Lauffen bus crash

A bus chartered by German Railways on a regular service collided with an express train on the Tübingen to Würzburg (via Stuttgart) route at level crossing number 47 at Lauffen am Neckar.

The bus was operating a rail replacement service for the Zabergäu Railway along the stretch from Leonbronn to Lauffen.

According to the accounts of former railway workers, the bus was running late, but the passengers were anxious to catch the connection from Lauffen to Würzburg.

Horst Siebecke's Schallplatte des Jahres 1959 (LP of 1959) recalls the accident as being one of the most important events of the year.

A memorial was later erected at the place where the accident occurred and a commemorative ceremony was held there on the 50th anniversary.