TICKET TO RIDE
The Railways Of Germany
Part 1 The South

It is just ten years since the fall of the Berlin wall and the beginning of the huge German re-unification project. No country in Europe has poured money into new infrastructure or equipment like the German government. The manifestations of these investments are now bearing fruit!

Travel with Ticket to Ride to view Germany’s railways as they enter the new millennium. This three part documentary series starts with the south-from Köln to the Swiss border and across to Austria and the Czech Republic.

We travel down the Rhein, still the major freight and passenger artery - but not for much longer - to view the trains which pass day and night in this international corridor. The best views are to be had from the river itself and Ticket to Ride takes you there, from Köln to Mainz.

Then it’s on to the financial capital Frankfurt, the hub of the InterCity passenger business, which has a local transport network of breathtaking efficiency. The route of the high speed line which will link Köln and Frankfurt is examined from the air and the ground.

Then from Frankfurt on to Ludwigshafen to look at German rail freight, a short hop to Karlsruhe, the city which pioneered the concept of running trams on main lines, and to the beautiful city of Freiburg where passenger and freight traffic stream past on their way to Switzerland. As an indulgence, we have lunch at the Feldschlossen brewery, just in Switzerland, before heading for the Bodensee.

Then across the sole of Holiday Germany to the capital of Bavaria-Munich. Munich is Germany’s favourite city and Ticket to Ride shows you why! Time for a look at the international passenger and freight traffic heading for Austria then on to Regensberg and Würtzburg.

Back through Stuttgart to look at “Star 21” and across to Saarbrücken where we ride the Bombardier trams. On this tour of Southern Germany you will see the very latest technology, ICT tilting trains, double deck commuter stock, modern freight vehicles and class 101 locomotives plus some old favourites like the class 103, the icon of the German Railways in the 1970’s.

A definitive series of films, lavishly illustrated and narrated by the BBC’s Jonathan Hewat.

DVD Info

Region: 0
Running Time: 95 minutes