Rasender Roland

The line opened in 1895 on seven hundred and fifty millimetre gauge and runs about twenty-four kilometres from Putbus through Binz, Sellin and Baabe to Göhren, hauled by steam locomotives, some over a century old, as a year-round scheduled service used by residents as well as visitors. The nickname is ironic: the top speed is thirty kilometres an hour, so the journey from end to end takes around an hour. Carriages have open platforms at the ends. At Putbus the line connects with the main network, and the town itself is a planned white classical residence built in the early nineteenth century.

History

The first section, from Putbus to Binz and still in use, opened on 22 July 1895, and by 21 December 1896 the Rügen light railway company had extended its network to 104.82 km, one line running from Altefähr opposite Stralsund through Putbus to Göhren and another from Altenkirchen near Cape Arkona to Bergen by way of the Wittow ferry. On 1 January 1996 the line passed to the newly founded Rügensche Kleinbahn company, and in early 2008 it became part of the Pressnitztalbahn and took the trading name Rügensche BäderBahn (Wikipedia, Rügen narrow-gauge railway).

What's there

• The steam service - year-round scheduled trains hauled by old locomotives.
• The open platforms - carriage ends open to the air between coaches.
• The ironic name - a racing Roland limited to thirty kilometres an hour.
• Putbus - a planned white classical town at the western terminus.

When to go

April to October for the resorts; the railway runs all year with a reduced winter timetable. Summer trains fill and standing is common on peak days.

What to expect

It is slow by design, an hour end to end. Trains are crowded in summer. Smoke and cinders reach the open platforms.

Nearby

Binz and Sellin are on the line; Putbus is the terminus.

Key facts