Bad Cannstatt station is the second largest station of the German city of Stuttgart after Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof and has eight platform tracks. Together with Untertürkheim station, it is the oldest station in Württemberg. History During the planning of the original railway in Württemberg, the Württemberg Central Railway (), it was proposed to provide a station for the city of Cannstatt with its 5,500 inhabitants. The original proposal for the line consisted of a connection between the proposed Stuttgart Central Station to Cannstatt, where it would branch towards Esslingen and Ludwigsburg. Because of Stuttgart's geographical location, the route via Cannstatt was the only feasible route for a railway with the technology of the time. On 5 October 1845, the first railway in Württemberg was opened from Cannstatt to Untertürkheim. Following the completion of the Rosenstein Tunnel on 4 July 1846, the first train ran into Stuttgart station on 26 September 1846. With increasing traffic, Cannstatt needed a new station. The old district town and spa of Cannstatt and Stuttgart had grown together. The current station building was built during the First World War. Originally there were magnificent hotels for the many guests of the spa. A plastic sculpture, called Schienenhaufen (rail piles) by Karl-Heinz Franke, was installed in the forecourt in 1985, commemorating the opening of the first railway in Württemberg 140 years earlier. A comprehensive modernisation of the station was completed for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in May 2006, after 20 months of work. Lifts were installed to provide barrier-free access to the platforms and the platform paving was renewed, while the listed platform canopies were preserved. The underpass running under the station was rebuilt with granite and the forecourt to the south facing the Cannstatter Wasen was refurbished. The costs were around €6 million to Deutsche Bahn, with additional funds from the state's Municipal Transport Financing Act (Gemeindeverkehrsfinanzierungsgesetz), the City of Stuttgart and the Stuttgart Region. Prospects In the course of the Stuttgart 21 rail project, various modifications to the station are planned. The tracks at the western end of the station will be replaced by new lines being built as part of the project. Platforms 2 (tracks 2 and 3) and 3 (tracks 4 and 5) will be shortened, and according to DB information will no longer be used.<ref name="s21-pfa15-1III-2006-06-09_48">{{cite book|publisher=DB ProjektBau GmbH, Niederlassung Nordwest |title= Planfeststellungsunterlagen. Umgestaltung des Bahnknotens Stuttgart. Ausbau- und Neubaustrecke Stuttgart - Augsburg.