Since the line, apart from the sections mentioned above, never had great significance for passenger traffic, it was connected with the other lines in the region and optimised for the transport of freight after the BME's nationalisation and integration into the Prussian state railways.
The Osterath-Dortmund Süd railway of the RhE was closed to the west of Bochum Präsident and instead traffic ran via route 2152 through Bochum-Riemke station connecting to the Bochum-Herne line.