There and Back Again—An Adventure in Mass Transit
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Introduction
The German mass transit system is known the world over for its comprehensive coverage and supposed ease of use. Travelers extol its virtues. They speak of its convenience, its affordability, how simple it is to use. They speak of a system that is practically perfect in every way, a model of what any complex mass transit should be. They lie. Well, at the very least they exaggerate. Germany's network of trains, streetcars, and buses is as complicated as anyone would expect of such a complex system, anywhere.
It must be said that the German system is not a bad system by any means, but it is certainly not perfect. It is at times archaic, convoluted, and often downright stubborn. The tourist on vacation rarely notices these things, as most tourists rarely interest themselves in anything outside of the central downtown area, within walking distance of each city's Hauptbahnhof, or central station. Naturally, travel to and from the transportation hub is about as simple as can be, as any train in a particular city will get there eventually. Traveling to a location off the beaten path, however, is a completely different story.
The Background
While living in Germany for a semester as an exchange student, I lived in the Pliensauvorstadt, a district of the city of Esslingen on the River Neckar. However, various things required me to travel into the nearby metropolis of Stuttgart on a fairly regular basis. Two of my most common destinations in Stuttgart were the Landesbibliothek and the adjacent Stadtbucherei, two variations of library, the differences between which could fill a book of their own. I visited these two buildings fairly often, and became rather accustomed to the route I needed to take to get there, which involved no less than three forms of transit, four if one counts walking.
Getting Started
The first step of the journey involves finding a way across the river to Esslingen's Hauptbahnhof. The simplest and possibly the fastest way was to simply walk across the footbridge which crosses both the river and the eight-lane Autobahn that runs parallel to it. However, on the off chance that the weather is inclement, as it is more often than not in Esslingen, the careful traveler would probably opt to take the bus across the river. The procedure is simple enough, as any eastbound bus stopping on the Stuttgarterstraße has the Hauptbahnhof as its next stop. One simply steps on, pays the driver in cash (about 75¢ for travel within a single zone), or waves a Fahrkarte, a card that allows for limited usage of all public transportation, with variable restrictions on riding times based on the price of the card. The bus drives across the bridge, and the passengers get out at the Hauptbahnhof, the next stop in the journey to the libraries.
The Station
After stepping off the bus and entering the station, the next step is securing a ticket, assuming that one does not have a Fahrkarte. Luckily, there are convenient machines throughout the station that accept both cash and credit/debit cards in payment for a ticket. The machine will ask for the destination, and the price is set based on the distance being traveled and the type of ticket, whether it is individual, family, weekend, or one of about 7 specialty types. Choosing the exact type of ticket is an entirely individual manner which varies by circumstances. Thankfully, the entire front of the ticket machine is covered with descriptions of the various tickets, price charts for different distances, and maps showing the various zones within the system. Unfortunately, all this information is in German, and German alone. Luckily for the tourist, transit control officers (called kontis by the natives), are remarkably patient with confused foreigners and will accept a ticket that may not be exactly valid so long as one looks sufficiently confused and apologetic. Therefore, just about any ticket will do.
After buying a ticket, one has to decide which type of train they would like to take. There are three options from Esslingen to Stuttgart, the Zug (simply "the train"), the Regional Express, which only stops in larger cities, or the S-Bahn, which is a commuter train that stops in every town along the way. I have used all three of these trains, but the beginner is much safer sticking to the S-Bahn, as it runs more often than the other two, and is guaranteed to stop in Esslingen on the return trip, something the other two do not always do. Nothing is worse than seeing the sign for the Esslingen Hauptbahnhof fly by at 85 miles per hour.
The S-Bahn
Getting to Stuttgart on the S-Bahn is the kind of trip that renews one's faith in mass transit. The tunnel leading to it is always marked with a large green circle with a white S in the middle, throughout all of Germany. A sign near the rails states the number of the train, its destination, and its expected time of arrival. It will arrive at the posted time almost without fail, which is probably the greatest advantage of the entire system, that it is actually on time. All of the westbound S-Bahns stop in Stuttgart, so you can get on whichever train happens to arrive next. When the train pulls up, get on quickly, as the trains remain in the station for less than one minute. Once in the train, find a seat and stay there. As the train nears Stuttgart, it will generally get much fuller than it already is and seats will be at a premium. Also, having a seat provides the opportunity to further international goodwill by giving your up seat to an elderly native.
If standing in the S-Bahn, a solid object to brace oneself against is an absolute must. These are commuter trains, with the emphasis on speed and efficiency, not comfort. There is very little open space between stops, and no sooner is the train at full speed and it is braking for the next stop. For this reason they accelerate very quickly out of the station, and brake even harder on the way into the next. Without a pole or door to hang on to, you will fall down. Be prepared to brace yourself often, as the train stops no less than six times in the twenty-minute trip, approximately once every three minutes or so.
The U-Bahn
After arriving in Stuttgart, you still need to take the subway/streetcar to get to the libraries, unless you decide to walk the mile or so. To get to this train, known as the U-Bahn, one simply has to follow the signs, which are a white U in a yellow square. Again, these signs are universal throughout Germany. All of the U-Bahns are located one level deeper than the S-Bahns, which come in at ground level. A schematic on the wall tells which line runs to the Charlottenplatz, the stop nearest the libraries. A second ticket will be required for this train, but is fairly cheap as Charlottenplatz is only one stop away from the central station.
Ahh... Success!
The ride in the U-Bahn is much less strenuous than the ride in the S-Bahn, and within three or four minutes, you are climbing out into the glorious sunshine (or more likely, the dismal rain) in the Charlottenplatz, directly in front of the two houses of knowledge that you have been seeking all along. Now, all you have to do is find your way home again.
