Mannheim Hauptbahnhof

Mannheim Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in Mannheim in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is the second largest traffic hub in southwestern Germany after Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof, with 658 trains a day, including 238 long-distance trains. It is also a key station in the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn. 100,000 passengers embark, disembark or transfer between trains at the station each day. The station was modernised in 2001. It is classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 2 station.LayoutThe station is located on the southern edge of central Mannheim. In November 2001, the station was comprehensively redeveloped with a modern shopping and service centre.Travellers reach the platforms via escalators and lifts in the wings of the entrance hall, which lead to a northern and a southern subway under the tracks. The routes to the platforms have been upgraded to make them accessible for the disabled. Lifts, escalators and a direction system for the visually impaired enable all travellers to reach the trains without assistance. The lifts are to be found in the northern subway while the escalators are located in the southern subway.There is a Deutsche Bahn lounge for first class passengers and frequent travellers.Since 1897 the station has had a Bahnhofsmission (“station mission”, a charity established at some major German railway stations that is mainly staffed by volunteers) on platform 1, which among other things helps mobility-impaired tourists.The station forecourt has stops for several tram and bus lines of Rhein-Neckar-Verkehr (the public transport operator of the Rhine-Neckar region), the Rhein-Haardt Bahn (RHB, an interurban running to the west), the Oberrheinische Eisenbahn (OEG, an intururban running to the east and the northeast) and the bus lines of Busverkehr Rhein-Neckar (a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, operating over a large region centred on Mannheim). The central bus station adjacent to the southern end of platform 1 is served by long distance buses and an airport shuttle service, as well as non-scheduled bus services.