Gornergrat Railway
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A train approaching the summit station
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Overview | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Native name | Gornergrat Bahn (GGB) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Operation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Owner | BVZ Holding | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Technical | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Line length | 9.339 km (5.803 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Track gauge | 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge[1][2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Highest elevation | Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rack system | Abt[1][2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Gornergrat Railway (German: Gornergrat Bahn; GGB) is a mountain rack railway, located in the Swiss canton of Valais. It links the resort village of Zermatt, situated at Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). above mean sea level, to the summit of the Gornergrat. The Gornergrat railway station is situated at an altitude of Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value)., which makes the Gornergrat Railway the second highest railway in Europe after the Jungfrau, and the highest open-air railway of the continent. The line opened in 1898, and was the first electric rack railway to be built in Switzerland.[1][2][3]
The Gornergrat is a starting point for many hikes, as it lies surrounded by 29 peaks rising above Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). in the Alps and several glaciers, including the Gorner Glacier (which is billed as the second longest glacier in the Alps). At the end of the line on Gornergrat, the Matterhorn is visible on a clear day. It is also a popular skiing area.[3]
The Gornergrat Railway Ltd (Gornergrat Bahn AG) is a wholly owned subsidiary of BVZ Holdings AG, who are also the majority owners of the Matterhorn Gotthard Verkehrs AG, the company that operates the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB), with which the GGB connects in Zermatt.[3][4]
Contents
History
Work on the railway started in 1896, five years after the Visp-Zermatt-Bahn had linked Zermatt to Visp and the Rhone Valley. The line opened on August 20, 1898, and was electrified from the start. Initially it only operated in summer, but year-round operation was extended to the lower section of the line in 1929, and to the summit in 1941.[3][5]
The upper terminal was remodelled in 2004.[citation needed]
Operation
Route
There are several passenger stops on the line:[6][7]
Station | Distance | Height (AMSL) | Notes |
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Zermatt |
0.00
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1,605 m (5,266 ft)
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Link to Matterhorn Gotthard Railway and the Zermatt–Sunnegga funicular |
Findelbach |
1.75 km (1.09 mi)
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1,770 m (5,810 ft)
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Riffelalp |
4.03 km (2.50 mi)
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2,211 m (7,254 ft)
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Link to the Riffelalp tram, providing connection to Riffelalp Resort |
Riffelberg |
6.47 km (4.02 mi)
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2,582 m (8,471 ft)
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With a three-star hotel |
Rotenboden |
7.91 km (4.92 mi)
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2,815 m (9,236 ft)
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Gornergrat |
9.34 km (5.80 mi)
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3,089 m (10,135 ft)
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With a three-star hotel and observatory |
The are also freight only stations at Ladegleis Findelbach, which is on a short branch from the passenger station at Findelbach, and at Riffelboden, which is situated between Riffelalp and Riffelberg passenger stations.[7]
Infrastructure
The line is Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). in length, including Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). of double track, and traverses an altitude difference of Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value).. It is built to metre gauge (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) and uses the Abt rack system throughout. It is one of four lines in the world using three-phase electric power, requiring two overhead conductors, with the track forming the third conductor.[1][2]
Rolling stock
The line uses the following rolling stock:[7]
Image | Numbers | Notation | Year | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
3001/3003 | He 2/2 | 1898 | Locomotives. Unit 3002 survives, and is displayed on a roundabout at Stalden. | |
3015 | Dhe 2/4 | Baggage car, rebuilt from sister car to 3019-3022 | ||
180px | 3017 | Xhe 2/4 | Works car, rebuilt from sister car to 3019-3022. Carries re-railing equipment and equipment to apply anti-freeze to the overhead wires. | |
180px | 3019-3022 | Bhe 2/4 | 1947-61 | Single unit railcars, remaining four cars of a once much larger class (3011-3022). Two other members of this class have been rebuilt (3015/3017), the remainder have been scrapped. |
180px | 3041-3044 | Bhe 4/8 | 1965-75 | Twin unit railcars |
180px | 3051-3054 | Bhe 4/8 | 1993 | Twin unit railcars |
180px | 3061-3062 | Bhe 4/4 | 1981 | Multi-purpose railcars, which can operate in passenger service with matching driving trailers Bt 3071-3072, or in freight/works service. |
180px | 3081-3084 | Bhe 4/6 | 2006 | Low floor two-section articulated railcars, built by Stadler Rail.[8] |
The railway typically operates two-railcar trains, and can carry approximately 2,500 people per hour from Zermatt to the mountain summit.[7]
Gallery
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Riffelalp intermediate station. In the left, beside station building, the track of the Riffelalptram
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Cite error: Invalid
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- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Harris, Ken (Ed.) (2001). Jane's World Railways 2001–2002 (43rd edition), p. 352. Coulsdon, Surrey (UK): Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0-7106-2335-5.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
![]() |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gornergratbahn. |
- Gornergrat Bahn website (English version)
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Pages with reference errors
- Articles that mention track gauge 1000 mm
- Articles containing German-language text
- Articles with unsourced statements from June 2014
- Pages with broken file links
- Commons category link is locally defined
- Railway lines in Switzerland
- Metre gauge railways in Switzerland
- Mountain railways
- Railway companies of Switzerland
- Railway lines opened in 1898
- Railways using three-phase power
- Rack railways of Switzerland
- Electric railways in Switzerland
- Transport in Zermatt
- 1898 establishments in Switzerland