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The Hagenow–Schwerin railway is a double track electrified mainline railway in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It is the second oldest railway in Mecklenburg after the Berlin-Hamburg railway

Berlin-Hamburg Railway

The Berlin–Hamburg Railway is a roughly long railway line for passenger, long-distance and goods trains. It was the first high-speed line upgraded in Germany to be capable of handling train speeds of over...

 and one of the oldest railways in Germany, opened in 1847 by the Mecklenburg Railway Company

Mecklenburg Railway Company

The Mecklenburg Railway Company was founded in 1845 to build a railway line from Hagenow to Rostock and to Güstrow, now in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...

 .

Route

The line runs in an almost straight line from Hagenow Land station (east of the town of Hagenow

Hagenow

Hagenow is a German town in the southwest of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, in the district of Ludwigslust-Parchim, 30 kilometers south of Schwerin...

) northeast through wooded areas to Schwerin

Schwerin

Schwerin is the capital and second-largest city of the northern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The population, as of end of 2009, was 95,041.-History:...

. From Holthusen, where the line from Ludwigslust joins, it runs almost due north towards Schwerin. Before Schwerin-Görries the line from Parchim connects. The railway crosses Schwerin in a cutting.

History

The Berlin–Hamburg line, opened in 1846, was the first railway passing through the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

Mecklenburg-Schwerin

Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1348, when Albert II of Mecklenburg and his younger brother John were raised to Dukes of Mecklenburg by King Charles IV...

. Immediately afterwards Mecklenburg-Schwerin began work on a link from Hagenow to Schwerin, which was opened on 1 May 1847. In the following years the line was extended to Wismar

Wismar

Wismar , is a small port and Hanseatic League town in northern Germany on the Baltic Sea, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern,about 45 km due east of Lübeck, and 30 km due north of Schwerin. Its natural harbour, located in the Bay of Wismar is well-protected by a promontory. The...

, Rostock

Rostock

Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...

 and Güstrow

Güstrow

Güstrow is a town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany the capital of the district of Güstrow. It has a population of 30,500 and is the seventh largest town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Since 2006 Güstrow has the official suffix Barlachstadt.-Geography:The town of Güstrow is located...

.

Initially, two pairs of trains a day ran between Rostock and Hagenow with connections to services to Wismar and Güstrow.
The construction of additional railway lines decreased the importance of this route. The Lübeck–Bad Kleinen line, which opened in 1870, diverted traffic to Hamburg via Lübeck

Lübeck

The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...

. The opening of the Ludwiglust–Holthusen line in 1888, diverted traffic towards Berlin and Magdeburg

Magdeburg

Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....

 from the section of line south of Holthusen and it was subsequently mainly used for local traffic. For example, in 1905 there were five pairs of passenger train between Hagenow Land station and Schwerin and six in 1934, some continiong to Wismar. In the 1980s there were four pairs of trains, which continued to the border station of Schwanheide. Added to this was a pair of express trains and one interzonal train (travelling between East and West Germany

West Germany

West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....

) between Berlin and Hamburg.

In the 1990s, the route gained importance. With the expansion and electrification of the Berlin–Hamburg line, the route to Hamburg from Rostock via Hagenow was faster than via Lübeck. In 1996, the line was duplicated and electrified as a German Unity Transport Project and upgraded to allow a top speed of 160 km/h.

Current operations

The line is served by Regional-Express trains on the Rostock–Hamburg route (branded as Hanse-Express) every two hours. It is also served every the two hours by InterCity

Intercity (Deutsche Bahn)

Intercity is the second-highest train classification in Germany, after the ICE. Intercity services are loco-hauled express services, usually over long-distances. There are Intercity routes throughout Germany, and routes generally operate with a two-hour frequency, with multiple routes giving a more...

 trains on the (Binz

Binz

Binz is the largest seaside resort on the German island of Rügen. It is situated between the Prorer Wiek and the Schmachter See in the south-east of the island. To the north of Binz stretches the Schmale Heide , a tongue of land which joins the Muttland region of Rügen to the Jasmund peninsula...

–) Stralsund

Stralsund

- Main sights :* The Brick Gothic historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.* The heart of the old town is the Old Market Square , with the Gothic Town Hall . Behind the town hall stands the imposing Nikolaikirche , built in 1270-1360...

–Rostock–Schwerin–Hamburg route and continuing to western or south western Germany. Between Schwerin and Hagenow Land station Regionalbahn

RegionalBahn

The Regionalbahn is a type of local passenger train in Germany.-Service:Regionalbahn trains usually call at all stations on a given line, with the exception of RB trains within S-Bahn networks, these may only call at selected stations...

 trains also run, which connect to Hagenow

Hagenow

Hagenow is a German town in the southwest of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, in the district of Ludwigslust-Parchim, 30 kilometers south of Schwerin...

town station.