Stadler SSB Zacke Stuttgart

For Stuttgart’s historic rack railway, known locally as the “Zacke”, we developed a new exterior livery and designed the accompanying bicycle trailer. The design takes inspiration from the railway’s distinctive rack-and-pinion system and turns this technical feature into a visible part of the vehicle’s identity. The 2.2-kilometre line connects Marienplatz with Degerloch, climbing around 210 metres and tackling gradients of up to 17.8%. This makes it one of Germany’s most distinctive urban railways. On uphill journeys, the purpose-built bicycle trailer runs in front of the railcar and can carry up to 20 bicycles.