Black Forest Railway (Württemberg)

Black Forest Railway
Overview
Native nameSchwarzwaldbahn (Württemberg)
Line number4810
LocaleBaden-Württemberg, Germany
Termini
WebsiteHermann-Hesse-Bahn
Service
ServicesStuttgart S-Bahn: SWEG: Hermann-Hesse-Bahn (Renningen to Calw)
Route number790.6
Technical
Line length48.52 km (30.15 mi)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Minimum radius335 m (1,099 ft)
Electrification15 kV/16.7 Hz AC overhead catenary
Operating speed120 km/h (75 mph)
Maximum incline1.8%
Route map

0.0
Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen
281 m
Franconia Railway to Würzburg
Goods line to Kornwestheim Rbf
1.2
Neuwirtshaus (Porscheplatz)
Goods line from Kornwestheim Rbf
3.6
Korntal
300 m
Strohgäu Railway to Weissach
5.8
Weilimdorf
7.7
Ditzingen
11.0
Höfingen
14.4
Leonberg
366 m
17.9
Rutesheim
from Malmsheim Airfield (from ca. 1937)
20.5
Renningen
411 m
22.7
Malmsheim
22.8
to Malmsheim quarry (1900–1960)
23.1
Rankmühle
(crossover)
from the Weil der Stadt
industrial estate (1970–1990)
25.644
Weil der Stadt
404 m
planned new route (left), old route (right)
planned new tunnel at Hacksberg
29.57
Schafhausen (Württ)
(until 1983)
435 m
Hacksberg bend (right)
33.58
Ostelsheim
(closed 1983, reactivated 2026)
472 m
36.37
Forst Tunnel (696 m)
37.75
Althengstett
(closed 1983, reactivated 2026)
511 m
Feldhütte-Einschnitt
41.68
Calw Ost
(1944–1945)
41.72
Calw-Heumaden (1974–1983,
reactivated 2026)
43.77
Hirsau Tunnel / Welzberg Tunnel (554 m)
44,.87
to the Welzberg landfill (1944–1973)
45.36
to the Welzberg quarry (1872–1974)
47.6
Calw (Mitte)
(reopened 2026)
47.81
Ziegelbach Bridge, B 296
Nagold Valley Railway from Pforzheim
48.52
Calw
(until 1989)
348 m
48.85
Calw Süd siding
(1989–1998)
Source: German railway atlas

The Black Forest Railway (German: Schwarzwaldbahn)—also known as the Württembergische Schwarzwaldbahn ("Württemberg Black Forest Railway") to distinguish it from the railway of the same name in Baden—is a railway line in southern Germany from Stuttgart to Calw, passing through the foothills of the Black Forest, that was opened in stages between 1868 and 1872.

The Stuttgart–Weil der Stadt section was electrified in the 1930s and has been operated as part of the Stuttgart S-Bahn network since 1978.

The section from Weil der Stadt to Calw was closed to passenger services in 1983 and goods traffic ceased in 1988. This section has been reactivated as the SWEG Hermann-Hesse-Bahn from 1 February 2026. This train currently runs from Calw to Weil der Stadt, with plans to extend services to Renningen in the summer after infrastructural improvements.