Berlin had the world’s fifth-longest tramway. But not all of Berlin’s trams are accounted for in this figure. After I visited every single S-Bahn and U-Bahn stop, I went to every single tram stop in Berlin. Part of that included the extended overland tramway.

Tramway through the Köpenick forest

Three lines, the 87 Woltersdorf Tramway and 88 Schöneiche bei Berlin Tramway both stretch from an S-Bahn station within city limits to reach villages in Brandenburg state. The 89 Strausberg Railway is entirely outside of Berlin but still within the city’s fare network. Of those, only 87 and 88 still use heritage trams on a daily basis.

The Woltersdorf Tramway is run by the same company as the Schöneiche bei Berlin Tramway on standard gauge, just like the rest of Berlin. Even though you can use a Berlin Zone C ticket to ride on this line, it is one of the smallest tramways in Germany as it is operated independently. An inspector visually checks tickets upon departure.

It connects with the S3 at Ransdorf Station where it ventures into the Köpenick forest for 5.6 km before reaching the village of Woltersdorf. The line has never been extended past its original length from 1913 and still uses the Fraktur font on its destination blind. The trams on the line were built in the late 1950s for the main Berlin tramway network, they were transferred to Woltersdorf in 1986.

Categories: GermanyTrains