The Gaubahn was a single-track, non-electrified railway line in Franconia, between Mainfranken and Tauberfranken, the largest part of which was in Bavaria and only a small part in Baden-Württemberg. It ran from Ochsenfurt am Main via Bieberehren to Weikersheim.
The 36.552-kilometer-long branch line was opened by the Royal Bavarian State Railways (K.Bay.Sts.B.) on April 30, 1907, initially as far as Röttingen. Based on state treaties between the countries involved, it was extended to Weikersheim on November 17, 1909 on the Crailsheim–Königshofen railway line, with the Royal Württemberg State Railways (K.W.St.E.) being responsible for the last section, although only Weikersheim and Schäftersheim were on Württemberg territory. At the same time, it also received a branch to Creglingen in Bieberehren.
The railway's importance lay in the transport of agricultural goods, especially sugar beets, which are grown in the Ochsenfurt Gau. Freight traffic was therefore operated for considerably longer than passenger traffic; the latter ended on September 29, 1974.
Due to a dilapidated bridge, the Röttingen–Schäftersheim section was closed in 1984. After restrictions between Weikersheim and Schäftersheim, freight traffic ended on September 29, 1990 and between Ochsenfurt and Röttingen on May 31, 1992. The tracks were dismantled by March 1994. From then on, sugar beets were transported by road using lorries.
The railway line now forms the Gaubahn cycle path from Ochsenfurt to Bieberehren. In the so-called Bavaria network for cyclists, it connects to the Main cycle path in Ochsenfurt and to the Romantic Road cycle path in Bieberehren. The Gaubahn cycle path is now completely asphalted.
Source: Wikipedia