This is the tram stop in line 15, by Stuttgart Nordbahnhof. On the old metre-gauge trams the doors were at street level with three steep, narrow steps up to floor level. On the new standard-gauge trams full height platforms were provided, which is far better for families with pushchairs but it leaves a great big lump of concrete in the street. Apparently this was considered a problem, so when this station was rebuilt the designers dug the track down about two-thirds of platform height and then raised the platform a few centimetres to make the whole barrier free without it interrupting the road scene.
This is a big problem all over Germany where a lot of lines were built with track-level platforms- if they had any at all, and the Körschtalbahn would be no exception. Of course, the station buildings would be at rail height as well so building the platform up wouldn’t be an option.
It’d mean a pretty steep gradient on version 1 of Spitzenwald, so I may just ignore it, but the idea is in the files if I decide to go for an ultra-modern appearance.
If only we could figure out a way to make roads this invisible.
Didn’t they lower the tracks because the DB bridge above the tram stop can’t be raised, and the “Stadtbahn” needs a bit more space? Just wondering about alternative explanations 🙂
It’s certainly unusual to lower the track instead of raising the platform.
Hello Bernhard, thanks for saying hello…
That may be a factor, I don’t know, but there are several stops on this pedestrianised street where this has been done with no bridge, and the official reason is that it looks nicer. I know clearance is much tighter in the underground sections as well.
The cynic in me wonders if they built this one and thouthg “Hey, that looks much nicer, let’s do it on the others as well…”