Although this generated little enthusiasm with the head office, they did show a degree of interest in the original desire for a railway from Simbach to Rotthalmünster.

On 30 January 1897 the Ministry for the Royal Household and Foreign Affairs announced their approval for the scoping of a Lokalbahn from Simbach am Inn to Rotthalmünster.

In 1897 the state construction engineer, Ernst Arnold, started to plan a line to run alongside the River Inn to Rotthalmünster.

The mayor, Johann Abtmaier, justified this on the grounds that otherwise Kößlarn would be isolated, a situation that would force them to oppose any project for a railway alongside the Inn.

's general manager, Gustav Ebermayer, ignored the letter, but let it be known that they were prepared to carry out a scoping exercise for a line from Rotthalmünster to Kößlarn on payment of 1,000 gold marks.

Immediately, Pastor Franz Xaver Almer complained to the head office that the railway was being built too close to the vicarage and its grounds.

In order to travel by rail from Simbach to Passau at that time the trains had to pass through Austrian territory for 84 kilometres, a journey that took five to six hours.

There were also complaints that those participating in a pilgrimage from Passau to Altötting had to pay 2,000 marks for travelling on the Austrian Railway and had to put up with customs inspections as well.

A proposal from the Hartkirchen community to run the planned line via their village, was refused, because it would have meant the link being almost twenty kilometres long rather than eight.

In 1921 four pairs of trains ran daily from Simbach to Pocking, the journey time for the 28.4 kilometres being 105 minutes; which represented an average speed of 16 km/h.

On the Tutting–Kößlarn railway three pairs of trains worked the line each day, taking 38 minutes to traverse the 9.8 kilometre long route.