Palatine Maximilian Railway - Overview

Overview

It was named by the Palatine Maximilian's Railway Company, who had built the line, in honour of the reigning King of Bavaria at that time, King Maximilian II.

Built as a transit route, the line acted as part of a long-distance, north-south, trunk route for the first few decades. It lost this important role completely in 1930, whilst the Winden−Karlsruhe section, originally built as a branch, experienced an upturn, as a consequence of which the Winden−Wissembourg section in particular was sidelined. As a result, passenger services on the latter ceased in 1975, but were reinstated in 1997. Goods traffic on the Maximiliansbahn reduced sharply from the 1990s.