Rhätische Bahn sets a record!
The Rhaetian Railway established a record for the world’s longest narrow gauge passenger train and exploited the scenic abilities of one of its best lines through the Alps for that attempt. The company ran the 1.9-kilometre-long train composed of 100 coaches on its UNESCO heritage world famous Albula line between…
Auto train for a rack railway
The Appenzeller Bahn (AB) in Switzerland has ordered a rack-and-pinion rail vehicle for its 1.96km long Bergbahn Rheineck–Walzenhausen. The line has one intermediate station at Ruderbach. What is most unusual for this rack railway is its new vehicle is to be fully automated and have no driver – thus the…
Transports Publics Fribourgeois #3
With the conversion of the line from Bulle to Broc-Fabrique (and its continuation as a private rail network right into the Nestle chocolate factory itself) the delightful La Gruyère system (the GFM, aka the Gruyère-Fribourg-Morat or as it was officially known, the Compagnie des Chemins de fer Fribourgeois) is no…
Transports Publics Fribourgeois #2
This second part covers the new Bulle station and the famous Bulle to Broc line in part. This line is famous because it connected directly to the celebrated Nestle chocolate factory in Broc. Also famous for considerable standard gauge freight traffic carried via the narrow gauge as well as the…
Transports Publics Fribourgeois upgrade
In the canton of Fribourg, the TPF (previously known as the GFM) has a long metre gauge route (as well as two standard gauge lines) that make up the authority’s diverse transportation offerings, which include trolleybuses. Enhancements have been made to almost all of the company’s lines, including the standard…
Köln – Bonner Eisenbahn
The Köln-Bonner Eisenbahn’s (KBE – or the Cologne to Bonn Railway) Rheinuferbahn once provided local and express trains between Köln and Bonn. There was a substantial freight operation too with large marshalling yards servicing local industries. The company stayed independent to the very end and it would have been around…