Bahn, although there are no services at night between 1:00 am and 4:00 am. These services start and end at the station. Passenger numbers vary between 800 and 1000 per day. Railway traffic continues to play an important role in Ilmenau, as many of the 7,000 students at the Technical University travel by train. Since 2009, the student of the Technical University of Ilmenau and other Thuringian universities can use the Semesterticket Thüringen on all regional rail services in Thuringia for €24.90 per semester. Current freight operations Until 2016, garbage was loaded on freight trains by Rennsteigbahn in Ilmenau and transported to the waste incineration plant in Leuna. In addition to the daily garbage traffic, the Deponie Wolfsberg (Wolfsberg landfill) near Wümbach is also slowly being transferred. There are also occasional trains carrying timber that pass through Ilmenau on the way out of the Thuringian Forest. V 100 diesel locomotives are usually used for hauling freight trains. Station forecourt The Ilmenau station forecourt was redesigned in 2000. The area has been laid out for traffic, along with a 50-metre-wide and 200 metre-long park. There are some old trees, hedges, meadows and flowerbeds. As "a welcome sign" all travellers who leave the station are greeted by miniature replicas of a Kickelhahn tower and the Goethehäuschen (Goethe's cabin). There is a taxi stand directly in front of the station. To the right there is the bus station, which was redesigned at the end of 1999. The bus station is located on the northern part of the station forecourt and has six bus platforms as well as a covered waiting area for passengers and parking for buses. It is served daily by about 300 buses. The bus station is a public transport node for the south of the Ilm district. As part of the station renovations until 2014, the area around the station was also refurbished. The platform, the cobblestone pavement of the forecourt, pedestrian paths and parking lots were partly re-laid. References Railway stations in Thuringia Railway stations in Germany opened in 1879 Buildings and structures in Ilm-Kreis