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The Bebra–Gerstungen–Eisenach railway line crossed the inner-German border five times, which meant considerable difficulties for operations. The Wommen and Herleshausen stations, which were manned by West German Reichsbahn staff, were located on a 7.1-kilometer-long section in Hesse bordered on both sides by the GDR. As border security progressed, a new, topographically challenging line was built on GDR territory, requiring an insane amount of personnel and materials, and from 1963 onwards almost all traffic between Bebra and Eisenach was carried over this line. From 1978 onwards, operations on the West German island were completely suspended, but the abandoned infrastructure remained untouched. The fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification breathed new life into the old line, and hardly anyone remembers the crazy hurdles the railway had to overcome in the idyllic Werra Valley for decades.