Düsseldorf Stadtbahn
The Düsseldorf Stadtbahn (German: Stadtbahn Düsseldorf) is a Stadtbahn ("city train", i.e. urban light rail system) serving Düsseldorf and surrounding areas in the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Together with the S-Bahn Rhein-Ruhr, the Stadtbahn forms the backbone of the local public transport system in the city, which is supplemented by other tram and bus lines. On some lines, the light rail operates beyond the city limits of Düsseldorf to the neighboring cities of Neuss, Meerbusch, Krefeld, Duisburg and Ratingen.
| Düsseldorf Stadtbahn | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Locale | Düsseldorf, Meerbusch, Krefeld, Neuss, Duisburg and Ratingen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany | ||
| Transit type | Light rail (Stadtbahn) | ||
| Number of lines | 10 | ||
| Line number | U70, U71, U72, U73, U75, U76, U77, U78, U79, U83 | ||
| Number of stations | 161 (including 22 underground stations. Düsseldorf 125, Duisburg: 20, Meerbusch: 7, Ratingen: 6, Krefeld: 5, Neuss: 3) | ||
| Daily ridership | 550,000 | ||
| Annual ridership | 165 million (2021) | ||
| Website | Rheinbahn (in English) | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | 6 August 1988 | ||
| Operator(s) | Rheinbahn | ||
| Number of vehicles | 135 | ||
| Technical | |||
| System length | 68.5 km (42.6 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) | ||
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The Düsseldorf network is part of the Rhine-Ruhr light rail system. After the first tunnel section was opened in 1981, the entire public transport system on the heavily frequented axis between the old town and the main station has been able to operate underground since 1988, when the inner-city tunnel was opened. The high-floor operations started here, subsequently leading to a separation of the rail-bound public transport into a light rail and a tram network.
With the start of service on the Wehrhahn line on February 21, 2016, the light rail network grew to a route length of 85.5 and a line length of 188.2 kilometers; Rheinbahn's 2020 annual report lists the route length of the light rail network as 98.7 kilometers. The eleven - instead of previously seven - lines are operated with 135 Rheinbahn vehicles. In addition to these, operation of the U79 is shared between the Rheinbahn and the neighboring Duisburger Verkehrsgesellschaft (DVG) and their respective rolling stock.
Fares on the network are those of the Rhine-Ruhr Transport Association (Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr, VRR). This allows for integrated ticketing with the Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn and several other regional and local transport agencies across the Rhine-Ruhr region.