district of Heilbronn in Elsenz and the former section to its terminus Hilsbach is part of the Rhein-Neckar district. The route of the disused Odenheim–Hilsbach section A cycle path that runs on the route of the old line begins on the other side of the street immediately after the current end of the line at Odenheim. Only a few metres after the start of the closed section there is a train signal, which was forgotten during the dismantling of the line. Near the next level crossing was the location of Odenheim Ost station, which was the end of the line from 1975 to 1986. At the eastern edge of Odenheim, the line was demolished over a length of about three hundred metres for the realignment of state highway 552. In Tiefenbach, the former line has also been converted into a cycle path. The railway viaduct over the Katzbach valley in Eichelberg is still preserved. It was renovated in 1988 by the City of Östringen at a cost of 155,000 Deutsche Marks and converted into a hiking and biking trail. The Elsenz station building has now been converted into residential accommodation; elsewhere in Elsenz the route of the line has been built on, but some sleepers still exist in Elsenz. Between Elsenz and Hilsbach the line climbs almost entirely through meadows and fields. There are also other smaller bridges over streams, including in Tiefenbach and Hilsbach, which are now used for hiking trails. History Planning, construction and opening of the line (1870–1898) In the 1870s, Bruchsal campaigned unsuccessfully for a rail link with the towns on the Kraichbach: Ubstadt, Unteröwisheim, Oberöwisheim, Münzesheim and Gochsheim. More than a decade later, the city took the initiative in 1888 to build, together with the municipalities in the Kraichbach and the Katzbach valleys, a narrow gauge branch line with two branches, separating in Ubstadt. The northern line would run through Odenheim to Elsenz and the southern branch up the Kraichbach valley to Gochsheim. Originally planned to run as far as Elsenz, it was decided that the line would initially run only as far as Odenheim because of the hilly terrain between Odenheim and Elsenz. At the same time, it was also decided that the line would be built at standard gauge. On 5 March 1896, what is now called the Katzbach railway was opened from Bruchsal to Odenheim together with the Kraich Valley Railway between