KBS 440 Hagen - Siegen /(Haiger) History: The route from Hagen to Siegen was built between 1858 and 1861 by Bergisch-Markische Eisenbahn. The need for this came from a requirement to transport coal from the Ruhr-area to the steel mills around Siegen more efficiently. Largely following the river Lenne, once south of Altenhundem it passes over several flood plains on its route to Siegen. The mainline is used mostly by freight trains to carry wood, coal and steel and was the most important reason behind the growth of the line. This resulted in an expansion to two tracks in 1870 to cope with the growing traffic volumes. From the beginning, Altenhundem was the only passenger station in the Lenne-valley and had its own maintenance depot. This was later followed with further stations at Finnentrop and Letmathe, which also gained depots to look after rolling stock. For a long time, the route from Hagen to Siegen was a main connection between the Ruhr area and Frankfurt. Traditional stops for fast trains were established at Hagen, Letmathe, Altena, Finnentrop, Altenhundem, Kreuztal and Siegen. Sadly though, other more prominent connections around Germany have since been developed and this winding valley line has begun to decline. Many of its smaller yards and workshops to maintain trains have closed and now lay derelict. Focus Time Period: Chosen for its mixture of Freight and Passenger operation, this route has been constructed around the period of the late 90s.