Hanover Stadtbahn

Hanover Stadtbahn is a light urban rail transport (Stadtbahn, lit. 'city railway') system in the city of Hanover, the capital of Lower Saxony, Germany. It opened on 29 September 1975, gradually replacing the city's tramway (Straßenbahn) network over the course of the subsequent 25 years. As of 2024, the Hanover Stadtbahn system has 12 main lines (lines 1–11 and 17), one weekend express night line (line 10E), and two supplemental lines (lines 16 and 18), serving 201 stations (including 19 underground and 124 high-platform stations), operating on 121 kilometres (75 mi) of route. The system is run by üstra, which was originally an abbreviation for Überlandwerke und Straßenbahnen Hannover AG. In 2007 Hanover Stadtbahn transported 125 million passengers per year.

Three types of light rail cars operate on the system: the TW 6000, built from 1974 to 1993, the TW 2000 (the so-called Silberpfeil, lit. 'silver arrow'), built from 1997 to 1999, and the TW 3000, which was first introduced into A line service in 2015. The system is used extensively, especially during trade shows on the Hanover fairground like CeBIT and the Hannover Messe. It makes up for more than 60% of the GVH transport association's total traffic, spanning over four cities and two counties. Hanover Stadtbahn is complemented by the Hanover S-Bahn, a suburban heavy rail network that links the outlying suburbs and towns, as well as Hanover Airport, to the city centre.