Leipzig–Dresden railway: Difference between revisions

===Construction===

 

 

On 16 November 1835, land acquisition began for the section between Leipzig and the bridge over the [[Mulde]] west of [[Wurzen]]. Ground was broken near [[Machern]] on 1 March 1836. The management of the construction for the whole project was in the hands of the Saxon Senior Waterways Construction Engineer (''Oberwasserbaudirektor''), Karl Theodor Kunz (1791–1863). But then the town of Strehla refused permission for the railway to be built through it. So the line was built seven kilometers to the south, crossing the Elbe in Riesa. The company’s initial capital in 1837 was 4.5 million thalers, which was later increased to 6.5 million thalers. The first train crosses the Elbe bridge on 7 April 1839.

===After the First World War ===

1 April 1920, the ''Royal Saxon State Railways'' (recently renamed the ''Saxon State Railway'') were absorbed into the newly established [[Deutsche Reichsbahn|German National Railways]] (''Deutsche Reichsbahn''). The Leipzig-Dresden line came under the administration of the ''Dresden Reichsbahn Directorate''.

From 1 July 1933 to July 1934 the Oberau Tunnel was opened up and turned into a cutting, because the tunnel was not wide enough as the [[loading gauge]] had increased. As a result, the distance between the two tracks did not allow two trains to pass in the tunnel.