SafekipediaFrankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof
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Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof, also known as Frankfurt Central Station, is the busiest train station in the German state of Hesse. It is only second in busyness to Hamburg Hauptbahnhof, making it one of the most important places for travel in Germany. Because it is located near the middle of the country, many people use it when they are traveling long or short distances. The train service, called Deutsche Bahn, considers this station the most important in all of Germany. It is a big and busy place where many trains come and go every day, helping people move around quickly.
Name
The word "Main" in the station's name comes from the city's full name, Frankfurt am Main, which means "Frankfurt on the River Main." This name helps to tell it apart from another city called Frankfurt (Oder) on the River Oder, which also has its own train station.
History
Initial situation
Before the current Hauptbahnhof was built on the Galgenfeld (gallows field), the three western stations, the termini of the Taunus Railway (Taunusbahn), the Main–Weser Railway (Main-Weser-Bahn) and the Main-Neckar Railway (Main-Neckar-Bahn) were located on the outskirts of the city.
Plans
Due to the increased volume of travelers at the end of the 19th century, the capacity of the three western railway stations became inadequate. After the annexation of Frankfurt, Nassau and Hesse-Kassel by Prussia in 1866, planning for a central station was taken seriously. The inadequacy of the situation became apparent particularly during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/71, when troop movements were hampered by the scattered stations. The new station was to be built as a terminal station.
Realisation
On 18 August 1888, after only five years of construction, the Centralbahnhof Frankfurt (Frankfurt Central Station) was inaugurated. In the next few years, the station district developed to the east of the entrance building and was fully developed by around 1900. Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof was the largest station in Europe until Leipzig Hauptbahnhof was built in 1915.
Railway operations
The station was designed for regular services.
Extensions and conversions
In 1924 the building was extended with two outer halls in Neoclassical style. The number of tracks increased to 25.
During the Second World War, the station was the target of Allied air raids. The glazing of the platform halls was destroyed. In order to protect the passengers from rain, the former glass surfaces were partly closed with wood.
The station was fully electrified in 1956.
A 22 meter high signal box tower was built between 1955 and 1957. In 1957, the largest and most modern track signal box in Europe was put into operation.
Also in 1957, nine steam shunting locomotives were replaced by seven diesel shunting locomotives. In the early 1960s, Germany's largest express freight handling facility was set up under the station.
The construction of the underground railway systems began in 1971 with the B-Tunnel of the Frankfurt U-Bahn in the central city. The underground stations began operating in 1978.
In the early 1970s, the platform ticket requirement was abolished and the platform barriers were dismantled.
The two platforms on tracks 6 to 9 were widened, raised and lengthened for the introduction of ICE operations in June 1991.
From 2002 to 2006, the listed roofs of the five platform halls were completely renewed.
An incident occurred shortly after work began. During welding work, part of the roof of the northern part of the station building caught fire. The "North Ventilation Centre" was almost completely destroyed and had to be replaced.
A total of €117m was invested in the roof renovation. 80 percent of the costs were borne by the federal government. The facade was renovated in 2013.
Other parts of the interior design of the station and entrance halls as well as the underground station were also modernised. In the meantime, liquid-crystal displays have replaced the old split-flap displays on the platforms.
Due to the frequent theft of luggage trolleys, a security system was installed in the station to prevent the luggage trolleys from being removed from the railway premises.
Planning began in 1998, and implementation at the end of 2001, of a computer-based interlocking of the SIMIS C type, the four-stage commissioning of which was completed on 27 November 2005.
The wayfinding system was renewed in November 2005 in preparation for the 2006 World Cup.
Finishing in 2007, the floors and the cladding of the stairs, which had not been renewed for decades, were uniformly covered with black granite from China.
From July to September 2010, platform 12/13 was removed and rebuilt.
In October 2020, the conversion of the B level and the entrance hall began, which will be completely redesigned within eight years. The federal government, DB, the city and the Frankfurt public transport company (Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt) are investing a total of €375m. By the end of 2024, the entrance hall is to be renovated first, followed by the forecourt.
Other upgrades
The capacity of some access routes is considered to be exhausted. Several lines (e.g. ICE 13 and RB 58) can no longer be routed via the station.
Various options for underground through stations were discussed in the 1980s and 1990s.
Deutsche Bahn is planning to separate long-distance and regional traffic from the direction of Mannheim, Mainz and the Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed rail line.
By 2019, access from level B and the station forecourt are to be remodelled at a cost of €175m.
The planned Frankfurt am Main long-distance railway tunnel is to run from the Offenbach city limits or from the Frankfurt East station to the Niederräd Main bridge. The project is included as an "urgent need" of the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan 2030. Construction is expected to start in the 2030s and operations would start in the 2040s.
Architecture
Superstructure
The part of Frankfurt Central Station that you can see from the ground is split into two main parts: the entrance building and the train shed. The entrance building faces east towards the street and opens up to the station district. The older part of the building has a design inspired by old European styles, while the parts added in 1924 have a simpler, classic look. The whole building is 270 metres wide.
In the middle of the entrance building is a big hall where people check in. This hall has three big doors and a pretty clock above them. The roof has large windows that let in lots of light. There are tall towers on each side of the building, and in the middle of the roof, there is a tall bronze statue showing a strong man holding the world, with symbols for steam trains, electricity, trade, farming, iron work, and shipping.
Next to the entrance building is the train shed. It has five large halls made of steel and glass that cover the train platforms for 186 metres. The three bigger halls are very wide and tall, while the two smaller halls are a bit narrower and shorter. There is a wide platform that helps people get to all the train tracks, and there is also a tunnel under the platforms to help people move around easily. Outside the main halls, there are smaller roof covers over the platforms too.
Operational usage
Frankfurt Central Station has a special layout where all trains must turn around, which takes time and can be uncomfortable for passengers. Plans were made to build an underground station to solve these problems, but the idea was stopped because it was too expensive.
Frankfurt Central Station is very busy, being the second busiest train station in Germany after Hamburg Hauptbahnhof. It is also one of the busiest outside Japan.
Long-distance services
Because Frankfurt is in the middle of Europe, many long-distance trains stop here. Thirteen of the twenty-four ICE lines and two of the three ICE Sprinter lines stop at the station. Some trains now stop at Frankfurt Airport station or Frankfurt (Main) Süd to help ease crowding.
Local services
Frankfurt Central Station is a key point for local trains in the RMV network. It connects to many places such as Koblenz, Limburg, Kassel, and Mannheim, among others. Fifteen regional lines stop at the main station.
Main article: Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof underground
The underground S-Bahn station is very important for the S-Bahn Rhein-Main network, used by all Frankfurt S-Bahn lines except line S 7.
Other services
Trams and subway lines also stop at the station, providing many ways to get around the city.
| Line | Route | Interval |
|---|---|---|
| ICE 4 ICE-Sprinter | Hamburg-Altona – Hamburg Dammtor – Hamburg – Hannover – Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport | one train pair |
| ICE 11 | Berlin Gesundbrunnen – Berlin – Leipzig – Erfurt – Frankfurt – Mannheim – Stuttgart – Augsburg – Munich | every two hours |
| ICE 12 | Berlin Ost – Wolfsburg – Braunschweig – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Frankfurt – Mannheim – Karlsruhe – Freiburg – Basel (– Interlaken Ost) | |
| ICE 13 | Berlin Ost – Braunschweig – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport | |
| ICE 15 ICE-Sprinter | Berlin – Halle – Erfurt – Frankfurt | |
| ICE 16 ICE-Sprinter | Berlin – Frankfurt (– Mannheim – Kaiserslautern – Saarbrücken) | at least two train pairs |
| ICE/ECE 20 | Hamburg – Hannover – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Frankfurt – Mannheim – Karlsruhe – Freiburg – Basel – Zürich (– Chur) | every two hours |
| ICE 22 | (Kiel –) Hamburg – Hannover – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport – Mannheim – Stuttgart | |
| ICE 24 | Westerland (Sylt) – Hamburg – Hanover – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Gießen – Frankfurt | one train pair |
| ICE 26 | Bremen – Hannover – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Gießen – Frankfurt – Darmstadt – Heidelberg – Karlsruhe | every four hours |
| IC 34 | (Münster – Hamm –) Dortmund – Siegen – Siegen – Wetzlar – Bad Nauheim – Frankfurt | some trains |
| ICE 41 | (Dortmund –) Essen – Duisburg – Düsseldorf – Köln Messe/Deutz – Frankfurt Airport – Frankfurt – Aschaffenburg – Würzburg – Nuremberg – Munich | hourly |
| ICE 49 | (Dortmund – Hagen – Wuppertal – Solingen –) Cologne – Siegburg/Bonn – Montabaur – Limburg Süd – Frankfurt Airport – Frankfurt | individual trains (peak hours only) |
| ICE 50 | Dresden – Leipzig – Erfurt – Eisenach – Fulda – Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport – Wiesbaden | every two hours |
| ICE 62 | Frankfurt – Darmstadt – Heidelberg – Stuttgart – Augsburg – Munich – Salzburg – Villach – Klagenfurt – Graz | 2 train pairs |
| ICE 78 | Amsterdam – Arnhem – Duisburg – Düsseldorf – Cologne – Frankfurt Airport – Frankfurt | every two hours |
| ICE 79 | Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid – Liège-Guillemins – Aachen – Cologne – Frankfurt Airport – Frankfurt | |
| ICE/TGV 82 (ICE/TGV) | Frankfurt – Mannheim (– Kaiserslautern – Saarbrücken) or Karlsruhe – Strasbourg – Paris Est | |
| ICE/TGV 84 (TGV) | Frankfurt – Mannheim – Karlsruhe – Baden-Baden – Strasbourg – Mulhouse-Ville – Belfort-Montbéliard – Besançon Franche-Comté – Chalon-sur-Saône – Lyon-Part-Dieu – Avignon – Aix-en-Provence – Marseille-Saint-Charles | one train pair |
| ECE 85 | Frankfurt – Mannheim – Karlsruhe – Baden-Baden – Freiburg – Basel – Olten – Lucerne – Arth-Goldau – Bellinzona – Lugano – Chiasso – Como – Monza – Milan | one train pair |
| IC 87 | Frankfurt – Heidelberg – Stuttgart – Singen – Zürich | individual trains |
| ICE 91 | Dortmund (– Essen – Duisburg – Düsseldorf) or (– Hagen – Wuppertal – Solingen) – Cologne – Bonn – Koblenz – Mainz – Frankfurt Airport – Frankfurt – Würzburg – Nuremberg – Regensburg – Passau – Linz – Vienna | every two hours |
| RJ 63/66 | Frankfurt – Munich – Salzburg – Linz – Vienna – Budapest | on Fri/Sat and Sat/Sun only |
| Line | Route | Interval |
|---|---|---|
| RE 2 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport – Rüsselsheim – Mainz – Bingen (Rhein) – Koblenz | 120 min (extra trains to the peak) |
| RE 3 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport – Rüsselsheim – Mainz – Bingen – Koblenz/Bad Kreuznach – Saarbrücken | |
| RE 4 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Mainz – Worms – Ludwigshafen – Germersheim – Karlsruhe | 120 min |
| RE 5 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt (Main) Süd – Hanau – Fulda – Bebra | Some trains |
| RE 9 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Mainz-Kastel – Wiesbaden-Biebrich – Wiesbaden-Schierstein – Niederwalluf – Eltville | 60 min (only in peak) |
| RE 13 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt Airport – Rüsselsheim – Mainz – Alzey | Some trains in peak |
| RE 14 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Mainz – Worms – Ludwigshafen Mitte – Mannheim | 120 min |
| RE 20 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Niedernhausen (Taunus) – Limburg (Lahn) | 60 min (only in peak) |
| RE 30 | Frankfurt – Friedberg (Hess) – Gießen – Marburg (Lahn) – Treysa – Wabern (Bz Kassel) – Kassel | 120 min |
| RE 50 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt South – Offenbach – Hanau – Fulda | 60 min (only in peak) |
| RE 54 | Frankfurt – Maintal – Hanau – Aschaffenburg – Würzburg – Bamberg | 120 min (with gaps to the peak) |
| RE 55 | Frankfurt – Offenbach – Hanau – Aschaffenburg – Würzburg/– Bamberg | 120 min (Frankfurt–Würzburg; additional trains in the peak); individual trains in the peak (Würzburg–Bamberg) |
| RE 60 | Frankfurt – Darmstadt – Bensheim – Weinheim (Bergstr) – Mannheim | 60/120 min |
| RE 70 | Frankfurt – Groß Gerau-Dornberg – Riedstadt-Goddelau – Gernsheim – Biblis – Mannheim | 60 min |
| RE 85 | Frankfurt – Offenbach – Hanau – Babenhausen – Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach (– Erbach (Odenw)) | 60 min (Frankfurt–Babenhausen); 120 min (Babenhausen–Erbach) |
| RE 98 | Frankfurt – Friedberg – Gießen – Marburg – Treysa – Wabern – Kassel | Some trains between Frankfurt and Gießen in the peak |
| RE 99 | Frankfurt – Friedberg – Gießen – Wetzlar – Dillenburg – Haiger – Siegen | |
| RB 10 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Wiesbaden – Rüdesheim (Rhein) – Koblenz – Neuwied | 60 min |
| RB 12 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Kelkheim – Königstein (Taunus) | 30 min |
| RB 15 | Frankfurt – Bad Homburg – Friedrichsdorf – Wehrheim – Neu-Anspach – Usingen – Grävenwiesbach – Brandoberndorf | 60 min (only in peak) |
| RB 22 | Frankfurt – Frankfurt-Höchst – Niedernhausen (Taunus) – Limburg (Lahn) | 30/60 min |
| RB 34 | Frankfurt – Bad Vilbel – Niederdorfelden – Nidderau – Altenstadt (Hess) – Glauburg-Stockheim | 30/60 min |
| RB 40 | Frankfurt – Friedberg (Hess) – Butzbach – Gießen – Wetzlar – Herborn (Dillkr) – Dillenburg | 40/80 min |
| RB 41 | Frankfurt – Friedberg (Hess) – Butzbach – Gießen – Marburg (Lahn) – Cölbe – Kirchhain (Bz Kassel) – Stadtallendorf – Neustadt – Treysa | 60 min |
| RB 48 | Frankfurt– Friedberg (Hess) – Beienheim – Reichelsheim (Wetterau) – Nidda | some trains in peak |
| RB 51 | Frankfurt – Offenbach (Main) Hbf – Hanau – Langenselbold – Gelnhausen – Wächtersbach (– Bad Soden-Salmünster) | 60 min |
| RB 58 | Rüsselsheim Opelwerk – Frankfurt Airport – Frankfurt – Frankfurt South – Frankfurt East – Maintal Ost – Hanau – Aschaffenburg – Laufach | 60 min in peak |
| RB 61 | Frankfurt – Dreieich-Buchschlag – Rödermark-Ober Roden – Dieburg | 60 min |
| RB 67 | Frankfurt – Darmstadt – Bensheim – Heppenheim (Bergstr) – Weinheim (Bergstr) – Mannheim | |
| RB 68 | Frankfurt – Darmstadt – Bensheim – Heppenheim – Weinheim (Bergstr) – Heidelberg | |
| RB 82 | Frankfurt – Darmstadt Nord – Reinheim (Odenw) – Groß-Umstadt Wiebelsbach – Erbach (– Eberbach) |
| Line | Route |
|---|---|
 | Frankfurt (Main) Hbf – Walldorf (Hess) – Mörfelden – Groß Gerau-Dornberg – Riedstadt-Goddelau |
| In brief | |
|---|---|
| Total number of tracks: | 120 |
| Number of passenger tracks above ground: | 25 main tracks, 2 branch) 3 tram stops (2 tracks each) |
| Below ground: | 4 S-Bahn tracks, 4 U-Bahn tracks (3 in use) |
| Daily trains: (excluding Stadtbahn & tramway) | 342 long-distance 290 regional |
| Passengers (daily): | 460,000 |
| Preceding station | Following station | |
|---|---|---|
| Festhalle/Messe towards Bockenheimer Warte | U4 | Willy-Brandt-Platz towards Enkheim |
| Terminus | U5 | Willy-Brandt-Platz towards Preungesheim |
Future expansion
In 2018, plans were made to build a new railway tunnel with four platforms under the current station. This project is called Fernbahntunnel Frankfurt am Main (Long-distance railway tunnel Frankfurt am Main). The government agreed to support this plan, listing it as very important. A study to see if building the tunnel is possible should finish by early 2021.
Crime
In 2019, more crimes happened at Frankfurt Central Station than at any other train station in Germany. This included a sad event where a young boy was hurt on July 29. It is important to stay safe and follow safety rules when traveling.
Remember, if you ever feel uncomfortable or see something that doesn't seem right, tell a trusted adult or seek help right away. Safety is very important, especially for children.
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