Rail.
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Photo: Philipp Schiwek |
NRW being what it is, rail tracks criss-cross the state, some laying unused for decades, some for freight, others for local trains and others still for cross-country commuting.
But the state owned monoplist running the railways decided to make our lives difficult here. Comfortable higher speed ICE trains run on major routes which miss the smaller towns in the Rhine County of Neuss on their way north and south or east to west.
Having commenced a longer journey, it is important to know a place called Hamm. If sittting in the wrong carriage leaving Berlin or Hanover, be prepared to lug bags to the other part of the train when the Deutsch Bahn splits it in half. Oh, and walking thru whilst travelling is out, since there is no door.
With only 18 million inhabitants living in the region, the rail company has difficulty filling trains in spite of comfortable seating and high speed connections. New local trains are being introduced across the state with a promise of improved reliability and punctuality.
Neuss Central
Theodor-Heuss-Platz
41460 Neuss
Dusseldorf Airport
Flughafenstraße 120
40474 Düsseldorf