a railway station in the Mitte district of Berlin, Germany. It is served by the Berlin S-Bahn and local bus and tram lines.-History:... ↔ S+U-Bhf. Warschauer Straße |
|
| Mitte, Am Kupfergraben ↔ Weißensee, Pasedagplatz | |
| Wedding, Virchow-Klinikum ↔ S+U-Bhf. Warschauer Straße | |
| S+U-Bhf. Frankfurter Allee ↔ Ahrensfelde | |
| (Falkenberg -) Gehrenseestraße ↔ S-Bhf. Schöneweide | |
| S+U-Bhf. Lichtenberg/Gudrunstraße ↔ Hellersdorf, Riesaer Straße | |
| S+U-Bhf. Lichtenberg/Gudrunstraße ↔ S-Bhf. Schöneweide | |
| Krankenhaus Köpenick ↔ Weißensee, Pasedagplatz | |
| Betriebshof Lichtenberg ↔ S-Bhf. Schöneweide | |
| (Wedding, Virchow-Klinikum -) Prenzlauer Berg, Björnsonstraße ↔ Französisch Buchholz, Guyotstraße | |
| S-Bhf. Adlershof ↔ Friedrichshagen, Altes Wasserwerk | |
| S-Bhf. Adlershof ↔ Rahnsdorf, Waldschänke | |
| Wendenschloß ↔ S-Bhf. Mahlsdorf | |
| S-Bhf. Köpenick ↔ Johannisthal, Haeckelstraße | |
| Krankenhaus Köpenick ↔ S-Bhf. Schöneweide | |
| S-Bhf. Köpenick ↔ Schmöckwitz |
- 87 : S-Bhf. Berlin-Rahnsdorf ↔ WoltersdorfWoltersdorf, BrandenburgWoltersdorf is a municipality in the Oder-Spree district in Brandenburg. It is often referred to as "near Berlin" or "near Erkner" as there are a number of other places bearing the same name in Germany.-Geography:...
Schleuse (Woltersdorf Tramway) - 88 : S-Bhf. Berlin-Friedrichshagen ↔ SchöneicheSchöneicheSchöneiche is a municipality in the Oder-Spree District of Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated directly at the edge to Berlin/Köpenick.-External links:...
↔ RüdersdorfRüdersdorfRüdersdorf is a municipality in the district Märkisch-Oderland, in Brandenburg, Germany.-Overview:It is situated 26 km east of Berlin . Rüdersdorf is famous for its limestone-open-pit mining. Today some parts of the mine are used as a museum...
(Schöneiche-Rüdersdorf Tramway)
The two tram lines 87 and 88 are not BVG, which run in the municipalities of Woltersdorf
Woltersdorf, Brandenburg
Woltersdorf is a municipality in the Oder-Spree district in Brandenburg. It is often referred to as "near Berlin" or "near Erkner" as there are a number of other places bearing the same name in Germany.-Geography:...
, Schöneiche
Schöneiche
Schöneiche is a municipality in the Oder-Spree District of Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated directly at the edge to Berlin/Köpenick.-External links:...
and Rüdersdorf
Rüdersdorf
Rüdersdorf is a municipality in the district Märkisch-Oderland, in Brandenburg, Germany.-Overview:It is situated 26 km east of Berlin . Rüdersdorf is famous for its limestone-open-pit mining. Today some parts of the mine are used as a museum...
(in the Land of Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
), due to the fact that are partly located in suburban areas of Berlin, i.e. Rahnsdorf
Rahnsdorf
Rahnsdorf is a German locality within the Berlin borough of Treptow-Köpenick. Until 2001 it was part of the former borough of Köpenick.-History:...
and Friedrichshagen
Friedrichshagen
Friedrichshagen is a German locality within the Berlin borough of Treptow-Köpenick. Until 2001 it was part of the former borough of Köpenick.-History:...
, are partly shown in BVG tramway maps and suddenly considered de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
part of Berliner Tramway Net.
Great Streetcar routes
Tram 68 was named by National Geographic SocietyNational Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
as one of the 10 Great Streetcar routes along with:
- TorontoTorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
's 501 Queen - 24.8 km (15.4 mi) - longest tram route in North America - LisbonLisbonLisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
's Companhia de Carris de Ferro de Lisboa (CarrisCarrisCarris is a public transportation company in Lisbon, Portugal. Carris operates Lisbon's buses, trams, and funiculars. It does not operate the Lisbon Metro. Carris was founded September 18, 1872. A total of 234.4 million passenger boardings were recorded in 2008.As of Dec...
) 28 TramTrams in LisbonThe Lisbon tramway network serves the municipality of Lisbon, capital city of Portugal. In operation since 1873, it presently comprises five urban lines, and is primarily a tourist attraction.-History:... - Seattle's King County Metro George Benson Waterfront StreetcarWaterfront StreetcarThe Waterfront Streetcar, officially the George Benson Waterfront Streetcar Line, was a -long streetcar line run by Metro Transit in Seattle, Washington, so named because much of its route was along Alaskan Way on the Elliott Bay waterfront...
1.6 mi (2.6 km) - New Orleans Regional Transit AuthorityNew Orleans Regional Transit AuthorityThe New Orleans Regional Transit Authority is a body established by the Louisiana State Legislature in 1979; since 1983 it has controlled bus and streetcar service in the City of New Orleans....
St. Charles Streetcar Tour - oldest tram route in North America - Hong Kong TramwaysHong Kong TramwaysHong Kong Tramways is a tram system in Hong Kong and one of the earliest forms of public transport in Hong Kong. Owned and operated by Veolia Transport, the tramway runs on Hong Kong Island between Shau Kei Wan and Kennedy Town, with a branch circulating Happy Valley...
- 13 km (8 mi) - one of three tramways using double decker cars - San Francisco Municipal RailwaySan Francisco Municipal RailwayThe San Francisco Municipal Railway is the public transit system for the city and county of San Francisco, California. In 2006, it served with an operating budget of about $700 million...
Streetcar F
Literature (written parallel in English and German)
- Sigurd Hilkenbach, Wolfgang Kramer und Claude Jeanmaire: Berliner Straßenbahnen. Die Geschichte der Berliner Straßenbahn-Gesellschaften seit 1865 (Archive No. 6), Verlag Eisenbahn, Villigen AG (Schweiz), 1973, ISBN 3-85649-006-X
- Sigurd Hilkenbach, Wolfgang Kramer und Claude Jeanmaire: Berliner Straßenbahngeschichte II. Ein Bericht über die Entwicklung der Straßenbahn in Berlin nach 1920 (Archive No. 31), Verlag Eisenbahn, Villigen AG (Schweiz), 1977, ISBN 3-85649-031-0
- Sigurd Hilkenbach, Wolfgang Kramer und Claude Jeanmaire: Die Straßenbahnlinien im westlichen Teil Berlins. Der Wiederaufbau ab 1945 und die Stillegung im Westteil der Stadt bis 1967. (2 Bände) (Archive Nos. 46/52), Verlag Eisenbahn, Villigen AG (Schweiz), 1986, ISBN 3-85649-046-9
Literature (in German)
- Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blickpunkt Straßenbahn e. V.: Straßenbahnatlas Deutschland 1996, Berlin, ISBN 3-926524-14-6
- Denkmalpflege-Verein Nahverkehr Berlin e. V.: Rekowagen - Die etwas härtere Art, Straßenbahn zu fahren, Verlag GVE, Berlin, 1996, ISBN 3-89218-045-8
- Denkmalpflege-Verein Nahverkehr Berlin e. V.: Historische Nahverkehrsfahrzeuge - Berlin und Brandenburg, Verlag GVE, Berlin, 2001, ISBN 3-89218-027-X
- Denkmalpflege-Verein Nahverkehr Berlin e. V.: 100 Jahre »Elektrische« in Köpenick, Verlag GVE, Berlin, 2003, ISBN 3-89218-082-2
- Sigurd Hilkenbach und Wolfgang Kramer: Die Straßenbahnen in Berlin, Alba, Düsseldorf, 1994, ISBN 3-87094-351-3
- Sigurd Hilkenbach und Wolfgang Kramer: Die Straßenbahn der Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG-Ost/BVB) 1949-1991, Transpress, Stuttgart, 1997, ISBN 3-613-71063-3
- Wolfgang Kramer und Heinz Jung: Linienchronik der Elektrischen Straßenbahn von Berlin. (2 volumes), Arbeitskreis Berliner Nahverkehr e. V., 1994 (Vol. 1), 2001 (Vol. 2)
- Holger Orb und Tilo Schütz: Straßenbahn für ganz Berlin. Geschichte - Konzeption - Städtebau, Jaron Verlag, Berlin, 2000, ISBN 3-89773-024-3