zahnradbahn.MP3

The Stuttgart Rack Railway (German: Zahnradbahn) is an electric rack railway in Stuttgart, Germany. It is the only urban rack railway in Germany.
Affectionately called Zacke (spike) by the residents of Stuttgart, the line was opened on 23 August 1884. It connects the urban districts of Stuttgart South (Marienplatz) and Degerloch (Albplatz). The route runs along the Alte Weinsteige, which was historically the main route to the Filder towns until the Neue Weinsteige was built in 1826.
Over it’s 2.2 km route the line climbs a height of 205 m (from 260 m to 465 m AMSL). The maximum incline on the route is 17.5% (between Liststrasse and Pfaffenweg). On the branch line to the depot of the (old) rack railway yard, the maximum incline is 20.0%. Between the stops at Pfaffenweg and Wielandshöhe there is a view of Stuttgart's city centre.