Gessertshausen–Türkheim railway

The Gessertshausen–Türkheim railway (also known as the Staudenbahn—Stauden Railway) is a railway line through the Stauden (hence the name), the southern part of the Augsburg-Westerwald Nature Park (in the districts of Augsburg and Unterallgäu, Bavaria, Germany). The line was built from 1908 to 1912 and had a length of 42.4 kilometres (26.3 mi). One section (Ettringen – Markt Wald) was closed in 1983 because of low passenger numbers and the poor state of the track. The line from Türkheim to Ettringen is used by the Lang Papier factory. The section from Markt Wald to Gessertshausen is only used by an excursion train association. Every second Sunday a diesel fuel train runs from Augsburg Hbf to Markt Wald.

Plans for the reactivation of the Staudenbahn differ between the northern and southern sections.

The northern section (Gessertshausen – Langenneufnach) remains under active development as part of the proposed Augsburg suburban railway network. A new stop at Langenneufnach Süd is planned, and documents for the plan‑approval procedure were submitted in early 2025. Passenger service on this part of the line could begin around 2028 to 2029.^[2]

The southern section (Langenneufnach – Türkheim) was formally rejected in October 2025 following the results of an official potential study. The Bavarian Ministry of Housing, Construction and Transport and the Unterallgäu district committee concluded that the forecast demand—around 800 passenger‑kilometres per track‑kilometre—was well below the minimum requirement of 1,000 for state funding. Consequently, all planning and reactivation efforts for the southern section have been permanently cancelled, and no future reconsideration is expected.^[3][4]

• Article Staudenbahn from the German Wikipedia

• Firmengruppe Staudenbahn
• Erholungslandschaft Stauden