 | |
| Founded | 2005 |
|---|---|
Key people | Jochen Auler, Herbert Häner, Sebastian Nießen |
| Services | Rail services |
Number of employees | 210 (2016) |
| Website | www.vias-online.de |
TheVias GmbH (stylizedVIAS) is a rail service company based in Frankfurt (Germany). The name of the company was taken from the Latin word via forway and the letterS for service. It operates rail services in the states ofHesse,Rhineland-Palatinate andNorth Rhine-Westphalia.
The company was founded in 2005 byStadtwerke Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt am Main (VGF, the municipal transport company of Frankfurt) andRurtalbahn GmbH (RTB) ofDüren with both companies having equal shareholdings.
In March 2010,Danish State Railways announced that it had taken over VGF's shareholding with the help of its subsidiaryDSB Deutschland GmbH.[1]
On 22 October 2010, Düren-basedVias DN2011 GmbH was founded by its shareholders,DSB Deutschland GmbH andR.A.T.H. GmbH with the aim of providing rail services.[2] This company was first registered asVias Odenwaldbahn GmbH on 19 February 2014[3] and renamedVias Rail GmbH on 22 June 2015.[4] In the meantime R.A.T.H. GmbH had become its sole shareholder. On 13 December 2015, Vias Rail GmbH took over the public transport services on the Odenwald network fromVias GmbH.[5]
Vias has operated the approximately 210-kilometre-longOdenwald Railway network on behalf of theRhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV) and the state ofBaden-Württemberg since 11 December 2005. It has also operated theEast Rhine Railway since 12 December 2010 and thePfungstadt Railway since 10 December 2011. It now operates on the following lines:
| Number | Route name | Route | Contract period | Rolling stock | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RB 10 | Rheingau line | Frankfurt Hbf –Frankfurt-Höchst –Mainz-Kastel –Wiesbaden Hbf –Eltville –Rüdesheim (Rhein) – Lorch (Rhein) – Lorchhausen – St. Goarshausen –Koblenz Hbf –Neuwied | 12.12.2010 – 11.12.2038 | FLIRT | Runs on the tracks of theTaunus Railway, theRight Rhine Railway, theLahn Valley Railway and theNeuwied–Koblenz railway |
| RE 19 | Rheingau-Loreley-Express | Frankfurt Hbf – Frankfurt-Höchst – Mainz-Kastel –Eltville –Rüdesheim (Rhein) –Lorch (Rhein) –St. Goarshausen –Koblenz Hbf (–Kobern-Gondorf) | 14.12.2025 – 11.12.2038 | Stadler Flirt 3XL | Runs bypassing Wiesbaden Hauptbahnhof on the tracks of the Taunus Railway, the Right Rhine Line, the Lahn Valley Railway and theMoselle Line |
| RB 66 | Pfungstadt Railway | Darmstadt Hbf –Darmstadt-Eberstadt –Pfungstadt | 10.12.2011 – 11.12.2027 | Itino /LINT 54[6] | Operated to 2015 by Vias GmbH, since by Vias Rail GmbH |
| RB 86 | Odenwald Railway | Hanau Hbf – Seligenstadt (Hess) –Babenhausen (Hess) –Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach | 12.11.2005 – 12.11.2027 | ||
| RE 85 | Frankfurt Hbf –Offenbach Hbf – Hanau Hbf – Seligenstadt (Hess) – Babenhausen (Hess) – Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach (–Höchst (Odenw) –Erbach (Odenw)) | ||||
| RB 82 | Frankfurt Hbf –Darmstadt Nord –Reinheim (Odenw) – Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach – Höchst (Odenw) – Erbach (Odenw) | ||||
| RE 80 | Darmstadt Hbf – Darmstadt Nord – Reinheim (Odenw) – Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach – Höchst (Odenw) – Erbach (Odenw) | ||||
| RB 81 | Darmstadt Hbf – Darmstadt Nord – Reinheim (Odenw) – Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach – Höchst (Odenw) – Erbach (Odenw) – Eberbach |
The designation of the lines corresponds to thenumbering of the RMV.
Since the commencement of operations in theOdenwald, 22 brand newBombardier Itino diesel railcars have been supplied by theFahrzeugmanagement Region Frankfurt RheinMain GmbH (fahma) for the operations. The maintenance takes place in the workshop ofOdenwaldbahn-Infrastruktur GmbH inMichelstadt, which is also the location of the operating centre. Four more sets of the same type were ordered by the RMV in August 2007 due to a lack of capacity and were delivered in the spring of 2010. These are also used on thePfungstadt Railway, which was restored to operation from the 2011/2012 timetable change.
In addition, Vias also took over theRheingauLinie local service on theEast Rhine Railway betweenNeuwied,Koblenz Hbf (andStadtmitte),Wiesbaden Hbf and Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof (RMV line 10) at the 2010/2011 timetable change in December 2010. 5 three-car and 14 four-carFLIRT electric multiple units were ordered for its operation.[7][8]
In June 2021, the RMV announced that Vias GmbH would continue to operate the Rheingau route for another 15 years beyond 2023. The RheingauExpress (RE 9) would be put out to tender again in 2026.[9]
After a new tender for the operation of the Railway and the Pfungstadt Railway, Vias Rail GmbH took over these lines with a contract for twelve years from December 2015. The existing Itino vehicles would continue to be used, although capacity adjustments would be made for some journeys were made. In addition to the driver, at least one train attendant is present on all journeys.[10] In August 2019, the RMV announced that passenger demand in the Odenwald network had increased by over 50 percent to 15,000 people since the Vias began operating and the introduction of the improved timetable concept.[11]
On 21 November 2022, VIAS Rail was awarded the contract for the regional express line RE 19 between Frankfurt (Main) Hbf and Koblenz Hbf, which will run every two hours from 2025 and replace RE 9. Some trips are already scheduled to start in Kobern-Gondorf (Mosel). New Stadler FLIRT locomotives are to be purchased.[12]
On 26 March 2015, theVerkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr andNahverkehr Rheinland (Rhineland local transport association) announced that Vias would operate theNorth Rhine-Westphalia Regionalbahn servicesRB 34 (Schwalm-Nette-Bahn fromMönchengladbach toDalheim) and the northern part of the RB 38 service (theErft-Bahn fromDüsseldorf viaGrevenbroich toBedburg) from the timetable change on 10 December 2017.[13] The RB 38 would no longer use its whole former route from the timetable change; instead passengers would have to change in Bedburg. The northern part is operated by Vias and has been renamed theRB 39. The transport association for the Rhineland (Nahverkehr Rheinland—Rhineland local transport) planned to electrify the southern (Bedburg-Cologne) section and operate it as an S-Bahn service, while the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr, which is the transport authority that administers the northern section of the route has rejected the electrification of the line for "transport and economic reasons." Twelve newAlstom Coradia LINT sets (nine LINT 54H and three LINT 41H) are operated on the two lines. The contract for operating the service was signed with the new operator Vias for twelve years on 16 April 2015.[14]
From 1 February 2022, Vias Rail operated line S 7 (Der Müngstener) and theNiederrhein-Netz (linesRE 19 andRB 35) subnetworks as part of an emergency award which were previously operated by the insolventAbellio Rail NRW.[15][16][17] The transport contract for the Lower Rhine network has now been extended through direct award until December 2025. The S 7 has been operated byRheinRuhrBahn since December 2023.
Since the timetable change in December 2023, Vias has also operated the Ruhr-Sieg network consisting of the linesRE 16 (Essen – Iserlohn),RB 46 (Bochum – Gelsenkirchen) andRB 91 (Hagen – Siegen/Iserlohn). The Stadler Flirt electric multiple units were acquired from the previous operator DB Regio.
Vias therefore operates on the following lines in North Rhine-Westphalia and across borders to the Netherlands (as of 2024):
| Number | Railway used | Route | Contract period | Rolling stock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RE 16 | Ruhr-Lenne-Express | Essen –Bochum –Witten –Hagen –Letmathe –Iserlohn | 10.12.2023 – 12.12.2034 | Stadler Flirt |
| RE 19 | Rhein-IJssel-Express | Düsseldorf –Duisburg –Oberhausen –Wesel –Bocholt/ –Emmerich –Arnhem (split/joined in Wesel) | 01.02.2022 – 14.12.2025 | Stadler Flirt 3 (multi-system) |
| RB 34 | Schwalm-Nette-Bahn | Mönchengladbach –Dalheim | 10.12.2017 – 09.12.2029 | Alstom Lint 41H |
| RB 35 | Emscher-Niederrhein-Bahn | Mönchengladbach –Krefeld – Duisburg – Oberhausen –Gelsenkirchen | 01.02.2022 – 14.12.2025 | Stadler Flirt 3 |
| RB 39 | Düssel-Erft-Bahn | Düsseldorf –Neuss –Grevenbroich –Bedburg | 10.12.2017 – 09.12.2029 | Alstom Lint 54H and 41H |
| RB 46 | Glückauf-Bahn | Bochum –Wanne-Eickel – Gelsenkirchen | 10.12.2023 – 12.12.2026 | Stadler Flirt |
| RB 91 | Ruhr-Sieg-Bahn Ruhr-Sieg-Bahn | Hagen – Iserlohn-Letmathe(split/joined) front set: –Siegen rear set: –Iserlohn | 10.12.2023 – 12.12.2034 | Stadler Flirt |
Former line:
| S7 | Der Müngstener | Wuppertal –Remscheid –Solingen | 01.02.2022 – 09.12.2023 | Alstom Lint 41H |
