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(The original recording was made in 1996 with a High8 camera. When digitally transferred and then edited, the recording quality and the original image format could not be adjusted to today's standards. An original historical document...) Here I have conjured up a film from my archives that shows the Rübelandbahn (Blankenburg (Harz) - Königshütte railway line) at a time when you could watch passenger traffic die. Empty trains, old vehicles (I thought they were all incredibly great!) and cycle times that were anything but attractive. The Rübelandbahn was and always has been something special. Completed in 1886 and originally led up to Tanne. There was also a branch to Drei Annen Hohne with a connection to the Harzquer- and Brockenbahn. But it was really created to mine the incredibly large ore and lime deposits around Rübeland, Hüttenrode and Elbingerode and to be able to transport them away economically. At the beginning, the steepest sections were operated as adhesion railways (rack and pinion operation) because of the gradients. Later, the 25 kilovolt (50 hertz frequency) power system, which is unusual for Germany, was introduced and special electric locomotives were developed specifically for the Rübelandbahn, which I have already shown in another film (in the bitterly cold winter): • Halberstadt - Blankenburg railway line... While freight traffic has survived to the present day, passenger traffic was not granted eternal life. It died in installments. First the Königshütte - Tanne section, later Elbingerode - Königshütte, suffered the fate of being cancelled. And finally, the rest of the line up to Elbingerode was brought to an abrupt end in December 2005. Here, too, I filmed inside the carriages more than once. A quick pan would probably have been enough. But every corner had to be documented back then and I remember it fondly. If you don't like it, just fast forward. At least I was able to see a 118 diesel locomotive in action. The experienced railway expert will also notice that these are essentially two separate railway lines. But since the film journey began in Halberstadt, I didn't want to withhold the interesting scenes from there. And one more note about the route: this time not all stations can be seen along the way and the tour only took me to/from Rübeland itself. Please board, close the doors and be careful when the train leaves!