Vechta

Vechta
Coat of arms
Vechta
Location of Vechta within Vechta district
Coordinates:
Country	Germany
State	Lower Saxony
District	Vechta
Government
• Mayor	Helmut Gels (CDU)
Area
• Total	87.8 km2 (33.9 sq mi)
Population (2013-12-31)
• Total	30,944
• Density	350/km2 (910/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	49377
Dialling codes	04441
Vehicle registration	VEC
Website	www.vechta.de

Vechta (German pronunciation: [ˈfɛçta]) with a population of nearly 32,000 is the biggest city and also the capital of the Vechta district in Lower Saxony, Germany.

It is known for the 'Stoppelmarkt' fair, which takes place every summer and has a history dating back to 1298. With an attendance of 800,000 visitors it is one of the biggest annual fairs in north-western Germany.

The town was in the recent past known as a centre of far northern German Catholicism.

Town subdivisions

Vechta consists of 25 boroughs, but the city proper was made out of 16 boroughs, until in 1933 the three boroughs of the old "Community of Oythe" were added to the city. The six boroughs of the "Community of Langförden" were added to the city in 1974.

Bergstrup Calveslage (1974) Deindrup (1974) Füchtel Grünenmoor

Hagen Holtrup (1974) Holzhausen (1933) Innenstadt Langförden (1974)

Oythe (1933) Petersburg Rieden Spreda (1974) Stoppelmarkt

Strohe (1974) Stukenborg Tannenhof Telbrake (1933) Tonnenmoor

Vardel Vechta-North Vechta-West Vor dem Moore Welpe

Transport and infrastructure

The A1, also known as the Hansalinie, passes by Vechta. There are three interchanges: Vechta-West/Bakum, Vechta-Langförden/Emstek, Vechta-Nord/Ahlhorn . Also, the B69 runs through the city of Vechta.

Public transport

The City of Vechta has a very good public transport system. It is a citybus system of four lines which run every day until nighttime except on Sundays.

Population development

Vechta has become a very rich city with a high quality of living, so Vechta is one of the rare German towns that still has a growing population.

1890: 2.188 inhabitants 1905: 3.895 inhabitants 1910: 4.373 inhabitants 1933: 7.280 inhabitants 1939: 8.095 inhabitants

1950: 13.097 inhabitants 1977: 22.133 inhabitants 1980: 23.000 inhabitants 1990: 23.200 inhabitants 1995: 25.616 inhabitants

2000: 27.832 inhabitants 2005: 30.061 inhabitants 2008: 30.903 inhabitants 2009: 31.250 inhabitants

Twin towns

• Pays Léonard, France
• Saint-Pol-de-Léon, France
• Jászberény, Hungary
• Seguin, Texas
• Starachowice, Poland

See also

• University of Vechta

External links

• Official site (German)