It is an important section of the so-called Saxon-Franconian trunk line from Dresden to Nuremberg.

That is, it was financed by the city of Bayreuth and the line was built and subsequently leased by the Bavarian government.

In the past trains from Bayreuth had to change direction in Neuenmarkt-Wirsberg to continue up the famous Schiefe Ebene (German: inclined plane) to Hof.

The opening of the Schlömen curve in 2001, which allows Neuenmarkt-Wirsberg to be bypassed to the east, improved the connectivity of the line to the northeast considerably.

As a result, even some long-distance trains (ICE TD) on the Nuremberg–Dresden route now use the line.