Transdev Sachsen-Anhalt (formerly: ''Veolia Verkehr Sachsen-Anhalt'') is a regional

railway company A railway company is a company within the rail industry. It can be a manufacturing firm or an rail transport operations, operator. Some railway companies operate both the trains and the track, while, particularly in the European Union, operation ...

, a subsidiary of Transdev Germany. It provided passenger services on the North

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

network from 2005 to 2018 under the name HEX (''HarzElbeExpress'').

History

''Connex Sachsen-Anhalt GmbH'' was founded on 1 July 2004 with its headquarters in

Halberstadt Halberstadt ( Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the capital of Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town center that was greatly destroyed by Allied bomb ...

, after the responsibility for the public transport services of the North Harz Network (''Nordharz-Netz'') was transferred to Connex Regiobahn in the preceding March by the state of

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making i ...

. On 11 December 2005 the Harz-Elbe Express began operations and in 2006 was followed by the takeover of the Klesener bus service, which then continued to be operated under the name ''SalzlandBus''. In February 2009 the bus service was sold. Also in 2006, following in the footsteps of its parent company, the firm was renamed from ''Connex Sachsen-Anhalt GmbH'' to '' Veolia Verkehr Sachsen-Anhalt GmbH''. On 1 April 2008 the KBS 525 line from

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

Geithain Geithain is a town in the Leipzig district, in Saxony, Germany. Geography Geithain is northwest of Chemnitz and southeast of Leipzig. It lies in hilly country by the wooded area Wickershain and the river Eula. History The first documented ment ...

was added to the network, and was taken over by Connex Sachsen following a competition. In December 2008, leadership of the operation went to the newly founded

Mitteldeutsche Regiobahn Transdev Germany is the largest private operator of passenger buses and trains in Germany. It is a subsidiary of Transdev. History In 1997, Aktiengesellschaft für Industrie und Verkehrswesen was purchased by a CGEA Group (60%) EnBW (40%) cons ...

, a brand of Veolia Verkehr Regio Ost. With the December 2018 timetable change, Abellio Rail Mitteldeutschland replaced Transdev Sachsen-Anhalt as the operator of services on the North Harz network.

Incidents

On 29 January 2011 there was a

train collision A train wreck, train collision, train accident or train crash is a type of disaster involving one or more trains. Train wrecks often occur as a result of miscommunication, as when a moving train meets another train on the same track; or an acci ...

with ten dead on the

Magdeburg–Thale railway The Magdeburg–Thale railway is a predominantly single-track, non-electrified main line railway that connects Thale, in the northern Harz, with Magdeburg, the capital of Saxony-Anhalt. Its eastern section between Magdeburg and Halberstadt was open ...

, when a goods train and a HEX local passenger train collided near

Oschersleben Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 ...

-Hordorf.

Network

The Harz-Elbe Express ran on the following routes: This network represented 11 percent of the entire railway network in the state of

Names

Since 11 December 2005 a total of eleven units have been christened with names of regional note. They are named after: *

, the cathedral town * the legendary

Thale Thale () is a town in the Harz district in Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany. Located at the steep northeastern rim of the Harz mountain range, it is known for the scenic Bode Gorge stretching above the town centre. Geography The town is situated ...

* the old castle of Langenstein * the flower town of

Blankenburg (Harz) Blankenburg (Harz) is a town and health resort in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, at the north foot of the Harz Mountains, southwest of Halberstadt. It has been in large part rebuilt since a fire in 1836, and possesses a castl ...

THW The (THW, English: ''Federal Agency for Technical Relief'') is the federal civil protection organisation of Germany. It is controlled by the German federal government. 99% of its 79,543 members (2019) are volunteers. Tasks The tasks of the ...

Halberstadt * the

Wernigerode Wernigerode () is a town in the district of Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Until 2007, it was the capital of the district of Wernigerode. Its population was 35,041 in 2012. Wernigerode is located southwest of Halberstadt, and is picturesquely s ...

Brocken Express * the

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale (german: Sächsische Saale) and Thuringian Saale (german: Thüringische Saale), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saal ...

valley * the 2010 State Garden Show at Aschersleben (''Landesgartenschau Aschersleben 2010'') * Halle Zoo *

Georg Friedrich Händel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

(badly damaged in the train accident at Hordorf and subsequently scrapped) * the

Bode Gorge The Bode Gorge (german: Bodetal) is a long ravine that forms part of the Bode valley between Treseburg and Thale in the Harz Mountains of central Germany. The German term, ''Bodetal'' (literally "Bode Valley"), is also used in a wider sense to ...

('' Bodetal''). The legendary

References

External links

*
Harz-Berlin Express direct
{{Transdev, state=collapsed Railway companies of Germany Rail transport in Saxony-Anhalt Transport in Saxony-Anhalt Transport in the Harz Veolia Halberstadt Transdev Companies based in Halberstadt